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I would love to know why people who've gone to Swarthmore are more enthusiastic about it than people who've gone to UChicago. Is it just the size?
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<p>No. It's not just the size, although that is fundamental to what Swarthmore does. I do not believe it is possible to "scale" Swarthmore up to a much larger size.</p>
<p>Perhaps a few quotes from the most recent accreditation review panel headed by the President of Oberlin would get at the heart of why students love Swarthmore:</p>
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Swarthmore possesses a remarkably strong sense of community, particularly among students, faculty and members of the board of managers. Indeed, our team found Swarthmore to exemplify a "culture of community"--that is, community members' sense of trust in the College as a humane and equitable institution is so strong that it can and does rely more upon relationships and traditions to communicate values, rather than formal rules and regulations. Team members were particularly impressed by the trust in and satisfaction with the College that faculty and students expressed. Part of this strong sense of trust comes from Swarthmore's traditions of governance. Although the College no longer governs itself by "Quaker process," it remains strongly committed to participatory governance and to decision-making by consensus. Faculty, students, and members of the governing board, in particular, expressed great satisfaction with the traditions of Swarthmore governance, especially because they have long ensured that the entire College community would see to it that the institution would conduct its activities in humane and equitable ways. Then, too, with approximately 1300 students, Swarthmore is a small, intimate institution, and students, faculty and staff believe that any difficulties or grievances they express can and will be addressed in personal, face-to-face ways. </p>
<p>The team unequivocally concluded that Swarthmore is an exemplar of institutional integrity. Without doubt, it respects principles of academic freedom and conducts its activities through humane and equitable policies with all of its constituencies.
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Swarthmore is a deeply student-centered institution. All members of the team were impressed by the ways in which Swarthmore is focused on students in every aspect of its operation. The College recognizes that learning occurs in classrooms, laboratories, and studios, in residence halls, on athletic fields, and in a myriad of associational activities and extracurricular programs and services. The team concludes that Swarthmore makes a strong and deliberate effort to facilitate the intellectual growth of students both inside and outside the classroom.
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The most striking aspect of the Dean's program is the personal attention provided students. Students report that in every office of the division, staff are deeply concerned about their well-being and education. Counseling and an array of other support services are available and well-utilized by students.
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Swarthmore is justifiably proud of a remarkably strong faculty of teacher-scholars who are deeply committed to the intellectual development of an outstanding group of students. Faculty morale appears to be very strong. The excellent financial resources of the College enable it to be highly competitive with its peer institutions in providing excellent compensation to its new and continuing faculty. Excellent financial resources also permit an unusually generous student-faculty ratio, which facilitates strong intellectual mentoring relationships between members of the faculty and their students. The culture of community in which faculty and students approach intellectual work is very impressive: there is clearly a mutually supportive setting for teaching and learning.
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