Daughter is interested in a school up north in Michigan. We are from Kentucky. The school was wonderful, treated my daughter really well. Now that we are back home, I’ve been reading/hearing about whose children did not fit into a school because of their own accent and where they are from? She does not carry an accent herself, never really getting along with any of the Kentucky/Southern word choices, ideas etc. Strongly I feel she’s more midwest than southern. Any insight would be appreciated here. Thank you.
To be honest, I think you are making a mountain out of a mole hill here. There will be students from all over the planet going to her school. As such, there will be plenty of unique dialects and accents on campus.
Focus instead on other “fit” factors like campus layout, size, weather, surrounding areas, campus culture, etc. If she likes the school based on these things, it’s probably the right fit.
Are there any “red flags” that make you think your daughter won’t fit in? Where do most of the students come from? Does it draw from the entire country or do most of the students come from Michigan? If the students are fairly homogenous (e.g., religion or region) or it is a commuter school, this may influence your daughter’s experience quite a bit, positively or negatively. On the other hand, going to school out of state is commonplace, and as @fractalmstr suggests, if your daughter chose the school, she must think that it is a good fit.
I agree with the other posters. I would think that the accent could be a positive. It makes her unique. It also gives other a very easy way to start up a conversation and break the ice.
The only times an accent would a problem is if people cannot make out the words. I live in the south as a former Yankee and have never had a problem understanding a southern accent. Still have a problem understanding grits and hush puppies though.
Mmm, grits and hush puppies!
I really don’t think this will be a problem at all. She might get lightly teased about the Southern accent (I have a gentle Southern accent that only comes out when I get enthusiastic or upset - or start talking about Atlanta - and I’ve been teased about it before - but it was a good-natured kind of teasing from friends!). But really, regionalisms aren’t quite like coming from another country or something; they’re just slight dialectic or mannerism differences that are more quirky and interesting. Very few people will think about this, let alone treat her differently because of it.
I actually have a lot of friends from Michigan and some aspects of the Midwest are quite similar to Southern culture and mannerisms, lol!
I’m a Michigander and I personally love having southern classmates! I’ve never been to the south, so I love hearing about the differences and things like that. It’s also cool to hear a different accent than our fast, slurred ramble. No one I know makes fun of anyone for having an accent or using different jargon. It’s usually very interesting for us to learn about.
I actually work with a girl from Texas who doesn’t have an accent (she grew up in an urban area or something) and it’s so fun. The snowstorm we just got was the first time she ever experienced a big snowfall, and it felt good to welcome someone to the world of the Midwest and its sometimes merciless winters (which aren’t as bad as the northeast, especially this year)
I wouldn’t worry about this at all.
Another Michigander here, and my family is from the south, so this is something I’ve taken note of. People here LOVE a southern accent, I think because everyone here seems to sounds the same. I think her accent will actually draw people in and be a great ice breaker when making friends!