Sure, it’s more of a hidden gem on CC quest for me. Lol.
Olin and Babson are certainly gems. Perhaps partially hidden?
University of Lynchburg
Western Colorado University in Gunnison, CO. In a beautiful town on the Western Slope, at 7000 feet.
Was a teacher’s college, now expanded into computer science, and other fields, due to generous donation of $80 million dollars from Paul M. Rady, that allows students to pay a very low tuition but take U of Colorado classes in Gunnison.
https://www.western.edu/about/history
Fort Lewis College offers free tuition to Native Americans and a solid public LAC in Durango, CO
https://www.fortlewis.edu
My kids have loved both Plymouth STate in NH and Neumann in PA.
Paul Smith’s College in NY…never been there, but I would imagine its graduates have some pretty amazing skills.
John Jay in NY. for aspiring investigators and forensic experts too.
@Coloradomama I mentioned Western too a few pages ago, it’s a great school. My nephew who loves the outdoors applied and got in. He was very close to attending…but he chose to go elsewhere. Definitely a hidden gem that doesn’t get all the love and publicity it deserves.
We had some family friends who taught and coached sports at Ft. Lewis College. They just loved living in Durango!
our son just wrapped up sophomore year at Ft Lewis, he’s on the cycling team and LOVES it in Durango.
100% agree. Great value and a real gem.
The city of Durango (Fort Lewis College) is a little lower in elevation (6,500 feet above sea level) than Gunnison (Western State) which is very high at, 7,700 feet above sea level. Most Coloradans on the Front Range live at 5000 feet and don’t have much snow, on an average winter.
Durango is close to New Mexico and the Four Corners, which is very close to the San Juan mountains–the most remote, wild and beautiful mountains of Colorado. Purgatory is the ski resort near Durango.
Gunnison is closer to Denver and higher, to the west of the Collegiate Peaks, also one of the most scenic mountain areas of Colorado, and Crested Butte is the close in ski resort.
(The more famous developed downhill skiing is near I 70, so north of both schools, Vail, Copper Mountain, Breck, )
Both are part of a state system thats probably under ranked, but mostly rural Colorado students will attend these schools, so not very diverse student population, but for a student who loves the outdoors, and winter sports, and not wanting a smaller teaching focused college, it will be a good fit. Fort Lewis and Western are both an opportunity to live in semi rural Colorado and get to enjoy the mountain lifestyle. Most Coloradans work on the Front Range (east of the Rockies, all the big cities from Co Springs, up to Fort Collins, and Denver), and only go over to the western slope areas on weekends or for a vacation or two, as Colorado is a large state.
Another unnoticed school in Colorado is Mesa, in Grand Junction. It’s popular with southern Cal kids, mostly because of the skiing and sports (it’s D2). The engineering school is part of the U of Colorado system and the diploma is issued by CU.
@Coloradomama my nephew who applied to Western was the perfect kid for that school…very outdoorsy, wanted a school where he could ski as much as possible…I’m surprised he didn’t end up attending, but he went to University of Nevada-Reno, which still has lots of skiing near by!
@natty1988 I have heard great things about U of Nevada Reno, its got a fantastic newer campus, and very close to California mountains, and Tahoe skiing. Reno is much nicer than I thought it would be, it looks a lot like Fort Collins CO, mountain views and dry clear air , very pretty . For N. California students, its a closer drive, and easy to fly to Reno too. . Engineering is pretty solid at U of Nevada, possibly better than Western Colorado. Fort Lewis is much more liberal artsy. U of Nevada is more the full research type of school.
Montana State is another school that students are starting to discover. That might be on CC though, have a dedicated page, I think? Harder to fly to Montana from the west coast, so I see Reno as a great option for west coast kids that want an easier going curriculum compared to U of Cal or Cal Poly etc.
Maybe time to ask a moderator to start a Montana State Bozeman thread.
Discussion is hidden under U of Montana, but Montana State is the clear favorite for Colorado students.
I like Western Colorado. Many years they have kids from all 50 states and with a student population of 2500 very much a private school education at public school prices. The alumni are very engaged and have funded many buildings, majors and sports. Great town gown relations. More guys than women but it has always been that way. We personally know at least a dozen old friends of ours who attended back in the day and kids who have attended and have gone on to very successful careers. One of those colleges where kids mature and grow. I know a couple kids who went to Ft Lewis but they don’t seem to have the same alumni passion as the Gunnison kids post graduation. The Gunnison kids seem to go to great graduate programs we know of kids who went to NYU, UofM, Northwestern and others.
My stepson graduated from Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It is great LAC with strong academics that has some great options for its students through the K-plan. The K-plan offers students opportunities for study abroad programs, internships/externships, community service, etc. The vast majority of students (something like 70% study abroad) and also take advantage of the various internship some-type programs. It’s a small school–which may not appeal to some and while it makes an effort at diversity it is heavily populated with students from Michigan.(When my stepson attended, he was one of the few kids from out-of-state.) It’s one of the CTCL schools and in the top 5% of all US colleges and universities whose students earn Ph.Ds.
@Coloradomama We have family in Reno…My mother (went back later in life to get a degree), sister, nephew, step brother all graduated from there. My nephew’s girlfriend and plenty of other friends graduated from there. My step dad taught science there and that is how he met my mother who also worked as a secretary at the school. UNR is also becoming more popular here in SoCal with kids who can’t get into UC’s. It’s a great school!
Yes, they should definitely start a Montana State thread! Great school and great option for kids out west! Definitely a great place for those who love the outdoors. On another note, my stepfather taught at University of Montana before he moved to Reno. He loved it! U of Montana is another great school for kids who love the outdoors. I worked with two brothers (taught math and history at the school I worked at), one went to University of Montana, the other Montana State. They both loved their time at each school and they were very happy with the educations they received. They grew up in Montana and I think one of them moved back there to teach and another moved to Arizona.
@momofthreeboys It sounds like a great school, I hadn’t really heard of it until my nephew applied. S wasn’t interested in it, too remote for him.
Kalamazoo is my undergrad school and while it has morphed through the decades it is still an excellent and true hidden gem institution that doesn’t get enough love for some reason on CC compared to some of the other small Midwest LACs. Statistically the outcomes for students would rank it much higher. Another college that “grows” smart kids. The college is still highly ranked for grad schools and med schools on top of a degree. K is also a very globally and socially aware institution without some of the insanity of the coastal liberal institutions. It opens minds for Midwest kids and doesn’t make woke coastal kids feel like strangers in a strange land.
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