Our son is twice-exceptional with a strong interest in environmental science. He wants to go away to school (we live in the Pacific NW), preferably to a small college with strong academics and support for 2e students. He is independent, articulate, and has good study skills. But he does need some help with social/executive function issues.
He’s interested in the outdoors/nature, so we need a school that is both small and in or near an area with great outdoor activity.
We’ve been hearing great things about RIP so that’s on our radar. What other schools should be?
I’d start with Whitman College and the State University of New York/College of Environmental Science & Forestry (SUNY ESF). If you want to try something different and go all in on the outdoors culture, take a look at Paul Smith’s College (1000 enrollment) in the heart of NY’s Adirondack Forest Preserve.
Both RIT and RPI are in suburban or urban locations, though there are a lot of outdoor activities to do off-campus. Would your son be interested in more rural locations, say Cornell or Colgate, as other colleges in NY? Obviously you can go outside of NY but if that’s a preference, there are a lot of colleges there with nature activities.
You might check out Warren Wilson in North Carolina. Also maybe UNC-Asheville and Appalachian State University. I’m not sure what the environmental science offerings are like at Roanoke College in Salem VA but it is supposed to be a very supportive small school in the Blue Ridge Mountains of VA. Search for threads about it here. Folks seem to love it.