Wake, Bucknell, and U Richmond

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Richmond is even preppier and more greek than Wake, but smaller.

Contrary to what you read on DCUM, Richmond and Wake are very popular these days, with both receiving a record amount of applications this year. Turns out there are a lot of kids that like the combination of small classes with professors that care about teaching, meticulously maintained campuses, great post graduate outcomes and a fun D1 sports scene.

However, if your kid is small-minded enough to think all full pay kids are lazy, perhaps besides questioning your parenting skills, you should send them to UC-Merced or VCU so she doesn't have to deal with the affluent.

Every school received a record number of applications because students are applying to more and more colleges every year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe Richmond also doesn't participate in the Common Data Set? That alone would be a red flag

Richmond publishes their CDS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What sold me on Richmond (my DC is applying) was we had a very earnest and dorky-charismatic tour guide. During the tour, other students kept waving to him, shouting out his name, what have you. One very pretty blonde turned to another and said about him, out of his earshot but not mine, "I LOVE that kid!" Just gave me a good feeling about the school.

This tracks with our experience there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What sold me on Richmond (my DC is applying) was we had a very earnest and dorky-charismatic tour guide. During the tour, other students kept waving to him, shouting out his name, what have you. One very pretty blonde turned to another and said about him, out of his earshot but not mine, "I LOVE that kid!" Just gave me a good feeling about the school.

Wow. You just described my son who is in HS. Guess he should go to Richmond!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Winston is dying, Richmond is ok and Lewisburg is really small.

I disagree --Winston Salem is 200 times better now than it was ten to twenty years ago. Most of the Wake grad students now chose to live in downtown because of all the new housing, restaurants and bars. Hotel scene is also much better since the two Kimptons opened. The Grounds development is going to be a boon to both the university and the city.

20 years ago when it had thriving businesses headquartered there? And now, the school is buying those things and hoping the state and healthcare spending save it makes it better. Right.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Winston is dying, Richmond is ok and Lewisburg is really small.

I disagree --Winston Salem is 200 times better now than it was ten to twenty years ago. Most of the Wake grad students now chose to live in downtown because of all the new housing, restaurants and bars. Hotel scene is also much better since the two Kimptons opened. The Grounds development is going to be a boon to both the university and the city.

20 years ago when it had thriving businesses headquartered there? And now, the school is buying those things and hoping the state and healthcare spending save it makes it better. Right.

I just looked it up bc this back and forth caught my interest: in the last 25 years, all 15 of the publicly traded firms hq’ed in WS left or closed. Wow. Who knew. In light of the growth of RTP and the power or UNC/State/Duke, and the significance of CLT overall, Winston has its hands full keeping up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Winston is dying, Richmond is ok and Lewisburg is really small.

I disagree --Winston Salem is 200 times better now than it was ten to twenty years ago. Most of the Wake grad students now chose to live in downtown because of all the new housing, restaurants and bars. Hotel scene is also much better since the two Kimptons opened. The Grounds development is going to be a boon to both the university and the city.

20 years ago when it had thriving businesses headquartered there? And now, the school is buying those things and hoping the state and healthcare spending save it makes it better. Right.

The school already owned the property for the Grounds, and is leasing space to private companies — it is going to be a revenue stream for the school while providing more restaurants, bars, etc. . within walking distance of campus and it is opening next fall (2027). The Wake hospital system is owned by Atrium Health, a large non profit healthcare provider that operates in six states. Wake just opened a second campus for its medical school in Charlotte paid for by Atrium. Wake downtown (10 minute shuttle ride from campus) is in the innovation corridor, and is a brand new medical research space. Wake Forest Center for Regenerative Medicine is there, but also a number of smaller start ups. Project seems to be a success as it is being expanded.

Not sure what “thriving businesses” you thought were in W-S 10 years ago. RJ Reynolds is still in W-S but its cigarette business hasn’t been thriving for 30 years. There are smaller companies headquartered there like Hanes Brands and Krispy Kreme.

