Great article in the NY Times about The University of Alabama
“In the last decade, enrollment has increased by more than 55 percent, to a record 37,100 students this fall, and more than half of the students now are from out of state, another seismic shift. This year, 2,261 freshmen are enrolled in its Honors College, two and half times the number 10 years ago. Its 174 National Merit and National Achievement finalists rank Alabama among the top five public universities.”
Very interesting article . . . ^^my favorite part.
The focus on collegiate football (generally in our society) and the money it generates is its own topic, but I’m glad UA is parlaying their success into great experiences for their students.
^^this is the kind of thing that makes me nervous for my DS. I don’t see him being into that scene. This is what a relative of mine has been telling me for months (i.e., it’s too preppy for my tech-geek son).
This article really shows how smart UA is with their athletic programs and using them to enhance other areas of the university. Totally impressed with Bill Battle and his marketing intelligence. Running UA like an NFL is absolutely the correct thing to do!
@mom2collegekids The support the athletic department gives to fund academics is what I meant on a previous thread a couple of months ago when I said UA athletics is helping to grow the academic stature of the university. You told me then that UA athletics does not intermingle with academics. Please note the below in the article (by the way, I think this is great - if you have the ability, do it):
" Last year, the athletic department recorded a $33 million profit, according to university documents. It gave $9.1 million to the university, including $4 million for the university’s Presidential Scholarships, which go to top-performing students. Since 2010, athletics have also provided $1 million annually toward faculty salaries."
Also, having a great sports tradition emboldens alumni to help the university succeed in academics as well. Alumni usually want their alma mater to be successful in all areas:
"The College of Engineering, where Bell spent 16 years as a professor and administrator, has four new buildings on a quad named after Senator Richard Shelby, an alumnus, and his wife, Annette, who is a professor emerita here. Six residential communities with 2.1 million square feet and more than 5,000 beds are new as well.
It is who is inside them, however, that impresses Bell the most — young men and women from New York to Washington State, Hawaii to Maine. Some are the product of the hard work put in by members of Alabama’s more than 110 alumni chapters, which have aggressively recruited potential students and have helped endow more than $40 million in scholarships."
I will tell you that UA will be recognized as an elite university within the next five years and I believe I am being conservative. The resources are there and the vision is there. That is like having fire and gasoline!!
@Class2012Mom Great article! Thanks for sharing.
@CyclonesGrad - New president Stuart Bell has three engineering degrees from Texas A&M, including his PhD in Nuclear Engineering. He was also the dean of the Kansas School of Engineering. The Engineering College’s rapid rise is not going to slow down under his watch.
^^this is the kind of thing that makes me nervous for my DS. I don’t see him being into that scene. This is what a relative of mine has been telling me for months (i.e., it’s too preppy for my tech-geek son).
I wouldn’t worry too much. My son is a tech-geek from the rural Midwest. Around here dressing up means putting on the good jeans. :). While those that are ‘preppy’ are definitely present, there are more than 30,000 students on campus and all types of students are represented and most will find ‘their crowd’.
When I visit son, including when I attend games with him, I also do not dress up and have never once felt out of place in t’s and jeans.
Thank you @jrcsmom - I love reading comments like yours, makes me feel better.
We are visiting next week so I’m hoping we’ll get a really good feel for the atmosphere then.
I’ve been homeschooling this kiddo since third grade, know him well, and hoping that we’ll know the right fit when we see it. We’re not looking for perfect (there is no such thing imho).
His dual enrollment experience makes me think he will do better at a public university vs. a small private one. We’ve done the whole exclusive private school gambit here where we live and we’re over it. I want him to have a challenging, not overwhelming, experience at a school that is large enough for him to find his “tribe.”
He’s not into football whatsoever, or any sports other than distance running.
My relatives really love VT.
^ I, too, was a bit worried about my son fitting into the scene, way back when. But this isn’t high school anymore, thank goodness. I do not look like Sandra Bullock from The Blind Side, unfortunately, and I, too, wear mom-jeans on campus . Nicely said, @jrcsmom. People find their own tribes.
