<p>Mncollegemom–based on your comments about Other LAC’s, consider Colby! We thought it was the best. Not quirky to the extreme, but very cosmopolitan, tolerant and international in outLook. Absolutely outstanding education, which I think is true of many LAC’s, but this is one great college!</p>
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<p>If it was the case of Oberlin during the time I attended in the mid-late '90s or many younger alum friends throughout the '00s…there’s a high chance they’re going to lose that memo by the end of the first semester…unless they’re students at the con. </p>
<p>Heard Oberlin has toned down its quirky-radical chic compared to my time and moreso in past decades…but there’s a good reason why one parent was quoted in the Fiske’s guide that “Oberlin students go out of their way to dress ugly”. </p>
<p>Having been a student there, what he/she really means is that students are very laid back about external appearances/fashion…and do not tolerate anyone who’s judgmental about the unconventional fashion choices which don’t conform to upper/upper-middle class dress/fashion norms. </p>
<p>Hey, it was a reason I was able to get away with wearing old hand-me-downs for 4 years as a near-full ride FA/scholarship student without anyone giving me any grief. Heck, some classmates even complimented me on it. However, I’m not sure if the current Oberlin is as laid-back about such things these days.</p>
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<p>My daughter did an overnight at Oberlin last fall. Her host declared with pride that she had gotten her entire outfit, which was topped by an ankle-length red velvet coat, from a “s<strong>t tbox.” Upon questioning, she elaborated that the clothing had come from one of the many “free s</strong>t” boxes around campus, where people leave their discards.</p>
<p>OP, Earlham College should be on your D’s list to investigate. It was founded by the Quakers and is still run on the Quaker values of integrity, respect, authenticity, etc., and from what I’ve seen, they mean it. It’s a nurturing, collaborative environment and at the same time is on everyone’s list of quirky schools.</p>
<p>One of the things that drew my D to Earlham was the very low student/professor ratio, 12/1. It’s a diverse school and has a very high percentage of international students, 12% last time I checked. They actively encourage study-abroad; about 2/3 of Earlham students participate. As for red tape and bureaucracy – just about non-existent.</p>
<p>I don’t think Beloit food is enough of a reason to not consider it–my son isn’t starving and he doesn’t like standing in line for the wok/grill food. I’m not surprised that someone became a vegetarian since I at the scholarship weekend several parents mention that their children had joined some sort of food coop to get better quality/variety of food. Several of the students ds stayed with and interacted with mentioned joining a fraternity because of better meals. All I’m saying is that having ate at a lot college cafeterias, the food at Beloit isn’t going to be a selling point. Otherwise, it has been a great fit for my son who has finally found a place where he can play magic and DD, be an athlete, and discuss the civil war and politics with a common group of kids.</p>
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<p>The presence of “free s**t” boxes around campus where people leave their discards is a big change from the time I was there. </p>
<p>Back in the ‘90s, the prevailing tendency was to wear ones’ clothes until they fell apart and I seldom saw people have enough excess/unwanted stuff to have several of those boxes around campus. </p>
<p>I can already hear how the numerous campus Marxists/Maoists would denounce their presence as signs Obies are becoming “craven tools of materialism and capitalist excess” and the neo-hippies decry the “rampant consumerist waste” those boxes represented. </p>
<p>Then again…from what I’ve heard from younger alums…Oberlin students are much more toned down compared to the radicals of my day…or moreso in past decades going back to the '60s.</p>
<p>My kids gravitated to LACS, my son loves Vassar and I have a daughter who fell in love with Bates. She comes from a fairly competitive High school and wants to be pre med. She feels (and hopes) that pre med at Bates will be a more collaborative and less cut throat. We have had both financial and medical emergencies and both Vassar and Bates listened to our needs and responded with generous financial aide .</p>
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<p>Same with Reed students; they’re not “as politically radical as they used to be, but that’s a generational change, a sign of the times,” said a Reed prof recently.</p>
<p>Both of the kids got e-mails from Grinnell yesterday–pretty funny timing since we were discussing that school here. DS is interesting in looking at the school so we will probably schedule a visit there.</p>
<p>My H and I have four kids (his and ours) and have helped them all in the college search. Two went to small LACs that they loved. My stepson thrived at Kalamazoo College–he loved the K plan–spent his junior year in Africa. He was a computer geek who ended up with a math major. My D is a recent Bryn Mawr graduate and loved her experience there. She took advantage of the tri-co programs and enrolled in courses at either Swarthmore or Haverford every semester. One semester she also took a course at UPenn (which is not part of the tri-co). My D is really outgoing and likes to be busy all the time. She found lots of opportunities (academic and otherwise) at Bryn Mawr. Another plus for any of the tri-co schools–easy access from the Main Line to Philadelphia. My D grew up in a small New England town and being close to a big city was important to her.</p>
<p>Big fan of LAC’s now that my son is attending University of Richmond. I’m surprised that no one has mentioned UR yet. People get confused becuase of its name, but UR is very much a LAC. I wouldn’t call it quirky, though. Excellent freshman seminars, strong in science with the IQS course(Integrative Quantitative Science) and small classes. . UR is known for its undergrad business school but they have much more. Amazing undergrad science research opportunities along with outstanding pre-med advising should attract many. UR is a hot school right(more selctive in admissions) because it combines the LAC atmosphere with Division I sports and a medium size. Students can get the full college experience there.</p>
