<p>EARLHAM</p>
<p>As soon as we got off the plane in Dayton, we saw them. Groups of college age kids, some wearing Earlham sweatshirts. They were returning from spring break and greeting each other with lots of enthusiasm and hugs. Lots of conversations about who was riding with who back to campus and who was going to "stop by" whose dorm room that night when they were "home" (and they actually were saying "back home" not "back on campus")</p>
<p>More importantly, they belied the stereotype I had in my mind about what "liberal" Earlham students would look like - for the most part, they didn't look like unwashed hippies or wild goths, they looked like my daughter: lots of jeans, sweaters, a few unusual clothing combinations and hair styles, in other words, quirky but not as out there as the students at Lewis & Clark had been when we visited. In fact, I couldn't help thinking that they looked an awful lot like I had when I was a college student back in the mid-1970's.</p>
<p>While waiting for our luggage, D. struck up a conversation with several of the EArlham kids - they immediately started telling her how much they liked Earlham and giving her their dorm room numbers so that she could stop by to visit while she was on campus. D. got into the rental car and insisted that we drive immediately to the campus before checking into our hotel. It was about a 35 minute drive to campus from the Dayton airport.</p>
<p>The campus is very nice - 800 acres in total. The front 200 acres are devoted to dorms and academic buildings while the 600 "back acres" are woods and open fields. Most of the buildings on campus are centered around "the heart," a large open grassy circular area with paths criss-crossing it. Even though it was a chilly afternoon, and almost dark, there were kids sitting out in the heart, talking and playing frisbee. </p>
<p>The buildings on campus are all red brick and most are in the same, simple style. As I said, when you stand at the center of the heart you can see most of the main buildings on campus and there is a definite sense of cohesion that we have found on only a few other campuses. Perhaps because of its Quaker affiliation, the buildings aren't particularly "Fancy" or impressive, but they do feel very homey and comfortable. The front of the campus edges a main road but the buildings are set pretty far back from it. The western edge of the campus sits next to a large cemetary with lots of trees. The eastern edge sits next to a street of older homes, many of which are owned by the college. And, as I said, the back of the campus is fields and woods. So, it feels rather bucolic and set apart. One of the things that D. noticed right away was that the majority of cars in the parking lot did not have Indiana license plates - we saw plates, and later met students, from every state in the union, including Alaska, California, Vermont, Florida, etc. This was very exciting to D.</p>
<p>We spent about an hour walking around campus and actually crossed paths with two students that daughter had met briefly in the airport. They took us to see one of their dorm rooms and told us a bit more about why they liked Earlham. One admitted that being such a small school (just over 1100 students and edging towards 1200 over the next few years) had its advantages and disadvantages --- but the advantages of knowing everyone and feeling like you were living with friends outweighed the disadvantages of knowing everyone and feeling like you sometimes didn't have much privacy. D. and I were both impressed when we asked if they'd studied abroad (one of Earlham's big draws for my daughter is their great school-run study abroad programs) and the young man we were talking to said that he'd had every intention of going abroad when he arrived as a freshman but that he hadn't done so because he couldn't stand the thought of being away from campus for an entire semester. They both said that social life on campus isn't the typical "wild college scene" - although Earlham is technically a dry campus, they said there is some drinking, some pot smoking, but both are very low key. There are no frats or sororities on campus. A good time that was mentioned to us by several students was hiking into the back woods with friends for a night time bon fire in the woods.</p>
<p>The next morning, admissions had a full schedule planned. We did a tour and saw another dorm. One thing that D. particularly liked is that most of the dorms have full kitchens on each floor. Our tour guide told us that the kitchens become kind of the center of social life each evening with people meeting there to talk, study, and, of course, cook and eat. The dorm rooms we saw in two different dorms were of very good size and the dorms seemed well maintained. There is little crime on campus. </p>
<p>D. attended an American history class and came away impressed, although she didn't get a chance to talk to the professor one-on-one afterwards (this became important later when she went to Beloit). She was not particularly impressed with the art facilities, but we had been warned by Mini beforehand that the art program is weak. She did love the library, which had a very homey feel with a nice japanese room in the center. She loved the bean bag chairs and couches scattered here and there. </p>
<p>She voted her interview with the admissions rep the "most unusual" she'd had at any campus --- the rep didn't ask much about her grades or test scores but did ask alot of questions about D. and her art, her favorite teachers, her friends and the community where she grew up. D. was a little concerned because somehow she mentioned her friend who committed suicide last year and they veered off onto a long conversation about how that affected her circle of friends and how they supported each other afterwards. She was nervous for the rest of the trip about bringing that subject up. </p>
<p>Admissions had also scheduled us to meet with one of the members of the equestrian barn coop. She took us out to the barn (absolutely stunning facilities for a school of this size) and introduced us to several members of the coop program. D. was relieved to find out that the people who ride at Earlham are pretty low key, not into the foo-foo aspects of equestrian sports, but more in tune with her own attitude about riding and horses. D. admitted that she will probably sell her horse (first I heard of this!) before going to college and may not get involved with the very time consuming barn co op program, but that she liked that she could still ride from time to time, even take riding lessons, at Earlham.</p>
<p>We ate both lunch AND dinner in the student cafeteria with students and met many more students while walking around. The food in the cafeteria was quite good with lots of variety. D. liked the huge fireplace and open feel of the cafeteria. Students also can have lunch at the vegetarian co op on campus or in the coffee house which has a subway sandwich shop. There is a good supermarket less than ablock from campus, plus a pizza place and a 24 hour diner within walking distance.</p>
<p>After visiting about 15 or so schools across the country in the past year, this is the ONLY school we've ever been to where students kept coming up and telling us how much they liked Earlham. They were open about the negatives of the school but they were also very enthusiastic about being there at the same time. This was also the only school we have visited where daughter pretty much told me to get lost so that she could go hang out with people she had met on campus without Mom tagging along. </p>
<p>Potential negatives: While not quite the "hippie dippie" school I had been imagining, Earlham IS liberal. Earlham's administration is trying to include conservative viewpoints on campus by inviting conservative speakers and opening a dialogue that includes more conservative students, but not having much success from the sound of things. In fact, the night after we were there, William Kristol, editor of the Weekly Standard, was a guest speaker...and had an ice cream pie thrown in his face while talking. To the credit of the school's administration, the student was suspended and is being considered for permanent expulsion, but still, one wonders if the school's Quaker principles stating "Respect for others" is really being respected in itself. This was not an issue for my daughter, but could be for some who are politically more conservative.</p>
<p>Another negative, in my mind at least, is that the city of Richmond, Indiana is not exactly a thriving metropolis. Although the area immediately around Earlham is quite nice, there are parts of the town that have seen better days. There are plenty of chain stores, a mall, and chain restaurants for kids who want to get off campus (the school runs a shuttle service), but it seems that most kids stay on campus most of the time. I could see how that could get claustrophobic after a while but again, since 75% of students study off campus at some point, this may not be an issue.</p>
<p>For my daughter, this was, in many ways "her dream school" --- before we even hit lunch hour she was talking about applying Early Decision. She just felt at home at Earlham and I definitely could see her there. I would feel very good about her going to Earlham, in spite of the few drawbacks I saw.</p>