<p>I have to agree with worried mom.</p>
<p>For conservative Catholic colleges - check the Newman Guide ([The</a> Newman Guide to Choosing a Catholic College](<a href=“http://www.thenewmanguide.com%5DThe”>http://www.thenewmanguide.com)).</p>
<p>Catholic U was put back on the Newman Guide so it has made moves to a more conservative university.
My daughter likes Holy Cross because although it’s not like “Franciscan Univ” it has the option to be very involved as a conservative Catholic, clubs, involvement in church, many masses during the week/weekend and all are accepted. For her, just being among students that were all very conservative wasn’t for her, but if you wanted to be, you could find a place.
I was surprised to see Providence College on it now…it’s affiliated with our Dominican church but was never thought of as very conservative at all. I think one difference is that although Providence has for instance and gay alliance club, they aren’t allowed to use that word, have to call it something else and I’m sure the college doesnt’ fund anything, while HC does.</p>
<p>Thanks, all. Yes, Worried_mom, I agree. I’m afraid that a “Catholic” school that covers the crucifix to avoid offending anyone and a school that runs a festival that features “The Vagina Monologues” will not be on our list of conservative schools. Thanks, again!</p>
<p>If you are looking for Catholic colleges with engineering programs, Marquette, Saint Louis University and Catholic University would be choices. My son applied to all three and got approximately 18K/year in merit aid from each of them. Their cost was still out of reach, and we were not willing to borrow 20 to 30K a year. He attends a southern state flagship now with a full scholarship, but their excellent parish and Catholic center were a big deciding factor in his willingness to not attend a Catholic school after having attended them his entire life.</p>
<p>We missed the gigundo-scholarship deadline for Christendom, alas. Son has been accepted at Belmont Abbey and is in the running for a $23,000 scholarship, but we need to figure out a way to make up the rest of the cost of attendance (another $12,000).</p>
<p>Our excellent state university system (NC) is much more reasonably priced and offers some full-ride scholarships. But it’s liberal as all get-out.</p>
<p>Dilemmas, dilemmas!</p>
<p>Montegut – what state are you in? Which flagship university? Thanks!!</p>
<p>Update: Older son (and our entire family) visited Belmont Abbey College this past weekend. Older son LOVED it, and we were very impressed, too. It’s in the process of recovering its Catholic identity <em>big-time,</em> and the atmosphere there is vibrant and exciting…you get a sense that something big is afoot. </p>
<p>The weekend was for applicants to the various special scholarship programs (e.g., Honors Institute), and the applicants were hosted by current students. My son really liked his host student, who was an amazingly mature and devoutly Catholic young freshman.</p>
<p>Academic rigor is on the rise there, too, and programs are expanding. Both the college president and the academic dean are stand-up people who (with God’s help) are helping to transform the College. Not that it’s all the way there yet, but it is definitely trending in the right direction.</p>
<p>Before we visited, I was somewhat iffy about BAC – mostly because we could get a much better financial deal at our UNC-system schools. But, after visiting, I’m almost as excited about BAC as my son is.</p>
<p>More info:</p>
<p>Apparently BAC used to be mainly a regional college. Now current students and applicants alike are coming from all over the country and beyond. I think that’s part of the excitement. Like other Newman Society-recommended colleges, BAC is drawing serious Catholic students looking for a solid alternative to the Holy Cross / BC-type Catholic colleges. (We ran into a family from Michigan whose members and relatives had attended Franciscan – but their youngest daughter really wanted to go to Belmont Abbey instead.)</p>
<p>Should mention, also, that the College is technically run by Benedictine monks (although most of the professors nowadays are laypeople). The Abbey itself is right behind the Basilica, a gorgeous Gothic structure that dominates the front part of the campus. Unfortunately, in 1964 the monks had the basilica interior “wreckovated.” It could have been a lot worse – at least they used natural materials like brick and wood and stone, and they did leave the interior’s Gothic “bones” in place. But mamma mia–that “flying Jesus” which replaced the original Crucifix has GOT to go. It is ugly as sin, and it makes Jesus look like a large winged insect. Man, that '60s aesthetic got dated so fast!! I hope the monks will get a clue about that and replace “Flying Jesus” with, say, a lovely Byzantine-style Crucifix (which IMHO would perfectly fit both the nave design and the Benedictine sensibility).</p>
<p>As a graduate of UD way back when, I can attest to the fact that it is not a conservative and/or Catholic college in the true sense of the word. They have a very unusual approach to their Catholic Identity and let the LGBTQ group openly advocate for their cause. Check out CNS for info on their activities. I would put them in the category of BC and Georgetown as far as their “Catholic Identity” goes. They also offer internships with ‘questionable’ groups that don’t necessarily follow Catholic teaching. Sadly lacking in Religious Faculty as well. Only two religious on their board of a Marianist College.</p>
<p>Just want to clarify that the “UD” NonFaithfulBlog is referring to is the University of Dayton, a Marianist college in Dayton, OH.</p>
<p>–Not to be confused with the OTHER “UD”–the University of Dallas, a small Catholic liberal arts college sponsored by the diocese of Dallas, TX.
