While I only have daughters, if I had sons I would consider striking these states from their lists as well. If my daughters could become pregnant while at college, my sons could impregnate someone, and be face similar concerns: if the young woman wants an abortion it becomes harder to get, and that’s his problem too. Plus there is the issue of sending a son to live in a state where the culture is so different that they believe women must be controlled. Four years is a long time to hold your nose.
My last daughter is HS class of 2020, and while Alabama is already off her list for a variety of reasons, there is still one school in Missouri on her list. It is a financial safety, but the new law there weighs heavily as a counterbalance. I’m willing to pay more for her to go elsewhere. And my father was born and raise in MO,
For me it’s less about the specific medical service (abortion), which if God forbid my child were ever to need it she’d have the resources to go to another state.
I love UA and my DD17 is receiving a wonderful education. However, if this were going on a few years ago she would have never considered UA and I am hesitant to recommend the school to others now. The disregard for health and well being along with the bad press nationally will impact her while job hunting. People are already talking about it at her internship. I am pretty confident that any thoughts about staying in Alabama after graduation are out. She loves the school but she would not encourage her siblings to attend.
One clarification to the OP. UA did not return the Culverhouse $ and remove his name from the law school due to his stance on abortion or his call for students to boycott (mentioned in the OP). This is all a convenient spin that he has created and perpetuated to protect himself from the embarrassment of the actual reason. These actions by the university were initiated prior to any discussions about abortion. The donor leveraged his donation to be a part of university decisions on hiring and firing. He wanted to put his own people in key positions. He wanted unrestricted access to the campus at will (sit in on classes and meetings unannounced and without restrictions). He called for the firing of 10 professors. He held a large family donation in his father’s estate to the business school hostage a few years earlier. He insulted and tried to undermine the dean of the law school. He tried to manipulate the dean and president of the school and they stood up for academic integrity. This is all outlined in a series of emails going back that have been released.
Parents in my area are definitely talking about this. And frankly, I did not consider Southern states at all for my two. My daughter was definitely not going to the south, and while my son thought about a few southern schools, he decided against them.
“For me it’s less about the specific medical service (abortion), which if God forbid my child were ever to need it she’d have the resources to go to another state. It’s more about the signal it sends about women’s autonomy and whether lawmakers in these states feel women, in conjunction with their doctors, should be trusted to make their own medical decisions.”
Here lies the danger of this topic. If one were to express an opposing view to this poster then the subject would become political and would likely be shut down. I am sure there are those who might have a rebuttal to this statement but to make it sends this discussion in a very different direction.
The states doing this tend to be, though not all, states that raise flags on all sorts of social issues. Frankly, it was an issue that came to mind when my son was looking at a very generous award package at Alabama. Many parents in my state, NY would not consider sending their kids to that state, particularly those of color.
But these are decisions some of us can make from a place of privilege. The college deals in such states can be the best for certain students. NY pretty much covers college tuition for a large number of students but not the very hefty room and board prices. Also, parents with the money who just won’t cough it up for their kids college, are problematic for their kids. A in Full ride, in such cases to Alabama or Mississippi can be a life changer.
MODERATOR’S NOTE:
Reopening thread after having deleted/edited several posts. The OP started with a very valid question, “Have you considered this in deciding which colleges are a good fit for your kids? Should you?”
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I know this sounds really, really bad, but from a financial standpoint, isn’t one better off taking Alabama’s scholarship money and, if necessary, sending daughter on a hopefully-one-time trip to another state if drastic measures are needed? Exactly how many abortions are we expecting our daughters to have while attending college? Zero, hopefully. One, an emergency? More than one is fairly unusual for college age women.
I guess I am saying that, at this time, it likely wouldn’t be a factor for this family’s college choice. Things could change. Getting to another state and back is not a financial hardship for us at this time. We have mixed feelings on abortion, but we all agree that, if you’re going to do it, the earlier in the pregnancy the better. Again, finances could change, political viewpoints can change. As long as 'Bama is giving out generous scholarships to OOS students, though, the finances don’t change.
“I know this sounds really, really bad, but from a financial standpoint, isn’t one better off taking Alabama’s scholarship money and, if necessary, sending daughter on a hopefully-one-time trip to another state if drastic measures are needed?”
If I’m taking a stance on the issue, it’s not just for my own family but all who are affected, especially those who can’t afford to travel out of state.
My kids look at schools that offer the academic program they are looking for and could care less about the whims of the state legislatures. I know many kids in our high school would be thrilled if less people applied to UT-Austin for what ever reason.
I think it may exacerbate the already existing hesitance of kids from the NE and West to attend Deep South schools outside of major urban centers like Atlanta aside from a few top schools like Duke or Vandy. I’ve had quite a few parents look at me askance and say “Your kid’s going to school where?”