<p>How "Southern" is Wake Forest culturally? I am rather liberal and not a fan of hardcore conservatives and rednecks. What is WFU like? Because it is in North Carolina, is it a typical, very conservative, southern school?</p>
<p>You really sound too bigoted for Wake Forest. </p>
<p>that didnt answer my question freshcoffee</p>
<p>If it is conservative, it would be rich white boy conservatism ala UVA, not redneck conservatism. </p>
<p>Count one. I am a poor redneck conservative at Wake Forest with recurrent moods of Southern secessionism. On the other hand, I probably share more existential similarities with the blacks than with the whites here. And maybe with you, Nick. For example, do you shop at Walmart? </p>
<p>If you already know you don’t like the south, or conservatives, why are you even considering a school in the south when you have so many excellent colleges elsewhere to choose from? </p>
<p>Schools in the south will have conservative students from the south. If you go to school in the south with the attitude you display in this post people are not going to accept you with open arms. We live in the south, and it is this attitude that you show which is keeping my child in the south for college although I am from the north originally. If you want a liberal school, pick a liberal school. If you want a more conservative school, then choose that. Pick schools that are a fit. Rankings of a school do not make a school a fit. I can’t say whether Wake Forest is conservative or not but based on its location it will have southern students who tend to be more on the conservative side.<br>
And if you think southerners are all rednecks you might do better looking at another geographic region.</p>
<p>My son is a freshman at Wake, double majoring in theater and history (and philosophy and classics and writing and … he is so excited about what he is learning at school he can’t see straight!) We are from Boulder, CO, arguably a hotbed of liberalism. My son’s roommate is from New Canaan, CT. The friends my son has made this semester are from all over: CA, IL, Toronto, NC, VA, SC and TN (just to name a few places). Wake is preppier than what we typically get in Boulder, we aren’t used to seeing men wear pink shorts for example, but whatever floats your boat is my son’s attitude. My son loves Wake!</p>
<p>When you say conservative, are you talking about fiscal or social? I’m sure you will find some of each group as well as students who are fiscal and social liberals. It is a college campus. Redneck? That dog don’t hunt at Wake. </p>
<p>Wake is unique in that it is a mid sized school (4500 undergrads) that offers a true liberal arts education with a strong focus on service (Pro Humanitate) plus D1 sports. It draws students from all over the US. Most importantly, Wake is a place for thoughtful, hardworking students who value academic rigor and a spirit of intellectual curiosity. I’m not sure it is a fit for the OP. </p>
<p>Ma’am, then let’s help that dog hunt rather than marginalize it. Why should I as a certified NC redneck–who, yes, chews tobacco—be required to defend or justify what I am. Am I weird, or weird in the context of your normative Wake Forest identity—that of a preppy, affluent study body which wears pink shorts or sun dresses to class and has healthy gums and clean, straight teeth? I invite you to deconstruct your hierarchical notions of identity here. That you could so blithely normalize one identity at the expense of another dismays me and fosters a climate of marginalization. Moreover, your bias puts an unjust amount of pressure on me to explain my redneck identity and experience—to reassure you, as it were, about my “redneckedness.” That’s time both of us could better use studying the Southern Agrarians.</p>
<p>You go Freshcoffee… you let that freak flag fly! I really hope that flag doesn’t have any Confederate imagery on it, though, 'cause I couldn’t get behind that… Anyway, if you want to organize a Redneck Pride Parade, I’m sure my son and his friends and a whole lot of WF would come out and support you. I think there are a few guys in the theater department who would be super excited for the opportunity to show up in Daisy Dukes and a pair of boots. </p>
<p>BTW… as a Boulderite, I feel obligated to point out to you that chewing tobacco is a class 1 carcinogen. Rednecks already have a fairly limited gene pool and you would not want to further limit the bio diversity of your group by removing yourself as a breeding candidate. Perhaps you could chew on strand of hay or straw. You could maintain a certain cache while at the same time, protecting your health. </p>
<p>Go freshcoffee - but stop the chewing tobacco. It’s bad for you and I think you need to stick around for a long long time as a proud redneck WF alum. </p>
<p>This thread is a riot. I can’t quite tell if freshcoffee is putting on a character in order to prove a point or a well-spoken redneck. </p>
<p>Speaking of cachet, cbrand…I do save my Starbucks coffee cups for spittoons. Now can I stay overnight in Boulder? Seriously, kindly cautions from you and fellow posters did goad me to further study. Come to find out I am 50 times more likely to get oral cancer than a non-chewer/smoker/drinker. So I’m definitely looking into strategies to stop this toxic habit. However, I also discovered that most oral cancers are not caused by tobacco products. Rather, they are overwhelmingly and increasingly caused by HPV16. Anyway, enough on this subject just before the holiday. Season’s greetings to everyone and Go Wake Forest! </p>