<p>Based on it's web site, D3 sports rankings, and a few comments here on cc, it sounds like this school may be perfect for my son. Does anyone know anything about it? Any comments appreciated!</p>
<p>A cousin attended and we have several neighborhood kids currently attending. Nice school with friendly kids. I like to describe it as a ‘poor man’s St Olaf’. They don’t have quite as much money as St Olaf nor do they attract quite the same quality student. They have nice facilties in a quaint Norwegian town. I’ve never met anyone that didn’t really like it there.</p>
<p>Check their course offerings in any potential majors as they can be limited in their weaker areas (such as Econ).</p>
<p>Thanks, Haystack. My son was leaning towards Montana, but now thinks he wants to participate in sports. D1 might be a little too competitive and academics at St. Olaf might be a little too competitive.</p>
<p>Well Toledo, I graduated from Luther and it’s lack of diversity and tolerance will reflect on your son, especially if he decides to work someplace outside of Iowa or on either Coast.</p>
<p>The student population and staff are 97% white, virtually zero diversity, and from my experience with the administration and staff, I suspect this is by design.</p>
<p>I know some people currently at Luther, as well as some alums. They generally like it. It’s a pretty sweet little college in a picturesque little river town in northeastern Iowa, surrounded by forested bluffs, just a few miles from the Minnesota border. The town was settled by Norwegians and the college was founded by Norwegians, and it maintains its affiliation with the ELCA and more specifically its Norwegian-American Lutheran branch. Not surprisingly, it tends to attract a lot of Lutherans, especially Lutherans of Norwegian descent, and yes, not surprisingly, they tend to be pretty white. Latest figures I’ve seen say the student body is 86% white, which is high but comparable to St. Olaf’s 81% white (St. Olaf is a somewhat better known Norwegian Lutheran college in Northfield, MN). But you don’t need to be a Lutheran to attend. Many students are of different religious faiths, and the school is not heavy-handed in propagating a particular religious view. In fact, from what I’ve heard many students choose it expecting it to be a place that supports their own particular religious beliefs and are surprised and unsettled to find the faculty, including faculty in the religion department, challenging them to think critically about all things, including their own religious beliefs. </p>
<p>At this point the school is perhaps best known for its music programs which are very good, but it’s also a place one can get a good liberal arts education in a friendly, supportive atmosphere. I don’t know much about their athletic programs, but they do support D-III varsity teams in a wide array of sports. With a 70% acceptance rate and middle 50% ACT scores of 24-29, Luther is not as selective as St. Olaf (50% admit rate, middle 50% ACT 27-32), but it is similar to schools like Kalamazoo College (70% admit rate, 25-30 middle 50% ACT), Beloit (same), or College of Wooster (60% admit rate, 24-30 ACT).</p>