<p>Ok, our largest "city" in Vermont has about 45,000 people. We love our city and I would say we can get anything we really need here. And lots of wonderful specialty products and a great sense of home. I love NYC too, but a whole lotta asphalt does not a great city make. Our pretty little city on Lake Champlain is just wonderful.</p>
<p>My son chose a tiny little campus in a tiny Midwest town--another jewel, I am sure.</p>
<p>I will say I LOVED St. Louis on a recent visit. The incredible arch and the people I met there--what a treat!</p>
<p>Bear in mind that the OP is also looking at schools near cities, and not only in them. Northfield (Carleton) isn't too much to speak of, but as I recall, it's hardly an hour out of the Twin Cities. When I visited the school, I didn't get the impression that the relatively close proximity was very important to students (actually kind of a turn-off for me), though I could easily have been incorrect.</p>
<p>It's also unclear whether the nearness to a city has more to do with urban "feel" of campus or with the likelihood of having dance/cultural offerings nearby. I'm from the Sacramento area, for example, which a lot of Californians tend to scoff at (proper population around 400k, metro area is around 2million). The city comes nowhere near to the urban "feel" of San Francisco or LA, but the art and cultural opportunities are excellent, nonetheless.</p>
<p>The University of Richmond has both outstanding science programs and a very strong dance program, although it is offered only as a minor. The city of Richmond is home to about 1 million in the metro area and the campus is on the fringe of the city in a beautiful suburban area. Focused on undergrads, of whom there are about 3000, it is a highly personalized place. If memory serves, the woman who graduated #1 in our class last year was a science major/dance minor who is now in med school at Duke. </p>
<p>There is merit money available for both science and dance as well as a generous need-based aid policy that meets 100% of eligibility for aid with mostly grant money. </p>
<p>Drew University in Madison, NJ just announced a new Dance minor effective Spring, 2008 under the auspices of their well-respected Theater Arts program. Drew is located on a commuter line only about an hour to NYC. And, as an added bonus, the campus is beautiful.</p>
<p>There are many schools that have Dance departments but there's a large drop-off in the numbers that have good ballet, most concentrating on modern and sometimes jazz. And some that have ballet have it only to the intermediate level, which isn't going to be satisfactory to someone who has been doing ballet for years.</p>
<p>If a school does have ballet classes, look at what department they're a part of: Dance department, excellent; theater arts, generally okay. Physical education, ummm...no. Then there are the EC groups. Stanford's Cardinal Ballet is a great opportunity, assuming you can get into Stanford.</p>
<p>There are schools that have excellent ballet but wouldn't fit for the OP's niece, such as Utah and Indiana, which have good ballet but are more modest in terms of academic challenge.</p>
<p>Thank you so much for the suggestions - some great ones. I realize there are some competing criteria - i.e. city and nurturing, etc. but with this feedback I think we can get started looking. Thank you.</p>
<p>Oh, I'm glad you realize that there could be competing criteria...I started a post about that, and no matter how I worded it, I knew I was setting up myself to be attacked! Been there, done that! I'll be watching for the progress for movingirl..... maybe will save some effort for astrogirl2 next year!</p>
<p>I know some may think that his doesn't fit into the "nurturing" category, but you should take a look at the University of Michigan. The do offer a dance major with ballet instruction. Obviously, the science program is very strong. Ann Arbor itself is very urban and is 15 minutes outside of Detroit. </p>
<p>In terms of being nurturing, I think she would find the School of Music, Theater and Dance to fit the bill. It is a relatively small program, housed in a completely separate section of campus. My two cents.</p>
<p>SBDad -- do you know that you can do both science and dance at Michigan? I know that's virtually impossible at Indiana's conservatory program. And when my son was deciding (like yours) between Michigan and Chicago, and was factoring in the ability to continue dancing, I think he concluded that the University of Chicago was not so great but that he wouldn't necessarily be a lot better off as an LSA student at Michigan. However . . . he's been known to be wrong. And he was definitely cheating towards Chicago.</p>
