Southern LACs

College Search & Selection
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@ECmotherx2‌ - thanks for the questions.

I think she applied to Hendrix because it is a small LAC with smart but not necessarily competitive students, along with lines of St.Mary’s college of Maryland and New College of Florida. She liked the Odyssey program but I admit she was never very enthusiastic about the college.

We can fit in a visit but it will be a tight schedule. My guess? She sees herself at other schools but she hasn’t visited all of them. Originally the thought was that she visit the ones where she was admitted, but to be honest, we thought that would be two or three schools at the most.

The merit package is adequate, not the most generous but not the worst.

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@dadof1: "Birmingham-Southern is so much less expensive compared to the colleges… why is that we wonder? . . . . Is there something “wrong” with the place, we wonder?

I don’t think that there is anything “wrong” with the place at all (although, depending on your perspective, the high percentage of student in fraternities and sororities might give one pause – the flip side of that is, lots of schools in the South have high percentages of students who are members of Greek organizations). My sense is that the financial issues have been/are being straightened out by the current president. It also seems to be true of a number of smaller church-affiliated LACs or colleges in the South that COA is lower – Millsaps, Emory & Henry, and Belmont University all come to mind (obviously there are exceptions as well).

I know a family whose daughter is a student at BSC, a sophomore or junior if I recall, and she loves it there. The mom said that the experience there has been very good for the daughter; the mom described BSC as a “very nurturing” place. Another friend who originally is from Alabama told me that she would love for her daughter to attend BSC, although they are still a few years away from college.

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@ I am starting to second guess my “let’s not visit until accepted” approach.

D did not to visit Rollins and Dickinson. Both colleges have very high COAs so we thought it made sense to wait and see if acceptance came with merit aid. D was deferred at Dickinson. Would she have been accepted if she had visited and interviewed?

D received merit aid with acceptance from Rollins, but it is not enough. More financial aid may come…or not. Does D have a better chance at Rollins grants if she visits prior to receiving her financial aid package? I don’t want D to visit and then fall in love with the college only to find out it is over budget. Thoughts?

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@gandalf78 Thanks for the positive anecdotes about BSC. The nurturing aspect of the college keeps coming up in reviews and CC’ers comments… must me something to that.

@mominsc With only the merit award known to us so far, Rollins is crazy expensive for us compared to other schools. Maybe additional grant money will be coming from the school, but I doubt very much. Unless D receives more need-based grant money, the premium Rollins price tag will mean it goes off of D’s consideration list. What Rollins has is an awesome campus… the best of any we have visited, and it ain’t even close, IMO… a new science center, and very small class sizes. If you don’t want your D to fall in love with the campus because it is too expensive, I would not visit.

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@dadof1‌ Thanks for the advice! I thought you had visited Rollins. Your description of the campus would be a love connection for D. Wish it weren’t so crazy expensive! I wonder why Rollins freshmen retention rate is lower than so many of the other LAC’s.? Do many of the students lose their merit scholarships because of low GPA,s and then cannot afford to go to school there?

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I love this thread! I bet that there will be a lot of northerners enrolling at southern schools after this winter! 2 of the schools on S’s final list of 3 are southern LACs: Florida Southern College and Rhodes College.

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@mominsc There’s a good reason why much of the Rollins’ facebook page is devoted to campus pictures! You’re in FL during the fall/winter/spring… can’t be beat for a person from the frozen tundra. We also wonder about the retention rate and graduation rate being relatively low compared to colleges like Rhodes/Sewanee/Wofford, etc. Maybe the parents don’t think the money is worth it after the “shine” wears off; maybe the students aren’t as motivated. It’s a good question to ask.

@eli1067 Glad you are finding the thread enjoyable! We’ve been to both FL Southern and Rhodes. Unless money is a big factor in FL Southern’s favor or your S really wants to be in FL, I would choose Rhodes. IMO, the feel of Rhodes is much more academic.

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Hello fellow Southern LAC fans! I am in Austin tonight, and D is doing an overnight at Southwestern U. I will wait to report on the visit until we both attend the open house event tomorrow, but I can say I am very favorably impressed so far. Really beautiful campus (kinda like “Sewanee light” - literally. Gorgeous Gothic buildings, but at Southwestern, built from the lighter limestone), excellent location, friendly, down to earth students. Looks very promising! Anyway…

@dadof1. Here is my entirely unscientific, biased, uneducated opinion about BSC. I think it does not get the love it deserves because it is in the “Deep South” (whatever that means), in a city regularly ranked as one of the most dangerous, known to have less than great race relations. It also has the word “Southern” in its name, which apparently is, in itself, a liability (the reason Sewanee is trying so hard to be Sewanee, not “University of the South” - because a marketing firm told them that would be better).

Also, the financial issues. Which appear to be resolved for now. But, did you see that General Krulak just announced his retirement in December? That is a real shame, he seemed like an excellent, strong leader. Hopefully they will get a new president who is just as strong, but since he singlehandedly turned the place around, it is an issue. Who will be the new leader of this school that just barely emerged from a huge crisis?

I think the (very few) LACs in Texas are underappreciated for similar reasons. Many people write off Texas because, well, its Texas! We live in CO, which is overrun with Texans (some of our best friends are Texans! ha) so we do not have the same bias. But, I have heard so many people say, “why would you send your kid to school in Texas? Are you crazy?”

I think Rhodes does better, despite the crime statistics, because although Memphis gets a bad rap, Nashville (and of course Vanderbilt) are super hot places to be right now. In fact, Nashville, Austin, Raleigh, San Antonio, Houston, Phoenix and a few other Southern/Western cities are at the very top of the charts for job growth, especially in STEM fields. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/04/08/houston-rising-why-the-next-great-american-cities-aren-t-what-you-think.html.

