Davis & Elkins – Elkins, West Virginia

After winding through the Monongahila Forest, up the snowy mountains, we arrived at Davis & Elkins College. It is a small, hilly campus with two beautiful victorian mansions on it, among more modern buildings. One mansion is used for their Hospitality Program and one is an Administration building.

We had scheduled the visit and received alot of personal attention, along with others touring the campus. Everyone was quite freindly and helpful. The library is huge. Class sizes are small. The most popular program is Nursing. Population is around 700. Population of Elkins is around 10,000.

I liked the fact that the school has a doctor and a psychiatrist that visit weekly for appointments. Medications can be prescribed at the location and filled at the CVS within walking distance of the school.

D&E also has a fully staffed LD program, I met with the director of the program, who explained what they offer and stated that, if a student needs to be tested for qualification, it can easily and quickly be done locally and paperwork pushed through the school quickly so the student can receive the services.

Brendan & Bridget attended a humanities class and greatly enjoyed it! The professor approached Bridget in the cafeteria later and thanked her for attending.

We ate lunch with other students who were very responsive to our questions and emphasized the fact that everyone knows each other at the school. When we mentioned the name of a GW alumni who is now at D&E they all exclaimed “Why didn’t you tell us you know …” and had stories to tell. In walked the subject of our conversation who said he likes the school and learned how to study there.

D&E is quite proud of their Drama department productions. Has a new Sport facility with swimming pool. Ski Team!

We came away with a good feeling and thought it resembled that GW feel.

Beacon College – Leesburg, Florida

Terese, Blake and I visited Beacon College in the center of historic Leesburg, Florida on 2-2-09. Beacon is the only 4-year college in the U.S. that specializes in students with learning disabilities. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of colleges and universities that have either a self-directed LD program (you’re pretty much on your own once you prove you are entitled to accommodations) or a separate dept within the university dedicated to LD students (the school has a f/t director and staff to direct LD students which is much better…GMU I believe is the only school in Va that has such a program). There are also a few 2-year community colleges that specialize in LD students.

Beacon is located in Leesburg which is in central Fla, about 30-40 miles west of Orlando. We were visiting IMG Baseball Academy in Bradenton, Fla for Croix so we drove from Bradenton to Leesburg which was about 2 hrs. Leesburg is surrounded by lots of lakes, so fishing and boating are big down there. Leesburg is a cool little town with much more charm, ambiance and vibrance than we expected. The relationship between the town and Beacon students seemed to be very good. Lots of students and town-folks walking around, hanging out in shops, restaurants (several that TC and I thought looked great), fitness center(not owned by Beacon but lots of students belong), and huge public library (Beacon has their own smaller library on campus). They plan to open a new student union (pub-like place with no alcohol) by the fall of 2009.

Beacon reminded all of us of GWCS. About 110 students and they expect around 120 next year. The average class size is around 10 students per class. The ones we saw had less than 10 students in them. It’s a liberal arts school with a strong IT program which offered many business courses. Blake talked to several students who were all very happy at Beacon. He swears he recognized someone from GW in one of the student photos. The students, professors and administrators all provided an extremely friendly and inviting atmosphere at Beacon. We didn’t expect this since it was a dreary, rainy and cold day. As you might expect the campus was small. The administration bldg (an old historic house…pretty nice); a half block away is the building where classes and the library are (very nice old bldg that use to be the bank); next door is where the labs, photography and art classes are held; the new student union bldg is next door; the cafeteria, you guessed it,  is a cool older home across the street from the admin bldg that has been renovated into an inviting family-type dining setting with lots of offices upstairs for f/t counseling staff. They serve 3 meals a day, M-F, and students eat in their apts on wkends.  Student Housing is located in 2 large NEW very nice apt complexes located 2 blocks from Main St., where the classes are held. The apt units are as nice as we have ever seen for college students. Many students are involved in a multitude of activities sponsored by a very active SBA, the school or the town. We liked it.

Warren Wilson College – Asheville, NC

Submitted by Dan C.

Wendy had been looking forward to visiting Warren Wilson College (WWC)

since we first heard of it at a college fair last year. I described

it at the time as GWCS on steroids, and our trip bears that out.

