<p>Won’t even go there on your community culture pitch. Suffice it to say, Austin and UT are politically and socially liberal, diverse in every sense of the word and the home of many top-notch performing and visual arts groups, plus the outside world of arts does find the way to visit, frequently! There is so much choice for “outside the classroom” activities, I can’t imagine anyone not being able to find an outlet for their particular passion.</p>
<p>Thank you for the charming invitation TXArt! I am delighted to hear how enlightened Austin is. We, here, happen to be surrounded by many UT (older, from rural TX) alumns who embody all the qualities in my previous question–and please note it was a question, not a statement.</p>
<p>And yes, I have visited Austin, and know the beauty of the lake, hills, trees and beautiful capital. I am glad to know now it is a bastion of liberalism. (I thought the Crawford influence may have grown throughout the last decade.) </p>
<p>Nonetheless, it is in Texas, and is there a state population more proud of it’s heritage? If an OOS college graduate stays in TX to pursue a career will s/he be accepted as enthusiastically into the community/corporate life as a true Texan? Or always be seen as a Yankee interloper?</p>
<p>And as for the OP’s dilemma- I’d say go for sunny Austin if the redneck question is off the table! Ann Arbor is grey from November through April.</p>
<p>fauve, in reality Austin if far more multi-cultural than Ann Arbor. It has large Hispanic, Black and Asian populations most of whom have been living in Austin for generations. Austin is more lively and cultural than Ann Arbor with amazing arts, music, film and even the higher arts scenes. Austin is also very liberal and not flat.</p>
<p>I never said it was flat (see previous topographical commentary/post #22), and as expressed in #22 I’m utterly delighted (!!!) to hear it is a den of liberalism.</p>
<p>Hey, fauve, I’m glad you’ve seen our charms firsthand! And not to worry about carpetbaggers. We freely share that proud Texas heritage so they can claim, “I wasn’t born in Texas, but got here as soon as I could!”</p>
<p>On politics, the 2008 pres election revitalized the Dems in Texas generally and caused Houston, Dallas and other previously red cities/areas to turn blue. (See the map I grabbed from Wikipedia) But there was never really a question whether Travis County, home of Austin and UT, would vote blue. There is a reason some call it, “The People’s Republic of Austin.”</p>
<p>hoosierfriend - I, too, am an '82 UT alum! H is '83.</p>
<p>We visited Ann Arbor when D1 was looking at colleges (in 2003). It was the first time I’d seen the campus, and I thought it was beautiful. I kept thinking, what’s not to like about it? But an hour into the tour, she was just not clicking with the campus. I know it had nothing to do with the snow or weather because she ended choosing Syracuse! </p>
<p>Austin is a fabulous place to live. As you know, the only downfall of your child going there is that they might not want to come home, ever… summers, after graduation, etc. It definitely has a very multi-cultural feel to it and has a wide array of outdoor activities available within an easy hour’s drive; I just don’t know that much about Ann Arbor to compare those qualities. Sometimes I wonder if my grades would have been better in college had I gone to a snow belt school!</p>
<p>First, congratulations to your D on being accepted to two terrific schools. </p>
<p>I agree with other posters about not casting the tiebreaker. Encourage her to talk to you about what she likes most about both schools (academics, social life, everything) - maybe she could write a list of pros and cons (not that there would be many of those for either one unless the weather is a major factor) of both schools as a way to look at all aspects of her decision. Either way, she will have a great experience!</p>
<p>Thanks for all of your responses. D just called me and said that it was a really tough decision, but she choseTexas! TXArtemis, the info session did address the housing, mentioning that it was “getting late” to get the dorm of your choice. I have been psychologically prepared to pay MI oos tuition (which was quite a bit higher than ut oos) - now that that is off the table, I am convincing myself that the private dorm option is justifiable. I looked at University Towers over the weekend and am convinced that it is nicer than most places I’ve stayed on vacation over the years, and a short walk from campus to boot. Politically, my daughter comes from a family that has voted both red and blue over the years. Having spent the past three days on campus I felt a good bit of both sides of the equation. As a parent, I liked that. Better for D to be exposed to both sides of the argument than inundated by one side or the other while she formulates her opinions, I suppose. Really appreciate everyone’s input into this thread. I hope that I can help you guys as much one day as you have helped me.</p>
<p>And you have been very helpful to me. We, too, are trying to hang back while DD makes her choice. You’ve beautifully modeled how to rise to that challenge. Thank you for serving as inspiration!</p>
<p>Fauve, I never said that YOU said Texas was flat; I’ve just heard that expressed by a lot of people. I’ve heard a bunch of funny misconceptions about my home state up here! I especially love the sentiment: “Well, people down south SEEM friendlier, but it’s very shallow.” LOL.</p>
<p>There are a LOT of out-of-staters who have relocated to Austin, so I don’t think it’s a problem fitting in. Going from Austin to Maine was a little harder, I’d say! You have to be a third generation Mainer to not be considered “from away.”</p>
Ann Arbor is grey from November through April.</p>![http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Texas_Presidential_Election_Results_by_County,_2008.svg]File:Texas](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Texas_Presidential_Election_Results_by_County,_2008.svg%5DFile:Texas){kind=link}
