University of Vermont is a public uni but it is one of the smaller ones and has a LAC vibe. It has a very socially and politically active Jewish community. We liked it a lot when we visited.
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Haven’t explored Jewishness at DePaul too extensively but my daughter’s friend is in the Jewish fraternity there, so clearly it’s ok to be Jewish at this Catholic university!
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be careful with the advice you get from people about Jewish life at various schools. It depends what you are looking for. a school can have a VERY small Jewish presence but people will say it’s tolerant and their kid never felt uncomfortable. maybe that’s all you are looking for and that’s fine. but others might be looking for a larger number of Jewish kids for social purposes. I know that for my kid I was not comfortable looking at schools with 1-2% Jewish kids, where she would be lucky to bump into one unless she was really seeking them out.
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And to add to Joe’s fine point- there is a difference between support that’s provided by the community (making sure that every kid who wants one gets invited to a family’s passover seder) vs. resources available on campus (an active and supportive Hillel). Some kids are fine reaching out, organizing, finding the resources; others are looking for regularly scheduled, on-campus programs, a kosher meal option, holiday gatherings, etc. Not knocking the communities (I lived in one- we regularly hosted kids who had nowhere else to go and it was a fantastic experience for my family; we felt bad for the kids who landed at a college with very few official Jewish resources- no chaplain, no programming, etc.) but it does take “more than average” initiative vs. having things convenient and on-campus.
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Just a reminder that the OP is looking for an LAC…
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We also considered whether a strong local Jewish community was close to the college. We simply went on Google Maps and searched for nearby synagogues.
For example, Furman does have an active Hillel but a relatively small two percent of Jewish students. However, the town of Greenville has a very strong and vibrant Jewish community, only a ten-minute drive from campus. Elon, on the other hand, has a large Jewish population of 13 percent and a very active Hillel. However, the closest synagogue is a 40-minute drive.
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Fine…if the student has a car…
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Or Uber
That can get costly if used all the time.
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I know I see my kid’s Uber bills, and he’s not going to service at 11 PM on a Saturday.
I don’t think many college kids will take advantage of a local Jewish community. they want a campus community and peers- that’s what they are there for. I would be sad if my kid had to drive to a local synagogue and hang out with families and children to get her Judaism fix.
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Uber can be less expensive than all in costs of a car though. One has to do the math.
Some campuses also have shared cars that students can use. One of my kid’s schools has a few electric cars to use, but they are often not charged 
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Thanks for pointing that out. I missed the part where she said LAC. In that case, I am revising my answer 
LACs where more than one kid from our synagogue enrolled this year:
Skidmore
Franklin & Marshall
Kenyon
College of Charleston
Elon
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For us having a school where you could be comfortable on and off campus was important. I understand that having a strong Jewish presence on campus is important to you. For us, it was to have both; fortunately, many great options can provide both.
My wife used to recruit a lot of DePaul graduates and the place is the UN, with every ethnicity, religion and country of origin represented. Many students there are either the first in their families to attend college or recent immigrants, including Russian Jews. It is also in Lincoln Park, which is a residential neighborhood filled with bars, restaurants and live music venues.
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Thank you all so much! We have a very robust list and a college visit on the books!
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If you would like more information regarding two of the suggestions made, this Inquirer article featured Muhlenberg:
And Goucher notes its proximity to “the largest Judaica library in the Southeast”:
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