WWC is a small liberal arts college, with about 850 students. The

school is based on what they call the Triad: Academics, Work, and

Service. Each student is required to provide 15 hours of work each

week supporting the running of the college. There are over a hundred

different crews covering everything from cleaning the dining hall to

running the school farm (which provides a lot of the food for the

college) to helping the Admissions office to working in the blacksmith

shop. The college has a very Green ethic. Composting and recycling

figure prominently in the dining hall. They have a new LEED

Gold-certified dorm that employs solar power and dry composting

toilets, if you’re into that sort of thing. The students are very

friendly and, like GWCS, very idiosyncratic in their dress and

interests.

If we were looking for a classic liberal arts school, I don’t think

we would look at any other schools. But Wendy wants to study art and

so is now focusing more on arts colleges. For our part, WWC’s Art

Department isn’t strong enough to warrant Wendy’s attendance. But I

heartily encourage GW students and parents to look into this school.

Hollins Review

Submitted by Carolyn P.

Hollins is an all women’s university in the city of Roanoke, Virginia held in the pristine mountains. The first time my family and I visited Hollins it looked so perfect with the sunset hitting the newly built library. Just from the view I could tell this is the place where I would like to be my next four years. The buildings all relate to each other and keep the same style with an old touch but modern that could last forever. Soon I was able to have a campus tour and stay overnight then took a class the next morning. The campus is wonderful and easy to get around without getting lost. Even if you are lost you can easily ask another student without feeling intimidated. Everything is set like a circle with the quad as the main area. Then there is the music department, gym, and more dorms around it. The two programs that were found as ones that aren’t focused by the college at all was the music department. It was very small and not much life to it. The school felt more focused as a literature and for the arts. (It especially shows through their alumni which have gone on to being award winning poets and writers). The first tour we took was a private one and in the summer. It gave a good view of what the school offers, but really didn’t show what the school is really like with no one except summer interns walking around. The second tour we took was for the overnight and that was much better because of the activity going on. On the overnight we played bingo with fun prizes then went to their largest classroom where we watched Enchanted. (Dinner was good unlike my parents who didn’t like it as much – its college food)! Then that night we had a pig out of junk food while watching movies in the lounge. It was a lot of fun and we stayed up talking more. Both of the girls that I stayed with were wonderful and answered any question I had (except for their rivalry with Sweet Briar). Then the next morning I took a Greek history/literature class that ended up all in Greek, so that was a bad idea on my part. The good side was it was a very small class with about five total and held in a business meeting room. In the end the visit was wonderful and I had a lot of fun with the other girls and other prospective students. The college is beautiful and holds to its traditions.

Mary Washington University

Submitted by Dina T.

A nice campus, about an hour’s drive from Northern Virginia. We visited on 2/3/09. It’s a small, liberal arts school with a strong curriculum in English, Biology, Government and Political Science. There are several dorm choices for freshmen and women. Mostly small classes of under 25 students, which is impressive for a public university. Campus is easy to walk around. There’s a train nearby to DC. There are about 4,000 students. Social activities during the week and on the weekend. No football team.

Georgetown University

Submitted by Dina T

The information session and the tour were both well done. We visited on 2/2/09. Georgetown is one of the oldest universities in the USA. Although it is a Jesuit-run institution, it welcomes people from all religions and has a rabbi, an iman, and minister on staff. They teach a comparative religion class that is very popular. The school has mostly small classes and gives a lot of individual attention to its students. There are a lot of choices in living quarters/dorms and the campus is easy to walk around. They have a bus to the metro, to other parts of DC, to the law school on Capitol Hill, and to the basketball games at the Verizon Center. We ate at the cafeteria and the food was ok. There are a lot of choices at every meal. Lots of interning possibilities if you go here, especially with the government and nonprofit organizations. There is a lot to do on campus. Seems to be a friendly place.

George Washington University

Saul L (Senior 2009)

George Washington University is a school split between two worlds.

We started at the University’s Mount Vernon campus, slightly northwest of Georgetown in the District. It’s very suburban, but also in a very nice part of town. The dormitories and buildings are reminiscent of a classic college campus, complete with a grassy quad. The library on this campus was not too impressive, but the students didn’t seem to have a hard time getting what they needed out of it. According to the students, the college stacks the Eckles Library (the one on the Mount Vernon campus) with books mainly for the lower classman, seeing as most students that age live near it. The “hang out” areas on this campus weren’t too crowded and the students didn’t seem too active, especially on such a nice day. Overall, the campus was not very lively or exciting.

