Are most of the students very religious and conservative?

I want my daughter to see the school, but my husband thinks it’s a bad fit since she is liberal; but not political and not religious, but not opposed to it. She’s technically Protestant, but never attends church or practices a relgion. Are there other like her?

Sewanee is Episcopalian, about as liberal socio-politically as a mainline church is today. Many kids will come from wealthier families, and Episcopalians generally are a richer denomination, but Bob Jones University it ain’t.

Thank you!

I would say that Sewanee is centrist politically, with many students being left and right of center. Alt left and Alt right are not generally present.

It’s not especially religious - like elsewhere in the South many students will come from Christian families and be of faith themselves. In terms of politics it’s more conservative than most LACs but not as much as Hillsdale or W&L.
Can she go spend an overnight and attend classes?

@MYOS1634 Thanks! At this point I’m just looking for schools that she may want to add to her list. I just have a gut feeling that she would like this school. From what I have read, it seems “magical”. We would definitely visit if it is of interest.

son attends Sewanee. I think Centrist is for sure the right label. I would say there is a chance there are a few alt right, and for sure there are far left - just read the Sewanee Purple now and then. The majority of the kids are probably right int he middle.

Hello! I am a HS senior who will be attending Sewanee this fall. After seeing much of the campus and getting to know the student body, I believe that Sewanee is definitely very centrist in all regards. There is an abundance of healthy activism from both more conservative and liberal students, and the constructive dialogue that takes place between people of all political views is refreshing. Granted, the name itself can be a bit off-putting, but please encourage your daughter to look into the school, and if she ever needs a contact I would be happy to help!

@morallyambiguous Thanks so much. That’s very nice of you. I might take you up on that.

Sewanee is one of my DC’s finalists and we’ve visited twice. (“Magical” is a great way to describe it. Just a really great vibe around the place.) IMO, there are more of the trappings of religion due to its roots and the existence of the seminary which is off on one end of campus. It’s definitely worth a visit. My DC is fairly conservative politically, but is very clear that he’s not into religion and he didn’t feel uncomfortable there at all.