Denison does have a weekend shuttle to Easton Town Center, the gigantic mall complex just outside Columbus, as well as to a couple of other locations. My son hasn’t used the service, but I remember reading about it. You mentioned you may visit Denison over a long weekend. If you are staying in the area for just one night, you will probably want to stay at one of the inns right in Granville, but if you have two nights, you might consider staying one night in the Short North arts district in Columbus. We did that over parents weekend - my husband had a meeting at OSU, which is nearby, and I thought my artistic daughter would enjoy the murals in Short North. It was a lot of fun, with some nice hotels (we stayed at the Joseph Meridien, which was great), restaurants, galleries and a wonderful market, in addition to the murals - it’s about ten minutes from Easton Town Center, so you could drive through there if your daughter is interested, and about a half hour from Denison.
@tkoparent We’ve been to Denison! Or S19 and I have. D has not. It was gorgeous if you ask me and, yes, you just walk down the hill to the town. So cute! It was during the summer so we didn’t see campus with kids on it. We thought our tour guide was amazing - a philosophy and comp sci double major with a good sense of humor.
@socaldad2002 : Took your advice & read reviews of several small schools on Niche. Very depressing. Although for one school the reviews were clearly written by the same admissions officer for that school.
The reviews on that site range from praise to anger. Just illustrates that each person has to form their own opinion.
All schools have lots of positive reviews and fewer negative ones so I found it interesting that Niche led off with such horrible reviews of W&L.
P.S. A troubling aspect is that reported first year retention rates seem to contradict the description of some schools on Niche.
For Example: W&L should lose a lot of students if the reviews were accurate, yet the first year retention rate is great & the graduation rate is the highest among all LACs–although tied with Williams College & Bowdoin College.
Niche reviews make Denison University seem like a very nice place, yet the first year retention rate is tied for the worst among the top 55 ranked LACs (tied with The Univ. of The South–Sewanee).
Some times too much information is bad.
I always thought the world was a wonderful place until 24 hour news was created.
With respect to schools, I put more faith in verifiable numbers than I do random individual reviews. To me, retention rates, graduation rates, overall endowment size, endowment per student, employment figures, selectivity, & other verifiable stats hold more weight than individual opinions.
Regardless, I do know that small schools do have distinctive personalities (campus culture), and that an individual opinion is relevant as to whether or not that school is a match.
OP: You are doing the right thing by investigating & visiting LACs as it is important to get a feel for each school’s particular culture.
Not anywhere near as important with larger schools (National Universities, for example) as one can make a large school work regardless of individual tastes. Just need to find your crowd or your comfort zone. It may take a little more time & effort, but it is there.
In short, you can make a big school small, but you cannot make a small school big.
@Publisher just to clarify, on Niche for W&L, I was specifically talking about this section:
“What one word or phrase best describes the typical student at this school?”
Smart, white, rich, entitled, and conservative came up a lot in the surveys that students answered.
If one is looking for a diverse campus, this is not the place for them.
@idiomas gave great info on Dickinson. Seriously think this should be on your list. So much of it fits your criteria. My husband was initially like you about PA schools (and every school outside New England, actually) and was gushing over Dickinson. And if you can get there, Bucknell could be perfect!
Did Trinity (CT) cross your radar?
Connecticut College ticks lots of boxes but I suspect is not what your D is looking for. Campus (lovely!) separate from town, no greek life, etc.
+1 to Dickinson. It was on both of my kids’ final lists.
@socaldad2002 : I understood that was your point. W&L does nothing to hide its campus culture. While it does not match my preferences, OP’s daughter has not expressed any desire for diversity.
W&L is white, rich, privileged, upscale, highest percentage of Greek participation (75%) in the country, beautiful country club like setting & lifestyle. Great job placement into moneyed professions.
W&L is the best at what it does & who it serves.
@gardenstatelegal: I agree that Bucknell University is one for OP’s daughter to consider. Almost Colgate University’s twin, but larger & easier admission. Have not been there in many years, but Lewisburg, Penn. used to have gaslight street lamps. Reasonable distance from Philadelphia, Wash DC, & NYC, but Fiske Guide refers to Bucknell as remote. If accurate, then Colgate is more remote. Both Colgate & Bucknell party in similiar fashion. Both attract a lot of wealthy kids. Both in Patriot League.
Trinity College in Hartford, Conn. may not fit due to iffy area of town & substance prevalence. Trying to switch from prep school laxbro culture.
Dicknson College is interesting, but what about OP’s daughter’s interest in dance ?
Based on OP’s daughter’s current numbers, admission to many of the schools on this thread may be a significant issue. At present, honors colleges are unlikely as are Colgate, Wash & Lee, and Davidson College. Bucknell possible just because of under enrollment last cycle. WFU iffy, but standardized test optional & full pay helps.
Full pay helps, so the Pennsylvania LACs (Dickinson & Gettysburg) are likely as is Elon. Conn College also likely to admit OP’s daughter. Denison as well. Univ. of Richmond likely.
Colorado College is test optional. OP’s daughter has the profile. Probably would be admitted ED to Kenyon College.
One concern I have that keeps arising in my mind is about Davidson College.
OP’s son was admitted last cycle & turned down Davidson. OP’s daughter’s stats are much different than her brother’s.
Davidson is a small school.