Even if your kids do not partake in the athletic or preppy scenes down there, there are other things that will rub off on them, in a very positive way, like Southern manners and charm. And maybe a ‘y’all’ now and agin [sic]…
Love the expression “rising Tide lifts all boats”…so true!
That was a neat turn of phrase! 
PS: I think my son likes southern girls (like his daddy). 
SouthFloridaMom9 - I could have written post #4. DITTO!!! Don’t worry. I also know of several kids who weren’t into football before they attended UA…and now enjoy going to games on a regular basis. It sucks you in!
I thought the piece was overall, very positive, but it just had to get in a dig about “diversity.” UA has far more African Americans than most other schools, but having fewer Asians and Latinos keeps it from being diverse enough I guess.
@SouthFloridaMom9, my nephew is a high stats, slightly nerdy kid from the midwest who is currently a freshman studying engineering at UA. He is not into the frat scene, has found himself enjoying the football games, and is having a ball.
That will change really fast.
@suzy100 your nephew sounds like he could be one of my sons roommates. DS also has a roommate who has no interest in sports at all. It’s all ok with them. They are there for the engineering and honors opportunities.
If sports interest you there is plenty to do. And if you have no interest what so ever in sports the is still, and possibly more so, plenty to do.
Rest assured there are things for all types of students to become involved in on campus.
As a graduate of an “elite” university, I think we need to be careful what we wish for. Alabama is a public university whose primary mission is to educate the students of the State of Alabama. There is room within its 30,000+ undergraduate student body for a range of students, and IMHO it is all the stronger for that. Will it one day be competitive with Florida and Georgia and possibly Texas in terms of academic prestige? Maybe. But let’s not get caught up in some unnecessary fantasy that it’s going to compete with Southern elites like Vanderbilt, Duke or Rice and their very different missions, or powerhouse flagships like UCLA, Berkeley, UVA or Michigan, that reside in much more densely populated states.
@SouthFloridaMom9, I have no idea whether or not your son will flip for football, but realize that “game day” is about so much more than football. It’s about pageantry and community and great food, culminating in a world-class sporting event. My son not only wasn’t “into football whatsoever” before he arrived on campus a year ago, his high school didn’t even field a team. He loves it now! But even if your son doesn’t react similarly, he’ll find plenty of other outlets for his interests.
Re the diversity issue, I thought it was right to acknowledge it. As the university attracts more and more OOS students, it further dilutes the mix of students on campus socioeconomically. Unless you’re competitive for a scholarship, attending UA is not an inexpensive proposition, so it’s going to attract affluent families. This decrease in overall diversity is an unfortunate side-effect that I have no doubts the administration wants to try to improve on.
Every school wants more diversity. The problem is the major gap in test scores between URM and Whites/Asians. I don’t think it is fair to for schools like UF to be considered more diverse, simply because it has such a large Latino (usually White Latino) population. Florida and other states have a a much higher percentage of Latinos and Asians.
Nevertheless, UA would do well to push for those high scoring Asians to increase perceptions of “diversity.” I just think diversity is important, not just in racial percentages, but in thought, tolerance of dissenting opinions, etc. By the way, the percentage of Blacks at UA has been about the same for a decade. That at other schools has dramatically fallen.
Also, you make good points about “elitism” but remember that there are many schools in Alabama that can educate the lower end students. UA is under no obligation to enroll students on the low end of the admissions standards, for it is not like it is the only or most affordable option.
As an alum, I would strongly support some initiative to pull in qualified students at junior colleges, students who likely scored on the low end but have proved that they can do well in college.
Anybody read the comments to the article? They are priceless…
I don’t think I have the stamina to read those nasty comments in the NYT again. Some of these people have zero self awareness about their own bigotry.
Haters gonna hate!
The comments are hypocritcal at best!
Love how someone that has never been to The South, the state of Alabama nor even on campus of The University of Alabama can call all citizens, students, etc such words as “bigots” and other nasty names. They themselves are exposing their own deep seated bigotry and flying it high and proud thinking they are better than anyone that lives, is from or goes to school in the South. Gotta laugh