As an aside, I wish D had applied to Rhodes, but husband ruled out Rhodes and BSC based purely on location. Kind of like with your kids, you choose your battles, so I gave in on that one, but it seems like such a fantastic place. All of you visiting/considering, good luck!

Right now it looks like our D’s top choices are Centre, Agnes Scott, and (yes) Southwestern. Sewanee was number one until we got the paltry merit award. And tonight, D texted me “these girls are really funny and nice, and not so preppy like the Sewanee girls.”

I was worried about the preppy thing. So maybe a blessing in disguise.

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Just to clarify: Of course, Rhodes also has many, many other great things going for it than proximity to Nashville, and Memphis itself represents huge opportunities, for internships, etc. I’m just saying, to me, Rhodes (and most of the other LACs we discuss here) does not evoke Deep South like BSC does. (Spoken like a true Yankee, who has no idea what they are talking about). I’m sure its an entirely inaccurate perception, but there it is.

Meanwhile, CC adores Bama, so obviously I do not know what I’m talking about.

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@4kids4colleges I was hoping you would write a report from your Texas college visit. Glad to read you and your D seem to like Southwestern. It’s a bit off the radar in our household, even though D has been accepted. Maybe your upcoming review will change our minds…

Thanks also for giving your impressions on BSC. We did read that General Krulak is stepping down as the president. He seems to have given the college a lot of lifeblood the past four years. I understand he will continue to live in Birmingham and fundraise for the college after this year. Unfortunately, I don’t think the new president will be named until after April. It is another wildcard in making a decision about BSC, but they seem to be headed in the right direction financially.

I think you’re right about the names and locations of colleges evoking a immediate reaction, with BSC’s name and location being a turnoff for many people outside of the Deep South. Some people would view this part of the country as a sinkhole of prejudice and lack of opportunity for “outsiders”. It is the town of elected commissioner Bull Connor, after all and remains extremely segregated along racial lines. While Bull Connor waged war 50 years ago, it still leaves a mark on the area. As for names of colleges, I read somewhere that Rhodes changed it’s name to be perceived as more academic, and it was recommended by a PR firm a few years ago that Southwestern Univ consider changing its name for the same reason. On the one hand, the primary mission of a LAC is to teach; on the other hand, a college needs to attract students to remain viable, and the name is important for a positive first impression. Neither the name nor the location has much to do with the learning that goes on inside the classrooms, but it can be important when interfacing with the world outside of the campus.

CC does adore Bama… being a consistent winner on the football field does have its perks!

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@4kids4college‌ - The proximity of Austin to Georgetown (where Southwestern is located) is a real plus. Having lived in Austin for many years, as well as the Deep South, I can attest that Austin is not “The South” in the traditional sense. I love Austin (except the traffic). My S lives there presently. Great area to attend college!

Southwestern is a wonderful school. I think it doesn’t get the press it deserves because it lives in the shadow of UT. And in Texas - bigger is better - lol.

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SlackerMom, you know how to reach me off this thread, but for the benefit of others who might be reading this, I’d say it is not at all unusual for kids (and their parents) to lose interest in schools when they don’t feel “courted” by them–especially among the pool of small LACs, which generally do a really good job with this.

I am surprised your D’s admission letter took so long to get to you, but that seems to be happening at a lot of colleges this year. I don’t know if it’s the result of higher application volume or something else.

Hendrix is a fantastic school. If you have a nagging feeling that you should keep it on the list, maybe call the admissions office and try to find out why her acceptance was delayed. Don’t call today, though–I just got the automated text saying the college is closed due to inclement weather. It must be pretty bad for them to do that.

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I’ve heard Florida Southern is generous with their financial aid.

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Wishing safe travels to all visiting southern LACs! D and hubby (and Octavia) are in VA at Roanoke College for their Scholars Competition, which is supposed to wrap up at noon today.

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And as the Northerners come south, I bet that there will be a lot of Southerners going even further south, enrolling in Florida schools after this winter! It has been unusually cold, and we are expecting a big ice storm tonight.

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Trisherella: Florida Southern was pretty generous, but what makes it an attractive out of state option is the fact its sticker price is lower than that of other colleges. When I ran the Net Price calculators for other Florida schools like Rollins, they were going to be more expensive than Rhodes College.

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Anxious to read the trip reports from those traveling this week. My daughter has been accepted to Hendrix and Rhodes as well. Visited Hendrix earlier and I loved it but D was not convinced. Such a friendly and nurturing environment where the kids seem to have all kinds of opportunities to do interesting things. I loved the overlap between the school and Conway as well. Going back for Hays competition in early March. Planning on going to Memphis to Admitted Students Day at Rhodes in April. Thanks for posting and have a safe trip.

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I’ve decided to cancel the planned trip to BSC, Rhodes, and Hendrix this week because of the uncertain weather. Snow/ice is predicted for Friday in Memphis, and I envision Rhodes cancelling all activities like they did yesterday. Bummer. Because of the colleges’ spring breaks and other life events, we won’t be visiting any colleges until April. It will be a busy month.

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Probably a good idea. Maybe we’ll run into each other in April.

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Interesting that Rhodes College used to be called Southwestern, which itself was a shortening from Southwestern Presbyterian University.

According to the Rhodes website the change of name away from Southwestern (in 1984) was to distinguish itself from other colleges with the same name, and to honor a former president. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that the unrelated “Rhodes Scholar” is highly prestigious.
http://www.rhodes.edu/about/26877.asp