<p>Vassar. No dance degree, but the ballet here is absolutely top-notch. I also went to a performing arts high school for dance and I love the fact that I'm dancing so much here (there are two fairly high-profile dance groups; I dance five days a week and I feel like I'm in absolutely great condition).</p>
<p>I can tell you that there is no Dance minor at Michigan. You can double major in Dance/Theater/Music and science (LSA) and you would be surprised at how many kids do it. It's definitely the five year plan, but I would think that would happen no matter where you went and wanted Dance and Science.</p>
<p>I can also tell you that my son is taking jazz piano as a non-music major and while enrolled in LS & A for math and philosophy. So if you wanted to just take a class here and there, the opportunity exists.</p>
<p>No, I think this would be tough, but possible at Barnard in four years. The four acre campus makes it very easy to shuttle back and forth between classes, unless a majority of science classes are at Columbia, which shouldn't be the case. Columbia's dance major is at Barnard.</p>
<p>Barnard has advanced ballet, and is ballet-centric.</p>
<p>My d's pediatrician was a dance major at UCSD. Of course extremely strong in science and engineering, but I was surprised to learn that the dance program is very highly rated. La Jolla doesn't really qualify as a city, but San Diego definitely does.</p>
<p>Tulane has a dance program -- the most advanced level of ballet meets four times a week (which is actually pretty good for a college dance program).</p>
<p>Fordham, Boston U, University at Buffalo, Ithaca, Syracuse, UMiami. You would have to actually see how possible it is to take the courses in the different departments. One of my kids found that cobbling certain interdiscipline programs and majors were physically impossible at some schools despite all literature and admissions officers statements that it could be done. Also, if the dance or science classes tend to fill up providing for majors first, leftovers for non or minors, it may not help your D's particular situation.</p>
<p>Just to give you a taste of ballet class availability, here is what I have found in doing some research on the topic:</p>
<p>American University. - Three levels of ballet, each level meets twice a week for 75 minutes. Three levels of modern, meets three times a week for 75 minutes. Unfortunately, fall of 2007 all levels except for beginning were cancelled. NOTE: Some of this class time may be spent in lecture or discussion - mentions reading, papers and the like in association with these classes.</p>
<p>Elon. - three 70 minute classes a week. I believe four levels are offered.</p>
<p>Goucher. - this school is well known for offering dance - both Modern and Ballet meet four times a week - pointe class (twice a week) also available -- each class is 80 minutes.</p>
<p>Ithaca College. Four levels of ballet, class meets three times a week for 90 minutes plus optional 20 minutes of pointe. Instructor looks good, associated with respectable local ballet school. Two levels of modern, meets twice a week for 2 hours.</p>
<p>Occidental. Beginning and Intermediate. Intermediate meets twice a week, 85 minute classes.</p>
<p>Tulane. - Ballet III, four times a week, 80 minute classes. Other levels, two sections of two 80 minute classes - not clear if it is possible to take both. Modern III also meets four 80 minute classes a week.</p>
<p>University of Miami. - two 80 minute classes a week</p>
<p>University of Richmond. - Intermediate Ballet is the highest level offered Fall 2007 - two 75 minute classes-- also, by audition, University Dancers, three company classes a week.</p>
<p>I absolutely concur that Barnard is a great choice for the op. Doing a double major (dance/science) is definitely do-able. My daughter was going to but did not enjoy the "academic" dance classes she did take and decided that she would not want to continue down that road. Actually, pretty much the lowest grades she has gotten at Barnard were in dance/academic dance classes (we are talking a-minus or b-plus, here). She also did not want her overall GPA to be pulled down (she has a very good GPA in neuroscience :) )</p>
<p>Point is, serious dancers can pursue serious training in classical ballet and/or modern even if they are not majoring in dance and are pursuing an "academic" degree...</p>