<p>i saw this article, which I see is from a very conservative source, and was slightly disturbed. Though I defiitely consider myself a liberal, it is very important to me to be given an education, not taught an agenda, and to understand all sides of an issue. THis article, which is definitely not from an unbiased source, asserted that Smith does not provide a balanced education (obviously not the fox news definition of balance, which is definitely a misuse of the term).
so here it is</p>
<p><em>eye roll</em> You really shouldn't beleive everything you read PF8, especially when it comes from what you know are fairly biased sources. This article was pretty ridiculous, though parts of it were not untrue. Yes, Smith is not the Christian institution it once was, but that's not the only thing that's changed (we allow black students to live on campus now and everything!). And while by current standards, Sophia Smith's vision statement may be a little conservative, by the standards of her time it was flamingly liberal (so we didn't so much "go astray" as we evolved) :-). Yes, many Smithies are active in liberal causes and are against the war in Iraq. But there are plenty of Smithies who are also active in conservative causes, and there are supporters of the war as well. Yes, many Smith professors are very liberal, however, anyone who's familiar with academia knows that that is normal for our region and kind of college. In my experience, professors do their utmost to keep discussions open and to not allow their personal politics to color the debate. Some professors naturally, are better at this than others. </p>
<p>Could Smithies do a better job at tolerating each other's opinions? Sure. But in our polarized times, couldn't <em>everybody</em> do a better job at that? </p>
<p>Ultimately , it's up to each individual student to fight narrowmindedness and intellectual intolerance. If you want to have a balanced intellectual life, that's great, but at Smith or at any other college, you have to take some responsibility for making it happen.</p>
<p>"In typical American fashion, the seeds for Smith College grew out of tragedy. Sophia Smith inherited her familys fortune in 1861 and since she never married, she had no heir. As a result of this tragedy, Smith, who was deeply religious, turned to her Rev. John Morton Green for guidance."</p>
<p>Wow, what a tragedy that she was never married. That probably tells you something about the author of this article. </p>
<p>When I visited Smith for Spring Open House I had the opportunity to talk to a transfer student. In the middle of talking to me about something... dining, maybe? she stopped to say, in quite an ominous voice, that if I had any biases or "a closed mind in any sort of way", Smith "is not the place" for me and I "would have a hard time at Smith". That's the only time I felt like someone might look down on me as being closed minded for having a difference of opinion. </p>
<p>And that's pretty mild, honestly.</p>
<p>i tried to edit my initial post but for some reasons the changes weren't saved.
i meant to say "political intolerance" rather than intolerant leftists.
i don't believe everything I read, but I have heard from other sources that Smith doesnot foster an open political dialogue. However, I'll be happy to take your word for it that Smith is a great place for all nonbiased students.</p>
<p>I think that S&P gave you an excellent answer. I would add that you need to be very discerning about Internet "news" and opinion sites. Many sites, such as this one, are crafted for the single purpose of promoting a particular agenda. The agenda could be anything but the information usually places somewhere on the scale from being presented in a slightly biased way to being completely slanted and distorted. </p>
<p>IMHO, the "grain of truth" in the article is that there are more "liberal" students and faculty members at Smith than there are "conservatives" and that a percentage of all people are intolerant of other's views. Therefore, there are more intolerant "liberals" at Smith than there are intolerant "conservatives." I would also say that many young adults are very passionate about their views, whatever they are, and may debate ummmm... rather stridently at times. :-) But the majority of Smith students are fairly open minded and tolerent.</p>
<p>I actually don't like to use the terms liberal and conservative or left and right because I think that most people, including most Smith students, just don't fit within the popular defenitions of such simplistic and polarizing labels. Most people I know are more politically moderate, supporting some issues and causes traditionally identified as "liberal" and some that are traditionally defined as "conservative." </p>
<p>The whole conservative = patriot, liberal = traitor/terrorist slant from the far right and the conservative = idiot war monger, liberal = enlightened humanitarian from the far left is just bulls**t that sells a lot of books and garners a lot of speaking engangements for the bull-slingers, but it doesn't represent how most people think. </p>
<p>BTW, the site that you're referring to sells "conservative" t-shirts with "patriotic" slogans such as "Iran want nukes? Then give them to them" with a lovely picture of an exploding nuclear bomb on the front (modeled by a beautiful, busty, smiling brunnete). I have many "conservative" friends and family members who would find that sort of thing very offensive and not at all representative of their views or attitudes. hmm.... probably not a good source for information. :-)</p>
<p>Great response S&P!! Great response!</p>
<p>There are certainly some intolerant leftists at Smith but they're hardly dominant. Smith also includes a few right-wing loons that are completely daft. Think of both as socio-political seasoning in the student body.</p>
<p>Ain't no Conservative Arts College.</p>
<p>My D looked at Smith as a possible college, but opted against applying there, in part because she considers herself a bit right of center politically, and the whole LUG mentality seemed odd to her. Way too much political correctness too, if that isn't your cup of tea.</p>
<p>i just want to apologise for the title of this post. i tried to edit it like 2 s after posting but it didn't work. i had heard that smith was very left, and though i would characterize myself center-left, i want to make sure i go to a school that will constantly challenge my thinking. it appears that smith would be a good place for that from everyone's post.
the fact that when i did a google news search of smith, that weirdo article came up aided only slightly to my fears. i KNOW that the article is not good journalism, but it just increased my fears even still. the school i go to now is in a very republican area. our health books don't teach contraception and stress abstinence. an old history teacher felt that the valerie plame scandal was "a witchhunt." that being said, my school pe teachers do teach about condoms, etc, and my old history teacher knows his stuff pretty well and is not a bush-republican. My point is that I see how much the attitudes of the administration could influence the individual students education and if the administration won't allow an open forum for debate, that is an unneccessary obstacle to growing up to be a thinking human being. Again, that does not seem to be the case at Smith. I am not anti-left, anti-right, anti-choice, anti-life, but i do want to be sure i'll hear both sides of every story.</p>
<p>{But the majority of Smith students are fairly open minded and tolerent.}</p>
<p>Passionflower, I believe Laurels comment is extremely salient. As you weigh your options and attempt to decide whether Smith is a good fit, if you (and other prospective students) retain any thought from this thread, that should be it </p>
<p>Actions speak louder than words. Last year the junior class President was a Republican. Ya cant get much more tolerant than that. :)</p>