Simple but valid question: "so what really defines a school as liberal vs conservative?"

A lot of this discussion is unclear, and depends on what the OP is contemplating by “conservative” and “liberal.” Everyone seems to have their own definitions. There are a few schools like Oberlin and maybe Vassar that are pretty clearly liberal. There are some like Oral Roberts and Liberty that are pretty clearly conservative.

After that, it depends, what issue you are talking about. Hopefully, colleges are focused on facts and evidence rather than opinions. A conservative idea that free markets increase wealth creation should be found on any college campus, but the conservative idea that the earth is only 5,000 years old will be found only on religious campuses. The liberal idea that vaccines are dangerous should not be found on campuses either. Schools should be teaching students what the evidence shows, and I think that for the most part they do.