Next stop on the school’s “Vern Express” shuttle was the Foggy Bottom campus. The short trip was a complete scene change. Foggy Bottom is a very urban area, this time southeast of Georgetown. This campus was crawling with people, but once again the students didn’t seem too energetic. It was hard to talk to find people to talk to, and everyone seemed to have a place to go. The facilities are spread out all over Foggy Bottom, which creates a great neighborhood feeling. Unfortunately, most of the buildings in the area are owned by GWU, which means there is not a lot of “fun” stuff to do. There are a few Starbuck’s sprinkled around the neighborhood, with just a restaurant or two (that accept GWU’s currency!) around the dormitories. Of course, Foggy Bottom is not at all far from some very cool parts of D.C. and it sounded like the students there definitely take advantage of that treat. In the end, this crowded campus was still too unfriendly for my taste.

George Washington University is a school split between two worlds. The urban & the suburban, crowded & apathetic, GWU offers a community that looks great, but doesn’t feel quite right.

Vassar College

Submitted by Amra S.

The minute I walked onto the campus of Vassar College, I was overcome with a feeling of awe. The campus was beautiful, it was as if the city of Rome was resurrected and placed on New York soil, but with completely different architecture. The education reaches beyond the standard boundaries and supplies the foundation for each student to major in the field of their exact choosing. Although Vassar is considered a small college, it is more inviting and satisfying than any other I have visited. The tours were packed full of information and I had a sense that the guides knew exactly what they were talking about. Overall, I think Vassar College is definitely worth visiting.

Radford University

Submitted by Jessie R.
Yesterday my mom and I made the long four and a half hour voyage to Radford University. I had a lot on my mind. I wasn’t sure what to expect because most everything I heard was not positive comments about the school. Most people know Radford University as their back up school. We went down Sunday and stayed in a bed and breakfast. The people there were the newest owners of the property and had never run a bed and breakfast before. The couple was super nice and I highly recommend staying there. It’s called the Nesselrod on the New (http://www.nesselrod.com/). The property is located on a high plateau which overlooks the New River Valley and every room has a different theme. I stayed in the enchanted garden room, the walls had a hand painted fairy forest mural and the bathroom was breathtaking.

On Monday morning my mom and I got up early and had a three-course breakfast which consisted of fresh fruit with yogurt, eggs on an english muffin, and a custardy pear to die for. After saying good- bye to the kind couple, we made our way to the Radford campus where I had a meeting with the head of the marketing depart/ supervisor of the Hillel. Mrs. Bienstock was one of the kindest people I’ve ever met; she gave me truthful answers and good small talk. After my mom and I made our way to where we would be meeting for our tour, again I ran in to some of the nicest people ever. Our tour guide’s name was Matt, a senior at RU and a Criminal Law Major. It was only my mom and I and one other family whose daughter was also named Jessica, who would of thunk it? The campus was really pretty but it really is in the middle of nowhere, and there are no places to shop. It reminded me of a classic college campus like Virginia Tech, but 1/10th the size. Another thing I liked about RU is how small the classes are, you won’t have more than 40 people in a class and once you have selected you major it can go down to the teens. I also talked to the head of the fashion department; he might be my new idol.

At the end of the day I really enjoyed RU more than I thought I was going to. I did not get any of the vibes about it being a crappy school and I am happy I was accepted because I am definitely considering going there for my first two years of college.

Beloit College

Submitted by: Jon S.

My son, Alex S., has been at Beloit College in southern Wisconsin for nearly six months. The sense I get from him is that it is everything he hoped for in a small college. The teaching staff and students are friendly and accepting, the academics is challenging (possibly more than he expected), and there is plenty to do on the weekends. The food – well, not so good. When I commented to him that the snowfall seemed to be the worst in a decade, he responded: “no, in a century – more than six feet.”

So, if you are looking for solid academics, a student body more along the lines of the GW Community School, and aren’t afraid of a bit of cold weather, take a look at Beloit College.