<p>My son, a junior in Mississippi, has spent the last several summers as a camper/counselor at a camp outside Asheville, and he has decided he "needs" to go to college in or near the North Carolina mountains so he can kayak and hike in his spare time. We took a NC college tour last summer, and he really liked App State and Guilford. He has a 3.79 GPA, a 26 on the ACT (he's only taken it once and expects to pick up a few points this year), and wants to major in physics. </p>
<p>While in North Carolina, we visited High Point Country Club. What a beautiful campus! My son has mentioned High Point a couple of times since then, but I don't think it would be a good fit for him. He's a very liberal guy, and I don't get the sense he would find many kindred spirits at HPU. In fact, I saw a video on You Tube of a High Point graduation where Lee Greenwood sang "Proud to Be an American" while a trained eagle circled the wildly cheering crowd. While that might inspire some to go out and achieve greatness, I don't think my son would be motivated by such things. When I look at the list of speakers who come to campus, it looks like they have conservative Supreme Court justices (Scalia and Thomas), CEO types, and motivational speakers. </p>
<p>Is there anything liberal/progressive/radical about High Point? It seems like a friendly place and a fine school, but I'm concerned my son will be frustrated by the lack of ideological/political diversity. Would App State or Guilford provide a more "liberal" environment (he just wants diversity of viewpoints - he's not interested in a place where everyone thinks just like he does). Thanks.</p>
<p>I have a similar concern except that the school has grown so much over the past few years and there is a significant and increasing population from Northeast who have fallen in love with the school, and which should provide increasing balance. It won’t ever be Eugene, Oregon but few places are.</p>
<p>Here is a link to the video I referenced - the bald eagle appears at 2:52. Lee Greenwood AND a bald eagle? HPU doesn’t do anything halfway. [YouTube</a> - Lee Greenwood & Challenger at High Point University 2008 (AEF)](<a href=“- YouTube”>- YouTube)</p>
<p>i completely understand your worries about your son not fitting in. i have had the same questions going through my head. i am a senior in high school from northern delaware where we are all pretty liberal. i am not a typical southern belle who takes care of her husband in dresses and heels going to church every sunday. i wouldnt worried about the lack of diversity too much though. the school is really expanding and like gerd65 said many of the students are coming from the north east =]</p>
<p>I’m currently a junior at High Point University. The majority of the student body is composed of liberals, where most come from more Northern states. You’ll find that nearly any college includes mostly liberal students, and HPU is no exception.</p>
<p>I also attended Guilford College for two years, and it is by far the most liberal institution in North Carolina. The professors openly discuss politics, and the president of the college even made crude jokes about republicans during my new student orientation! I’m an independent myself, but found Guilford to be far too left-leaning to get any sort of unbiased information.</p>
<p>But as a previous poster said, I would let your son choose which college is right for him. But know that politics really is not a large factor on HPU’s campus.</p>
<p>I have to bump this because there are a few wrong answers on here.</p>
<p>HPU student body is more conservative than most colleges around the nation.
That being said, its not like watching Fox News in all your classes.
As a few said, there are many students from different walks of life so though we lean conservative, we still have our fair share of balance. If you’re a Liberal, you’re not going to be friendless. But i’ll reiterate again, we are NOT a liberal leaning school in any way. </p>
<p>You’re son would be fine at HPU. This is a community too and the students would never shun someone because of political affiliation. I’ve had great discussion with people who have different views and thats the best way to learn, IMO.</p>