My sibling graduated from Wake Forest 15 years ago. There was literally nothing downtown and he never went there. Now there is a Marriott, two Kimptons, tons of new housing, and a growing restaurant/bar scene. My student goes out downtown at least once a week, sometimes more.

W-S certainly isn’t Boston or DC, but it is better off now than 10-15 years ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What sold me on Richmond (my DC is applying) was we had a very earnest and dorky-charismatic tour guide. During the tour, other students kept waving to him, shouting out his name, what have you. One very pretty blonde turned to another and said about him, out of his earshot but not mine, "I LOVE that kid!" Just gave me a good feeling about the school.

This tracks with our experience there.

I know about 15 kids heading to Richmond from Baltimore private schools next fall. They are all very main stream, preppy kids—nearly all high school athletes who aren’t athletic recruits. The ones I know well plan on rushing. They are all nice kids, but I don’t think there is a big culture of quirky kids at Richmond.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What sold me on Richmond (my DC is applying) was we had a very earnest and dorky-charismatic tour guide. During the tour, other students kept waving to him, shouting out his name, what have you. One very pretty blonde turned to another and said about him, out of his earshot but not mine, "I LOVE that kid!" Just gave me a good feeling about the school.

This tracks with our experience there.

I know about 15 kids heading to Richmond from Baltimore private schools next fall. They are all very main stream, preppy kids—nearly all high school athletes who aren’t athletic recruits. The ones I know well plan on rushing. They are all nice kids, but I don’t think there is a big culture of quirky kids at Richmond.

It’s a very healthy mix of lots of types of kids there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What sold me on Richmond (my DC is applying) was we had a very earnest and dorky-charismatic tour guide. During the tour, other students kept waving to him, shouting out his name, what have you. One very pretty blonde turned to another and said about him, out of his earshot but not mine, "I LOVE that kid!" Just gave me a good feeling about the school.

This tracks with our experience there.

I know about 15 kids heading to Richmond from Baltimore private schools next fall. They are all very main stream, preppy kids—nearly all high school athletes who aren’t athletic recruits. The ones I know well plan on rushing. They are all nice kids, but I don’t think there is a big culture of quirky kids at Richmond.

It’s a very healthy mix of lots of types of kids there.

I not sure I agree with that, most slacs have a type.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Winston is dying, Richmond is ok and Lewisburg is really small.

I disagree --Winston Salem is 200 times better now than it was ten to twenty years ago. Most of the Wake grad students now chose to live in downtown because of all the new housing, restaurants and bars. Hotel scene is also much better since the two Kimptons opened. The Grounds development is going to be a boon to both the university and the city.

20 years ago when it had thriving businesses headquartered there? And now, the school is buying those things and hoping the state and healthcare spending save it makes it better. Right.

The school already owned the property for the Grounds, and is leasing space to private companies — it is going to be a revenue stream for the school while providing more restaurants, bars, etc. . within walking distance of campus and it is opening next fall (2027). The Wake hospital system is owned by Atrium Health, a large non profit healthcare provider that operates in six states. Wake just opened a second campus for its medical school in Charlotte paid for by Atrium. Wake downtown (10 minute shuttle ride from campus) is in the innovation corridor, and is a brand new medical research space. Wake Forest Center for Regenerative Medicine is there, but also a number of smaller start ups. Project seems to be a success as it is being expanded.

Not sure what “thriving businesses” you thought were in W-S 10 years ago. RJ Reynolds is still in W-S but its cigarette business hasn’t been thriving for 30 years. There are smaller companies headquartered there like Hanes Brands and Krispy Kreme.

My sibling graduated from Wake Forest 15 years ago. There was literally nothing downtown and he never went there. Now there is a Marriott, two Kimptons, tons of new housing, and a growing restaurant/bar scene. My student goes out downtown at least once a week, sometimes more.

