Brandeis officially is non sectarian/secular. It has a large percentage of Jewish students (50 percent, versus ~25 percent at other top ranking schools in the area), and certainly has a Jewish background, but it is not religiously affiliated and certainly has a smaller religious presence than BC or Georgetown, which OP said were not too religious for him (for instance, no code of conduct stemming from religious expectations or mandatory services). I actually think it would fit the OP quite well.
Your preferences sound sort of similar to mine. I would take a look at Tufts, which fits all of your requirements (although I’m not sure about chess there), and maybe Emory if you’re willing to budge on going south.
Also, as someone who will be attending WashU this fall, I just want to clear up the misinformation about the location. WashU is in a rather upscale part of St. Louis - it’s almost like a suburb within a city. While parts of St. Louis are dangerous, this is true of any city. Ferguson is to St. Louis as Queens is to NYC.
Actually parts of Queens are quite lovely…
Queens? Queens is essentially a residential borough in one of the safest large cities in the world.
You liked U Chicago but not UPenn as much. I think Northwestern is much more like UPenn than its Chicago rival.
Haverford seems like a good idea to me too, and its not in Philly.
Yes, instead of Queens they should have said the Bronx. And instead of NYC they should have said Manhattan. All 5 boroughs are part of NYC.
I will also emphasize what has been said about WUSTL. Gorgeous campus, safe area near a lot of “old money” lovely homes. Even the one sketchy area kind of close by, the Delmar Loop, has been completely transformed into a student playground of sorts. While there isn’t a campus anywhere where you don’t have to use common sense to be as safe as possible, WUSTL is as safe or safer than many of the schools being talked about.
I would recommend Tulane and New Orleans, but it sounds like you don’t like the warmer weather, @DetroitLeper. While it is quite pleasant for most of the school year, the first 6 weeks or so can be very warm. Otherwise it fits your criteria pretty well, I think. It would just depend on if you found NOLA charming and quirky or something less. Most people love it, but it isn’t for everyone. Like WUSTL, Tulane is in the most upscale part of NOLA, and quite safe. You would have a very good shot at a full tuition scholarship, I think. I can’t say if chess is still big there, but the first World Champion, Paul Morphy, lived in New Orleans. In fact Tulane owned the building in the French Quarter where he lived for many years, before it then became a famous restaurant. Lots of interesting history like that in New Orleans, a lot of it yet to be told in a coherent way.
The Bronx? As in Riverdale? Not everyone has that kind of money.
Macalester is a strong LAC that’s urban and quirky. Carleton would fit the bill, too (college town, quirky, very smart). Both meet 100% need. Haverford and Davidson (Philly/ the South = try to look into it before you turn them down. :p) have no-loan financial packages and are in/near cities. Amherst is in a college town. Emory in Atlanta. American is quirkier than Georgetown and GW and you’d likely earn merit aid.
Word about American, more on a social note, its a dry campus, and sort of by its lonesome…several of my interns went to AU and frequently remark how boring their “hood” is compared to the rest of DC…
@fallenchemist Thanks for the insight. As a kibitzer, though, I must point out that although Paul Morphy was far better than anyone else at the time, he wasn’t World Champion. The first of those was Steinitz, the creator of positional play. The information on WUSTL’s location is greatly appreciated.
@MYOS1634 Macalester does look like an interesting school. I don’t know how long I could withstand the bagpipes 
, but it is nicely located for me. It’s a pity it doesn’t have a chess club, but maybe there will be good players there anyway.
I’m checking out all of your school recommendations, everyone
I think UMBC and Webster are known for chess? Look at Vassar and Case Western, too.
Not to distract from the real topic, but I thought you might come back with Steinitz. I agree that many consider him the first official champion, but there is a camp that goes for Morphy to have that distinction. Either way, the story is that Morphy had his last days wandering the streets of New Orleans talking to himself. Not the only great chess player to suffer that kind of fate, but perhaps the first notably documented one!
Best of luck with your decisions for college. It looks like you have nothing but great choices, potentially at least. BTW, it has been awhile since I have kept up with such things, but don’t they still have tournaments involving college teams? Have you looked at the most recent years as to who has placed well to use as a possibility list at least?
@MYOS1634 Vassar and Case Western are too rural for me
@fallenchemist I’m not all that interested in being on a competitive team as I am hoping to have the most enjoyable experience with it. While strong players would certainly help as far as analysis and such, it’s not the ultimate factor. And yes, chess players seem to have a tendency for mental breakdown. Bobby Fischer is the most well-known example. Pawn Sacrifice should be an interesting film.
Whaaaat???!?!
Vassar is in a major town & 1:30train ride to NYC. Case is in the heart of university circle in Cleveland. Neither is rural by any stretch of the imagination.
Oh my, I just confused those 2 colleges with other ones in my head… Yeah, please disregard the nonsense I just posted
@MYOS1634 Suggested Carleton before I could. I second them as well. A quick trip to “the google” tells me they have a chess club as well.
How about University of Rochester? Great school. Sounds like the right size. You’d have a good shot at merit $$$. Did you look at Johns Hopkins at all???
I kind of like the University of Rochester for you too. The school is a fine, complete, modestly sized university. From your list, it may have the most in common with WUStL and Brandeis.
University of Vermont is worth a look. The city of Burlington is not only outstanding and beautiful but very quirky, and Vermont as a whole is eccentric.
Upon some research, Reed does sound like a very interesting school but I’m afraid it is too far away from home to be considered
I actually just received some mail from Case Western that said that another good year of high school had come to a close. Not so fun to get that message when you still have another week 
Macalester, Boston College, and Rochester are the schools recommended in this thread which I find most appealing so far.
University of Vermont’s average classroom size seems far greater than I would like. Also, their financial aid statistics are appalling. US News indicates that only 10% of students who applied for financial aid had their need fully met and the average percent of need met was only 65%. It’s completely inaffordable for me