@Publisher I think she would have to ED to Davidson. I agree that it doesn’t look great that S was admitted and did not attend.
As for discussion about her scores, it’s only Dec of junior year. Maybe I started this thread too early but I don’t want to have a lot of discussion around her scores staying where they are. That’s premature. Perhaps that time will come but she’s got nine months to get a higher score.
Also D’s current stats are much different that S19? Well, certainly her last ACT score is different but her grades are similar and she’s got the exact same classes that he does except for math this year. And, while he did have strong ECs and recs, I think hers are similarly strong.
Some of these schools are reaches but OP is open to full pay for right fit so ED could be an option which should boost acceptance odds.
Every school has a culture and W&L’s is pretty well known. Great school but not for everyone.
+2 Dickinson or maybe add Swarthmore? I still like the original list of Davidson and WF. WF is southern but it’s a little larger and attracts students from outside NC.
Bucknell is a pretty campus. I almost attended back in the day. It is rural and has had a reputation as a drinking school.
Bucknell’s location is an obstacle for students who are flying. Too far from a major airport. (Too challenging, in my opinion.)
OP has shared that daughter is not as intellectual as son, so Swarthmore would be an unusual choice. Swarthmore College is much more like Princeton than the schools under consideration in this thread, in my opinion.
Agree that Bucknell, like Colgate, has a reputation–well deserved–for drinking. Same for Lehigh, Union, Wash & Lee, and others which have also been mentioned on this thread. Reality of college life especially at small schools in cold weather environments.
The twist in this search is daughter’s interest in dance & strong school spirit. Maybe I misunderstand, but my thoughts run to halftime performances. Is my perception incorrect ? Is OP’s daughter seeking a dance curriculum Skidmore College type activity ? Or to be associated with dance performance at school events such as athletics ?
Still wonder if Occidental College, Scripps / Pitzer should be considered.
Dickinson College overlaps: Franklin & Marshall, Gettysburg College, Lafayette College, Hamilton College, Middlebury College, Bucknell University, College of Wm. & Mary, and Skidmore College.
Dickinson moved from EA to ED. ;(
Sounds like a good fit but would have to be RD. It was S19’s only EA and it was nice to get that acceptance under his belt.
Davidson’s rather steep decline in USNWR rank (regardless of whether warranted or even important) may make it an easier admit next cycle. Colleges claim that applications are influenced by changes in rank.
That is a huge bummer…EDI and II now instead of EA. I hate losing good schools with EA options 
@Publisher She’s seeking dance - mostly likely contemporary since ballet is just a more difficult route with a double major and I think she may have moved on from that dream. She misses performing on stage.
So, a place like Bates has that even though it wouldn’t be seen as big rah rah school like Wake.
The point of my thread is to see how her journey evolves. She only has a few things she thinks she might be looking for and hasn’t prioritized much. So, how important is big rah rah for her? How important is dance? How important is warm weather? We don’t know yet. Honestly, I don’t think suggesting more schools make sense until (1) we get an update on scores and (2) we start to visit schools.
Dickinson, Denison, St. Olaf, Santa Clara, Tulane, W&L, Davidson, Wake, Richmond, Elon, Bates, BC, Colgate, W&M on the long list right now. If scores don’t go up, she’ll need to reevaluate.
If applying ED, my understanding is that public university apps may remain active even if one has an ED acceptance. If correct, then identifying at least one public that is of interest is warranted. Perhaps UIUC ?
With tutoring, your daughter should certainly earn a 31/32 ACT score.
Davidson College overlaps reveal its hardworking, intellectual nature: Williams, Amherst, Swarthmore, Bowdoin, Middlebury, Wash & Lee, UNC-Chapel Hill, & Duke. = an All Star group of schools which will should be available to your daughter when she hits her target ACT scores.
I’ll bet that she would love Duke, Vanderbilt, Davidson and the others. As I think about this thread, maybe ACT tutoring should be a focus.
For those following this thread who may be just hearing more about Denison for the first time, its current retention rate according to its Admissions site is 91%. The data US News reports is from 2013-2017 which, while useful for providing a snapshot of that period, does not reflect current life of the school. For instance, if one looked at Denison’s admissions rate from that 2013-2017 period, it would be 45%+, whereas now, it is 29%. A lot has changed over the past 5 years, largely due to the leadership of President Weinberg.
Speaking more broadly to retention rate at schools like Denison, Conn Coll, Dickinson etc. – for some students, these are the their “safety” or “likely” schools and, if they have an excellent academic year, they may try to “trade up” to their original “reach” schools. Anecdotally, the Denison kids we know who transferred made that decision on (1) athletics – insufficient playing time and wanted to see the field, no matter what the school, (2) gpa – they transferred to a “lesser” school to raise their gpa to get into certain health field grad programs; and (3) finances, largely losing merit award after sophomore year because of a sub par gpa.
Again, for those following this thread who are interested in merit aid, it is important to understand the requirements for retaining a merit scholarship. My kid had 1/2 tuition awards from 6 or more schools and all but Denison required a specific gpa by the end of first year or the award was gone, entirely. Denison required a 3.0 after sophomore year and, if the student missed that mark, the award just drops a tier rather than is lost entirely. So, for families searching for merit, make sure to understand the terms of the award when making a decision.