<p>Hi. I just found this discussion group and this is my first post. I wish I had found this group earlier in our college search, but we still would like to get any first hand information any one has about the 2 colleges where my daughter has applied, Landmark College in Putney, VT and Mitchell College in New London, CT.</p>
<p>We've visited both colleges, and are impressed with both of them, but their educational philosophies are quite different. Landmark College only accepts students with an LD or ADD, and all it's classes are geared toward teaching these students, whereas Mitchell College is a mainstream college with a very strong LD support program.</p>
<p>My daughter's LDs are in expressive writing and abstract comprehension. She is not ADD. SHe works very hard and does all her homework. She has done wel in many mainstream high school classes. She's good in math (she's in algebra II) and is getting an A in Earth Science this makring epriod. She can answer factual questions, true or flase questions and multiple choice questions, but she struggles with understanding literature and writes very little when asked to answer open ended questions. She's never written a report or a long essay. </p>
<p>She wants to go to a college away form home and have the "college expereince." </p>
<p>If anyone has has any ocmments aobut either school, good or bad, please post! Also, if anyone has a child who has similir learning idablities to my daughter and has been successful at college, please let me know how they learned to write at a college level.</p>
<p>I just finished two years at Landmark College and will be attending Vanderbilt University this fall. </p>
<p>Landmark College was originally designed for students with Dyslexia but in more recent years opened its doors to AD/HD, Aspergers, Dysgraphia and other learning disabilities.</p>
<p>Many people are disappointed with the college because they expect it to do more for students. What many of these people don’t realize is that Landmark College aims to empower students, not enable them. They have abundant resources of every kind for learning. Their Learning Center for Research and Training is best in the world. They have the worlds most extensive library on Learning disabilities. They provides amazing coaching, advising, counseling and writing support. </p>
<p>Because of the colleges lieniency and patience with students, many students take advantage of the school and coast by doing the minimum. Those are the students that end up struggling at their next college. Another type of student is one who earnestly wants to develop as a better person. They truly utilize all the resources and make the best of the experience. These students go on to amazing colleges and are very successful.</p>
<p>If your daughter has the potential to be an excellent student with assistance in learning how to understand her learning disability and wants the opportunity to learn how to write from people who can teach her, and then to go on to an excellent school afterwards, as the above poster (fantastic job!), then she should go to Landmark. But, SHE will have to want to make that happen for herself. It is, however, a place where she can learn how to be a great student.</p>
<p>If she just wants the “college” experience and to continue to do what she is doing and to have “support” in that, then send her to Mitchell. Landmark is really only beneficial to kids who are looking for more. Also, she will have to transfer after two years, and that may not be something she is willing to go through if a lot of this is about “the life.”</p>
<p>Good luck to her, though. Either way she chooses to go is fine. She should just be aware of what she wants.</p>
<p>Landmark College is not your typical college. There are 500 students, all of which have some sort of LD. While you have the opportunity to build amazing relationships with very gifted and creative people, it is not the place to find the ‘college experience’. Students should be aware that Landmark College is a place to develop yourself, build the skills necessary to succeed academically, and move on. They will be disappointed when they come looking for awesome rad parties and find themselves on a dry-campus… in Putney, VT (closest town 10 miles away… closest college town 20 miles away in Keene, NH).</p>
<p>My daughter has decided that she wants to attend Mitchell College in New London, CT. I am happy that all the stress of making the “right” decision is now over. I know Landmark would have been a wonderful opportunity for her to learn the skills she needs, but she liked the fact that Mitchell College is a mainstream college, and a four year college, so she won’t have to transfer after 2 years. It’s also closer to where we live (though she’ll still be 3 hours away.) Hopefully their Learning Resource Center support will be what she needs to help her with her writing and comprehension difficulties.</p>
<p>She’ll be starting in their STEP summer transition to college program the week after she graduates from high school. She is very excited about going to college. I’ll keep you all posted on her journey!</p>
<p>Mike I would love to hear from you regarding Landmark. What is it like. What about the city. How about minority students, specifically African American students. How many. Ratio of female to male, etc. We are going to an upcoming open house for my son.</p>