<p>I’m a big fan of LAC’s. My oldest daughter looked at Shimer College (in Chicago) and Reed College. She ended up at Reed, and by the time she graduated, totally regretted not going to Shimer. My son went to Stanford, and also wishes he had gone to Shimer. Sure, he got a great job right out of grad school, but as he says “I didn’t learn anything. I just regurgitated what they told me.” My youngest daughter listened to her older siblings and went to Shimer. She has totally blossomed. Incidentally, all my kids are slightly quirky. They had few friends in middle school or high school, but as young adults, their values, intellect, and decision to be who they are, rather than conforming to some societal expectation, seems to attract high quality people like moths to a flame. I’d say go with Shimer. It’s very small, almost like a big family; several times my daughter was invited to her professor’s homes for dinner (and conversation). Lots of brilliant people there–almost a quarter of their graduates go on to receive doctoral degrees, which is about double the percentage who graduate from Harvard, Yale, Princeton, or Stanford. And they are a LOT cheaper than those schools.</p>
<p>Wow. I had never heard of Shimer, but looking at the website, it looks great. I want to go there. Still, for a kid, isn’t such a tiny school a bit tough socially? Did I read it correctly, just over 100 students? (My own UG had only 450 students at the time)</p>
<p>When we visited I loved the food, it was really just what my Grandmother used to cook. Yum! Creamed chicken and veg over biscuits! Goulash! Soups!Yum, I say again!</p>
<p>My interest in Greensboro College mainly had to do with the high quality theatre program that offers a lot of internships with professional theatres. At such a small program, some level of involvement in every production can be practically guaranteed. This relates to every other program as well, at GC or any small LAC, you can stand out and make yourself known a lot easier than at a large school. The campus is also in Downtown Greensboro, but is still tree-lined and beautiful. I have not seen another urban-setting school that looks so good.</p>
<p>Greensboro is also part of the Greater Greensboro Consortium, which partners with UNC-Greensboro, Guilford College, Elon, High Point U, NC A&T, and Bennett College for women. As part of the consortium, every one of those college’s libraries are open to you, that’s quite a selection and quite a lot of places to study. It is also possible to take anywhere less than half your credits at another school. If I go to Greensboro, I will have to take a foreign language as part of my general education requirements. I have always wanted to learn Arabic. Greensboro doesn’t have it, but UNC-G does.</p>
<p>dansbooks–TINY SCHOOL, wow!! My kids would not like a school like that but for someone that wants a class of 20 kids, why not. Costs are inline with other private schools though.</p>
<p>My kids both gravitated to midwestern LACs. They didn’t like the preppie feel of the New England schools we visited, and they also weren’t interested in schools where fraternities were an important part of the social scene.</p>
<p>My son is at Oberlin and loves it. With two kids, we visited lots of LACs. Oberlin stood out - not for a lovely campus like Colby or Vassar but rather for a feeling of creativity and living with purpose. There always seems to be something happening on campus. Having the conservatory means that music and performances in general are daily occurrences. There are a lot of “crunchy hippies”, and there are some strange fashion choices, but not all students fit stereotypes.</p>
<p>Macalester also is alive but in a different sense. It is one of the few small LACs in a city. and that makes it unique. There seems to be a lot of things to do on campus, but there’s a never ending number of things to do off. But even with two cities to distract students, the school has a strong sense of community. The school also has a strong international focus. My daughter really appreciates that there are students from all over the world at Mac. Since we’re on the East Coast, it’s great that transportation to and from the airport is an easy taxi ride. There are less “crunchy hippies” at Mac, but it does lean liberal. Neither school is particularly sporty, each does have a few teams that draw support. Athletes seem to mix in a little better at Mac. Both schools have been generous with financial aid.</p>
<p>Actually, Shimer has about 150 students, but they have a somewhat unique setup. They share a very large campus with three other colleges. The Illinois Institute of Technology is the largest, is well respected in the field, and means Shimer students can take any of the classes offered there. Vander Cook College of Music is a small music college also located on the campus; Shimer students can also take classes there. And Kent College of Law, a pretty good law school, is located there. In fact, through a cooperative agreement, Shimer students can get a Shimer College B. A. degree and a J. D. from Kent in just six years instead of the usual seven. So while Shimer itself has 150 students, there are another 6,000 or so close by. And Shimer students can participate in any of the hundreds of clubs and organizations of the other colleges. Shimer students tend to stay together, but it’s a pretty sweet situation. Like lots of different food in the cafeteria–vegetarian, vegan, etc.–which Shimer could never have without the shared facilities. Hope this helps.</p>
<p>This is a response to a specific question I was asked by someone, but I do not know how to respond to you privately–Sorry!!</p>
<p>I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but my daughter sounds similar to yours (I used to suspect that she was a mild Asperger’s kid) and ended up very happy at Shimer College. Friendly, interesting kids and teachers, and so small everyone knows everyone (which can be good and bad). Classes have between five and fifteen students (usually no more than twelve). And they take kids who have not graduated from high school–my daughter left after her third year of high school, and no, she did not graduate or get a GED (My older daughter, who graduated from Reed and has an advanced degree from the University of Cardiff, never went to high school at all and only went to one year of middle school, but that’s a different story). So if your kid is unhappy in high school, doesn’t fit in, etc., I would definitely look at Shimer College. One caution: It is academically rigorous. My daughter thought she could breeze by, given her 4.3 high school GPA and 2100 SAT composite. She’s had to work harder than she ever expected. On the other hand, there are several high school dropouts at Shimer doing very well. I well recall meeting a Shimer grad from about fifteen years ago. He was a high school dropout who was working as a gas station attendant when he started at Shimer. He went on to get a Ph.D. and is now a department chair at (if I recall correctly) University of Michigan.</p>
<p>Definitely look at Pitzer if you’re visiting Pomona. Activism of some kind is practically an expectation there, and students have access to most 5C courses. Pomona is very very selective and not particularly quirky.</p>