<p>If people weren't willing to send kids to very questionable areas, no one would go to Duke. I wouldn't want my kid to venture out from that campus. I think many people who visit UMD are pleasantly surprised at how nice the campus is.</p>
<p>...or Columbia, Fordham, Drexel, Temple, Penn, UChicago, USC, CMU, Pitt, among others I have heard people on CC express concerns re: safety. </p>
<p>S1 took public transit to UMD on a regular basis during the last two years of HS. Never had a problem. (We knew it was likely he'd choose an urban/semi-urban college, so we encouraged him in developing street smarts starting early in HS.)</p>
<p>Rural bucolic campuses aren't immune to crime, either. Students need to learn personal safety, situational awareness and to travel in groups, esp. at night.</p>