<p>Just booked our trip to visit Pomona and CMC. We’re both excited.</p>
<p>LOL Vandygrad! Robin it is then; people IRL often think I’m a Robin and I’ll answer to anything that sounds close :)</p>
<p>Mumto3: For your S1 the first school that popped into my mind was Centre College in KY. Since mamabear chimed in with Hendrix, I’ll suggest that you look into Colleges that Change Lives (both Centre & Hendrix are included on their list.) [Colleges</a> That Change Lives | Changing Lives, One Student at a Time](<a href=“http://www.ctcl.org/]Colleges”>http://www.ctcl.org/) Looking at the list I’d also suggest Evergreen; when I was active on the GT/LD message boards, Evergreen used to come up as a school that worked well with students who had LDs. Since you mentioned the depression, I’d also consider location especially as it relates to your ability to visit him or have him visit you if he begins to feel overwhelmed. Even a relative/family friend close by who could serve as a respite would be good. </p>
<p>For your S2: when you said Alex Keaton I immediately thought of a slightly preppy, conservative student and Vandy, Emory, Duke & Washington University in St. Louis popped into my head. But then you mentioned Northeast. Definitely UPenn but that’s a reach for everyone. Would he consider Washington DC? Because with his interests Georgetown, George Washington & American might be good.</p>
<p>Yeah, I thought about DC too, my D is a senior at GW and loves it, but she said he likes gothic/ambiance and GW does not have that! Georgetown maybe.</p>
<p>Mum, great minds think alike. I also was thinking Hendrix for first twin. </p>
<p>And Tulane for second one. He’d likely get lots of merit aid there. Not the East Coast, but lots of ambiance in New Orleans.</p>
<p>Mumto3: I thought of the DC schools as well. Georgetown is in the middle of the Georgetown neighborhood, but very much a campus with the typical old architecture you describe. It is on my S’13’s list (hence he is likely to take a third SAT II). American is further away from the center of DC, but still urban and a very pretty campus. GW is a much more urban feel with buildings fitting into the Foggy Bottom neighborhood (which I like, but S’13 not so much). I don’t have many ideas for your other son. There are several small LACs here in FL (Rollins, Flagler, Stetson, Eckerd, Univ. of Tampa, Florida Southern …), but not very rural and not in mountains. Eckerd does back up to Boca Ciega Bay, but I don’t know much about the school. Sorry.</p>
<p>Vandygrad87 - we are considering a trip to Chicago in February for the same reasons. My FL son is very interested in U of Chicago and somewhat in Northwestern, but he has no idea what cold is really about. We’ve visited cold, but he’s never tried walking across a cold and windy campus before. I can describe it to him (Cornell '88 - so I know what I am talking about), but I think he needs to feel it for himself. So, a trip in February should give some context for the decision to apply to a northern school (and he is interested in several - at least for now). </p>
<p>If anybody has any thoughts or hints on the Univ. of Chicago or Northwestern (places to eat, things to see, etc.) in the winter, let me know. It’ll be a very quick trip, but I would like to pack in some good stuff if I can.</p>
<p>I like the Tulane idea as well. I hope S’13 will consider it. A good school,pretty campus, potential for merit aid and I wouldn’t mind visiting N.O. for four years.</p>
<p>Hi everyone! Fellow '13 parent here! I hope you all are having a great holiday season and enjoying it with your families.</p>
<p>Dadotwoboys- I went to Northwestern ('84) and can concur that is is very cold - I will never forget the winter of 82 with temperature with wind chill of 80 below and snow from November through April- but also an excellent school. If the deep dish pizza place Carmine’s is still in Evanston you must eat there!</p>
<p>^ H and I were NU class of '87. Yep, never been colder, but also never been happier. Great school (and I second the vote for Carmines!)</p>
<p>Cheddar char burger and cheddar chips at Buffalo Joes in Evanston.</p>
<p>Carmen’s Pizza …not Carmines…lol…just helping the folks out.</p>
<p>Ah the weather. We lived in NJ till D2 was 8 and I remember how much she hated the cold. She “knows” she didn’t like it, but I think time has dulled her misery 
Of course, half of the schools on her list have long winters, hence the late March trip through the northeast…</p>
<p>Northwestern is on her list as well so I am making note of the food recommendations. Is it OK commute wise to stay in Downtown Chicago and then take a train to Evanston when we visit?</p>