U. Dallas is in the Newman Guide and is one of the more conservative Catholic schools.</p>
<p>Thanks, atomom. I for one was confused and thought U of Dallas was meant.</p>
<p>DS was just accepted into Ave Mari. No word re financial aid opportunities. Total COA is reasonable (about $27K, I believe) but still beyond us. Apparently they are re-doing their meerit aid opportunities, because that part of their website is under construction.</p>
<p>Question: Does anyone here have or know a kid who attends Ave Maria? It’s so new that students review dot com does not contain any reviews of it. I am very, very interested in learning how students perceive it. I know there has been some controversy connected with it, but I get the sense it is a wonderfully Catholic school. My dad used to live in Naples, so we are familiar with the area.</p>
<p>Providence College is a great place. There’s a variety of students there; some go to mass daily, some only on Sundays, and some not at all. The chapel basement is always open for students to hang out or study. There’s a very conservative atmosphere on campus; the school is sending 110 students on the march for life this January. (with more on a waiting list!) With the exception of the sociology department and part of the political science department, the faculty are decently conservative, or at least middle of the road. I’m a conservative Catholic and I absolutely love the place.</p>
<p>I have to take back some schools I have listed. The word “conservative” has different meanings for different people. Ideally, it should be the one that is applied to schools that are obedient to the Holy Father. One thing that the Holy Father is pushing for is for the return of the traditional Latin Mas. Some of these schools are anti-traditional Latin mass. So then, these schools are not conservative.</p>
<p>I would like to thank aotomom for clarifying the differences between University of Dallas and University of Dayton…They are at completely opposite ends of the spectrum. Dallas is a very good conservative Catholic school…Dayton is NOT.
Lady Dianeski has asked about Ave Maria. Recently, they have expelled their Order of Nuns after it was found out they are not who they say they are. Their “Priest” went with them. Also, at last check, the Bishop of the Diocese there in Naples hasn’t actually granted them “Catholic Status”, though they seem to be in the Faithful corner if CNS is to be believed, but I would do more research in the Diocese before sending my Children there. There was also a problem with them taking a donation from Mr. Gallisano for one of their buildings due to his support for abortion. He subsequently denied any support for Abortion and The Cardinal Newman Society printed the retraction. However, there is still some doubt due to the fact that the administration of the school wants to set up a laboratory on campus that has been shown to sponsor and take part in Embryonic Stem Cell Reach. Hence, the problem with Ave Maria.</p>
<h2>Re:</h2>
<p>Absolutely not. A lot of them are liberal and many faithful Catholics are wondering why on earth the Cardinal or even the Pope are allowing these schools to bear the name Catholic.</p>
<p>This is just one example of a Catholic School that is as uncatholic in it’s character as you can imagine :</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.studentsforacademicfreedo…ls-1984-moment%5B/url%5D”>http://www.studentsforacademicfreedo…ls-1984-moment</a></p>
<hr>
<p>It is a sad state of affairs when PC is what rules the college campus environment rather than free and open discussion.</p>
<p>Holy Cross is pretty conservative for a Jesuit school</p>
<p>It is hard to believe any NE college is conservative, especially one in Massachusetts.</p>
<p>D1, you’ve said a mouth-full! As one enlightened NE guidance guru told me once, “most of our folks think the world ends at the Hudson and that Buffalo, NY is where the buffalo still roam.” It is all relative, for sure. And much of NE sees the world a whole lot different than them from Iowa and Ohio.</p>
<p>Or as Forrest Gump might wax, “Conservative is as conservative does.” I’m pretty sure MA and IA use drastically different dictionaries. 
Try and picture Teddy Kennedy being elected in Indiana! :eek: And re-elected half dozen times! :eek: :eek: :eek:</p>
<p>“RUN FORREST! RUN!” 
</p>