W-S certainly isn’t Boston or DC, but it is better off now than 10-15 years ago.

I'm a Wake hater, but WS didn't look particularly bombed out to me. It looked surprisingly thriving, for a second or third tier city.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Winston is dying, Richmond is ok and Lewisburg is really small.

I disagree --Winston Salem is 200 times better now than it was ten to twenty years ago. Most of the Wake grad students now chose to live in downtown because of all the new housing, restaurants and bars. Hotel scene is also much better since the two Kimptons opened. The Grounds development is going to be a boon to both the university and the city.

20 years ago when it had thriving businesses headquartered there? And now, the school is buying those things and hoping the state and healthcare spending save it makes it better. Right.

The school already owned the property for the Grounds, and is leasing space to private companies — it is going to be a revenue stream for the school while providing more restaurants, bars, etc. . within walking distance of campus and it is opening next fall (2027). The Wake hospital system is owned by Atrium Health, a large non profit healthcare provider that operates in six states. Wake just opened a second campus for its medical school in Charlotte paid for by Atrium. Wake downtown (10 minute shuttle ride from campus) is in the innovation corridor, and is a brand new medical research space. Wake Forest Center for Regenerative Medicine is there, but also a number of smaller start ups. Project seems to be a success as it is being expanded.

Not sure what “thriving businesses” you thought were in W-S 10 years ago. RJ Reynolds is still in W-S but its cigarette business hasn’t been thriving for 30 years. There are smaller companies headquartered there like Hanes Brands and Krispy Kreme.

My sibling graduated from Wake Forest 15 years ago. There was literally nothing downtown and he never went there. Now there is a Marriott, two Kimptons, tons of new housing, and a growing restaurant/bar scene. My student goes out downtown at least once a week, sometimes more.

W-S certainly isn’t Boston or DC, but it is better off now than 10-15 years ago.

Your observation vs the people who live there:

https://wschronicle.com/the-decline-of-winston-salems-corporate-landscape-an-urgent-call-for-strategic-revitalization/

[Anonymous]

https://theboydcompany.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Winston-Salem-Journal-Hanesbrands.pdf

Been a rough run. Your eye for college fun and a bar scene is not what makes a small town thrive. Highly superficial and Wake isn’t big enough to sustain.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What sold me on Richmond (my DC is applying) was we had a very earnest and dorky-charismatic tour guide. During the tour, other students kept waving to him, shouting out his name, what have you. One very pretty blonde turned to another and said about him, out of his earshot but not mine, "I LOVE that kid!" Just gave me a good feeling about the school.

This tracks with our experience there.

I know about 15 kids heading to Richmond from Baltimore private schools next fall. They are all very main stream, preppy kids—nearly all high school athletes who aren’t athletic recruits. The ones I know well plan on rushing. They are all nice kids, but I don’t think there is a big culture of quirky kids at Richmond.

The fact that you know 15 preppy non-recruitable athletes says more about your social circle than the school they picked.

[Anonymous]

Wake has produced a number of governors, senators, and members of Congress. Mostly in North Carolina (among the more recent, Senator Burr), but also a governor of Virginia, John Battle, former Rep. Donna Edwards of MD, and MD governor Ehrlich (law school).

Also George Modin, who became, ironically, the fourth President of University of Richmond. The new president of Middlebury also a Wake alum.

From the media set, DC’s own Al Hunt and Melissa Harris -Perry. Wake’s produced at least three billionaires, including Charlie Egan, founder of Echostqr and Dish Network.

Lots of professional athletes but among the most famous Brian Piccolo, Arnold Palmer, Tim Duncan, and Baltimore legend Muggsy Bogues. The most recent Super Bowl MVP, Kenneth Walker, spent most of his collegiate career as a Demon Deac before spending his last year at Michigan State, and the 2025 AL ROY Nick Kurtz also a Deac.