<p>Does anyone know if Tulane has fully recovered after the flood? I recall reading some where that the school no longer has an engineering program, because the buildings suffered so much damage.</p>
<p>Oh yes!- it is Carmen’s not Carmine’s Pizza - I guess my memory is starting to go …but I do remember delicious deep dish pizza. It is very easy to get to Evanston from downtown Chicago on the “EL” as they call the elevated train.</p>
<p>RobD, if you want to do sight-seeing in Chicago, then stay downtown and commute up to Evanston on the EL or Metra for the Northwestern tour. The Metra is the overland commuter train and the EL is the “subway”, so depending on the location of your hotel, the EL might be easier as it has more stops. If you look at the Northwestern map, you will see the Davis Street stop on both Metra and EL, and you can walk to the info session from there.</p>
<p>We went to visit NU last spring break. Very crowded, but very good visit.</p>
<p>At U of Chicago, the restaurant “Medici on 57th” was authentic and fun. </p>
<p>We are headed out to California in Jan for the college visit trip. D has promised to look at the virtual tours for the rest of the schools on her list for now.</p>
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<p>Just keep in mind that the El trip from downtown to Evanston takes about an hour. Metra is about 20-25 minutes. But Metra’s more expensive and has less frequent service.</p>
<p>BerneseMtn, are you headed to NorCal or SoCal in January?</p>
<p>VandyGrad, I sent oldest ds to a prep class…his SAT went down after it! Not alot, but what a waste of time. So, it worries me for dd. We had a reasonable talk today, now that the shock and disappointment is over. I am SO glad I didn’t lose it the other day! We have hired a tutor (a family friend who is great at explaining-he’s a sophomore in college) for a couple of sessions, to target the math section, specifically geometry, where she is the absolute weakest. He leaves Jan. 17, but it is a start. We also found a “cram” book, that bases what you need to do on how much time you have and tells you specifically what to do each week. DD has agreed to do this. I think it will help, since it’s not me telling her what to do, it’s the book! We can go from there. </p>
<p>Julia</p>
<p>I was wondering about the train information as well. Thanks for that and the food recs. Very helpful. If anybody thinks of anything else, let us know.</p>
<p>I was at a conference in N.O. about 20 months ago and we (my family came along because it was spring break) wandered around Tulane campus for a while. There didn’t appear to be any damage that was evident from outside the buildings, but that’s far from seeing everything. What we did notice was that it is very pretty and the people were very friendly. I really like that part of town.</p>
<p>Thanks to everyone for the great ideas on colleges to investigate. There were several for S1 that I’ve never heard of, so I appreciate all the help! I will definitely pick up the “Colleges That Change Lives” book. We’ll be in the midwest this summer, so will try to visit a couple of those schools then. </p>
<p>RobD: I totally agree about keeping S1 somewhat close, so that will be a big factor. Even a two hour plane ride is reasonable, but I might have a hard time having him further away then that.</p>
<p>S2 and I looked at schools in the DC area in September. He really liked Georgetown, UVA and William and Mary, each in their own way. GW was nice as well, although it lacked the more traditional campus feel he desires, and he thought American might be too geographically small for his tastes. We hadn’t given much thought to Duke or Emory before, but they keep cropping up on the radar, and sound like they are definitely worth a look. We saw Vanderbilt this summer, but the campus was so quiet, it was hard to get a good sense of how it would feel when school is in session.</p>
<p>Financial packages and/or merit aid will have an impact on final decisions, so I’ve told the boys to cast a wide net, and we’ll just see what comes in. With two in college, and a third child two years later, we should actually qualify for some financial aid, at least to get the cost into the range of in-state schools.</p>
<p>Vbc mom, we are doing it all! Crazy, yes. We are doing it around MLK, Jr. Day, so Sat, Sun, and Mon are driving days. Son, sophomore in college, is going with us for the MLK weekend. </p>
<p>There is something on the Tulane website about their evaluation of programs to keep after Katrina, I will see if I can find it.</p>
<p>I found it, look for Tulane, school of science and engineering, click on the “about” tab and view the dean’s message, a short video. I watched it a few months ago, and it came to mind when I saw this question posed. D has Tulane on her list, but for neuroscience.</p>