*I’m not majoring in euphonium, probably not even music in general, but I wasn’t sure where else this should be posted
I’m looking mainly for schools in the Midwest as I live in Illinois, but I’m not sure what schools would be considered good for continuing to play euphonium. I’d prefer a school that actually has all of its bands available to non-music majors. I don’t need an absolutely top-notch place, but I still want the band to actually be good. For example, Bradley is nearby and aside from hating the school itself, their band doesn’t stand out to me in any way. Plus I don’t care for the conductor too much as I’ve played in their honor bands. I’ve played in the All-State band and I loved how amazing it was, and I’d love to play in a university that could top that feeling.
If the school isn’t in the Midwest, then I would mostly prefer Colorado since I have family there. I don’t want to have to travel thousands of miles as that can be costly when it comes to transportation.
Aside for U of I or WIU (which I’ve heard isn’t doing to well financially or something?), I’m not sure where else. I have no clue what to do and definitely need some help. Thank you 
I was going to say the forest or closet.
That is a joke. I like the sound-great instrument.
Ah, I’m sure my closet would not have the best acoustics. A forest sounds rather nice though 
Lawrence (in Appleton, WI) is a small LAC plus Conservatory that is well regarded, but all ensembles are open to non music majors, I believe. You may even be able to apply for an Ensemble award that would give you free lessons from faculty http://www.lawrence.edu/conservatory/non-music-major-opportunities.
A neighbor’s son is studying the euphonium at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, MN. It’s a small LAC of Swedish/Lutheran heritage about 45 min SW of Minneapolis. I can’t speak to the level of playing there but you could research that.
Many small Scandanavian/Lutheran LACs in the area will have an emphasis on music for the whole student body - meaning students would be allowed and encouraged to take part in music. The religious aspects of these schools are fairly light I believe. St. Olaf in MN and Luther in Iowa (besides Lawrence - another good choice) would be 2 other schools that come to mind where you could get an LAC education with a strong emphasis on music. Their level of music would most likely be good for your stated needs. They attract some very good students (as does Lawrence). I don’t know about the euphonium at these schools but you can go on-line and check their music school and faculty information.
Thank you both for the suggestions! I’ll check them out and if I’m interested, I’ll probably go to a concert of theirs sometime. Maybe even see if I can schedule a lesson with whoever would teach euphonium to see how I like it.
You might want to check out Miami U. (Oxford, OH, north of Cincinnati). Bands seem to be pretty good. Can’t speak to euphonium in particular as our son will be studying trumpet. It is a medium-large public school (~16,000 undergrads I think) with a good academic reputation.
@morningstar03 - Many colleges with music programs livestream their concerts via Internet, too. It might be worth “Liking” the Facebook pages for target colleges and their music departments (if they have a page) and get on mailing lists for music schools/departments, because they often tell you when an upcoming concert will be livestreamed. Lawrence Conservatory definitely does - Google “Lawrence Conservatory webcasts” and you can sign up for email updates. I’m not sure if that is as common with schools that don’t have music performance programs but it’s worth looking into. My son is trying to narrow down his list of schools and we have listened to a number of wind ensemble and studio concerts via internet in the last few months. There may not be any concerts left this school year, but it could help you narrow your choices next school year. Some schools have performances archived on Youtube, as well, so it’s worth a search. Facebook pages and webcast pages and music department calendar web pages sometimes post the concert programs or repertoire list, too, and the chosen repertoire might give you a better idea of the level of playing, even if you can’t listen to the concert.
Based on your post, I think you are wise to do this research. We streamed one public university’s concert that featured two wind ensembles - one for music majors and the one that was open to anyone. The ensemble that was open to everyone was only about as good as the third band at my son’s high school. The difference between that ensemble and the one open only to music majors was enormous.
Obviously the ideal scenario is to find schools with good music programs with all ensembles open to anyone. Beyond that, you may also find that the ensembles at colleges with good academic reputations but which do not offer bachelor of music (BM) degrees are better than the ones open to non music majors at colleges with good music schools. There are a lot of HS all-state and all-district musicians like you who do not go on to study music, but who continue playing in an ensemble. In my son’s all-state section, he was the only one of the four planning to study music in college. If you are Facebook friends with some of your all-state euphonium colleagues who are older than you, you might find out where they went or are going and once they are in college ask them if they continued with music and how the ensembles/teachers are. You could do the same with other good musicians from your HS or extracurricular ensemble (if applicable) who do not continue with music. You should be able to get a pretty good idea of the in-state options, at least. Talk to your private teacher for advice, as well. Good luck!
What about joining the marching band of one of the large state schools? I went to the University of Wisconsin and the marching band was considered to be one of the most amazing experiences there. I’m sure they have the euphonium in the band.