<p>Muhlenberg and Lehigh are hardly interchangeable despite their being 20 minutes or so apart. The same goes for the other colleges/universities in the area: DeSales, Lafayette, Moravian, and Cedar Crest. Each appeals to a different sort of student, although there are more cross-applications between Lehigh and Lafayette than between the others. </p>
<p>Lehigh is not any more or less white or welcoming than the other schools. But each prospective applicant who steps on campus will arrive with a different set of expectations and desires. What one may find exciting, another may find off-putting. It would be unfair to attribute the wrong fit to racism. That doesn’t mean, of course, that racism doesn’t exist at Lehigh – or at Muhlenberg, for that matter. </p>
<p>Junior mom, the only part of your post that I find objectionable is the line about other parents teaching their (Lehigh) children to be mean. Of course that’s going to get a rise from Lehigh parents and students. Lehigh doesn’t have a higher percentage of “mean” or racist students than Muhlenberg. I’ve known students at both colleges; some have been happy, and some have not been. In fact, an acquaintance of mine had a daughter who attended Muhlenberg, and she transferred after a year because she found it unwelcoming. Does that mean that Muhlenberg students are mean? Of course not. I know another student there who absolutely loves it. The same is true of Lehigh and every other college – some students feel comfortable, and others don’t. </p>
<p>I think it’s great that your daughter is beginning, as a junior, to determine what she wants in a college. It sounds to me as though she would be happiest at a liberal arts school like Muhlenberg, Lafayette, or many other small colleges. Good luck to her! My own daughter chose a liberal arts college over Lehigh, and it was the best thing to happen to her, not because Lehigh is bad or undesirable but because her choice best fit her personality.</p>
<p>Thanks Momwaitingfornew! We visited 'berg and Lehigh on same day. This is the second time I’m doing this between my 2 daughters. We have visited over 40 schools in a span of 3 years. My kids go to a primarily Jewish affluent high school which is 95% white. So my kids are very comfortable in that kind of environment. When we went to 'berg the other parents talked to each other on our campus tours about our kids interests, other schools etc. There was a kind of parental bond among everyone. We all wished each other good luck and parted. Then we went to Lehigh, no one said hi even though eye contact was made. There was a sofa where this woman sat she had her coat and bag on the other side where easily 2 more people could sit but she did not move it. I tried to make room and sit she gave me a dirty look. I was like “wth” As we were walking to the info session no one would hold the door for the other. I could go on and on but I wont. I’m from NY so I’m not expecting any chivalry.
Of course my daughter will go only where she will feel safe and happy and we will not compromise and probably it will not be Lehigh or even Muhlenberg. But all I was doing is giving my experience at Lehigh. Isn’t that why we need to college campuses anyways?</p>
<p>junior_mom – I have toured an awful lot of colleges with my kids (including Muhlenberg and Lehigh several times) and have witnessed boorish, rude and snarky behavior from parents on numerous occasions. I always cautioned my daughters not to judge a college based on the behavior of the families taking the tour or attending the information session because 1) those families may b\just be having a “bad day” and 2) just because a family tours a particular college doesn’t mean you have to put up with that family for the next 4 years. The worst parental/child behavior I’ve witnessed came at Amherst, Yale and Princeton – great schools all. Lehigh may indeed not be a good fit for your daughter – indeed it is very different than the 'Berg – but I wouldn’t base your decision primarily on the “vibe” given off by people who are taking a college tour and probably won’t even end up sending their kid to that school.</p>
<p>hudsonvalley51: Thanks for your input. I agree!! But a campus is good determination of the next 4 years and that’s why people are encouraged to tour campus to feel if they belong there isnt it?
BTW, I’m from hudson valley too…LOL</p>
<p>Im bumping this thread because I feel that it is important to acknowledge this topic. I understand that Lehigh is roughly 70% white and I was wondering if any current student had any info on this topic. I myself am a minority and was wondering about this. I don’t want to attend an institution that lacks these basic fundamentals.</p>
<p>I am a current student at Lehigh. Please, please understand that Lehigh is a place that only fosters diversity and acceptance. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, many people tend to attribute a single belief or event to the collective beliefs or events of a university. Lehigh’s recent encountes with racism are NOT representative of the student body/administration. These events were, quite frankly, the acts of incredibly ignorant, naive students who are in the overwhelming minority of this campus. In no way, shape, or form is Lehigh a place that harbors this kind of thinking; rather, it emanates the contrary.
At my time at Lehigh, I have been exposed to more different thoughts, people, and cultures than in any other times in my life. I’ve learned so much from it, and I love it. I know non-Jewish students that often attend Jewish social events, a non-Arabic student that attends Arabic culture meetings, international students that teach fellow dorm members about their lives in their home countries, and more. THIS, instead of racism, is the culture of Lehigh.</p>
<p>This topic is further discussed in a thread I recently started (“Current Lehigh Student Answering Questions”). If you are still interested, personal message me.</p>
<p>Also, I don’t believe that Lehigh is 70% white. Anyway, why does it matter? The whole point we are trying to make here is about judging people based on their character, not their skin color. The overarching color of the student body doesn’t, in my oppinion represnt its character. I certainly hope that is not your belief.</p>
<p>In sum, keep in mind that my posts are written by a student who’s their right now. They are written as objectively as possible.</p>
<p>*there. Sorry, I had to :)</p>
<p>My son is white and he was invited to attend the Diversity Weekend when he was a prospective student. We think it was based on geographic diversity goals since we live pretty far from Lehigh. My son loved the Diversity Weekend and made many lifelong friends there. </p>
<p>When I picked my son up from school at the end of freshman year I got to meet his gang of friends. There were approx. 10 kids from his dorm floor. who hung out together Three or the fours girls were minority students. Three of the seven guys were minority students. A couple of the kids were from pretty wealthy families and the rest were from pretty ordinary middle class families. They are all business and engineering majors and have done amazingly well in their classes! All the girls joined sororities and I know 5 guys joined fraternities. They have all stayed friends over the years. Whenever I am at Lehigh I go out to lunch or dinner with these kids. Race has never been any kind of issue with my son and his friends. And his formal and informal fraternity pictures show a very average mix of kids from all sorts of minority groups. </p>
<p>I think it would be much better if people posting stuck to giving their own opinions and did not try to represent what the “majority” thinks. Personally, I wouldn’t send my son to a school that didn’t provide a diverse group of students for my son to interact with!</p>
<p>I too was worried about diversity at Lehigh, judging from what I had read on this and other forums. My daughter is Asian, we come from a VERY white community in Massachusetts so Lehigh looked extremely diverse when we visited. In my daughter’s dorm hall, roughly 60% of students are minority. I have pictures from her prelusion program and it is about 50/50. I am very surprised at the level of diversity. That being said, there have been some incidents at Lehigh, no doubt brought on by a few, but when I questioned my daughter she had no clue anything was happening. She has never felt discriminated against, feels completely included and absolutely is loving her Lehigh experience. One of her comments was " I wake up in awe every day that this gets to be my school" and another is that “lehigh is like the first song in the muppet movie” , lol. Look it up, it’s tittled I’ve got everything that I want. It really sums up her experience so far at Lehigh. </p>
<p>We visited Lehigh 4 or 5 times before she decided to apply, and never once did we feel any negativity whatsoever. The students were awesome and welcoming and we always walked away happy and more sure that she would choose this amazing school.</p>