Colleges that change lives near DMV

[Anonymous]

Notre Dame of MD. The daughter of a friend graduated from there a few years ago. Her daughter needed some supports and a nurturing environment, and did very well there.

[Anonymous]

OP again.

Many thanks for all the suggestions. We will consider all of them. Honestly, had not heard of the vast majority of them so am very pleased to have my outlook expanded.

To PPs who asked - yes this DC is female. So I will look into your rec even though not familiar with NC.

I hope that this thread is helpful for others as well. There are so many different pathways to, and time lines for. success for our creative, smart and struggling children.

Best wishes to all. 😃

[Anonymous]

My friend with dyslexia attended Clark University because they had strong service and supports but that was a while ago. Sorry, not current info but thought I would mention it so you can add it to the list.

[Anonymous]

OP again. Thanks again all who made suggestion. Hope I captured them all. Her is the list so far.


Colleges/ uni recommended as good options for students with ADHD, dyslexia and anxiety, and mostly fairly close to DMV

1. Juanita College
https://www.juniata.edu/academics/
Juniata College is a private liberal arts college in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania.


2. MacDaniel College
https://www.mcdaniel.edu
McDaniel College is a private college in Westminster, Maryland


3. Washington college
https://www.washcoll.edu/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=gmb
Washington College is a liberal arts college in Chestertown, MD.


4. Washington and Jefferson College
https://www.washjeff.edu
Washington & Jefferson College is a private liberal arts college in Washington, Pennsylvania.


5. Chatham University
https://www.chatham.edu
Chatham University is a private university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.


6. Goucher College
https://www.goucher.edu
Goucher College is a private liberal arts college in Towson, Maryland. I


7. University of Mary Washington
https://www.umw.edu
The University of Mary Washington is a public liberal arts university in Fredericksburg, Virginia.


8. Franklin and Marshall College
https://www.fandm.edu/
Franklin & Marshall College is a private liberal arts college in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.


9. Shenandoah University
https://www.su.edu/?utm_source=+google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=gbp
Shenandoah University is a private university in Winchester, Virginia.


10. Slippery Rock university
https://www.sru.edu/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=gmb
Slippery Rock University, formally Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania, is a public university in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania


11. St Johns College
https://www.sjc.edu/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=gmb&utm_campaign=annapolis
St. John's College is a private liberal arts college with dual campuses in Annapolis, Maryland, and Santa Fe, New Mexico.


12. St Mary’s College of Maryland
https://www.smcm.edu/
St. Mary's College of Maryland is a public liberal arts college in St. Mary's City, Maryland.


13. Mercyhurst University
https://www.mercyhurst.edu/
Mercyhurst University, formerly Mercyhurst College, is a private Roman Catholic university in Erie, Pennsylvania.


14. Rider university
https://www.rider.edu/
Rider University is a private university in Lawrence Township, New Jersey.


15. Meredith College
https://www.meredith.edu
Meredith College is a private women's liberal arts college and coeducational graduate school in Raleigh,


16, Marymount university
https://marymount.edu/
Marymount University is a private Catholic university with its main campus in Arlington, Virginia.


17. University of Lynchburg
https://www.lynchburg.edu/
The University of Lynchburg, formerly Lynchburg College, is a private university associated with the Christian Church and located in Lynchburg, Virginia.



18. Notredam of Maryland university
https://www.ndm.edu
Notre Dame of Maryland University is a private Catholic university in Baltimore, Maryland


19. Clark University
https://www.clarku.edu
Clark University is a private research university in Worcester, Massachusetts

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DS with ADHD and LDs is looking at St John's College in Annapolis (there's also a campus in Santa Fe). It's not for everyone - they have just one curriculum based on reading original classic texts in French and ancient Greek. The kids have to like to read those

Really?

It’s a fascinating program. But not for everyone.

I would love to do that program now (in my late 50s) but would not have liked in in my late teens/early twenties.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:St. John's College does not require fluency in Greek or French for entering freshman. The first year reading (at least fall semester) includes some English translations of Ancient Greek. So, they read The Iliad but in English. Fall semester of freshman year they take a language class in Greek. This is the first exposure to Ancient Greek that almost all students have. Down the line they are expected to be able to read Ancient Greek texts and discuss and debate the various translations into English that are commonly used in academia. Same thing happens later for French. They also take math (Euclidean Geometry like what Pres. Lincoln self-studied), science lab, and music theory freshman year. They don't just read the classics in literature. The whole curriculum is structured as a "classical" education. The different subjects are connected to one another throughout the semesters and across years. Their college recruitment materials say something like, "Life doesn't have majors, neither does SJC."

Can someone weigh in on student outcomes from this program? Seems like education for the sake of education (which is great) but wondering how that translates into employability, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:St. John's College does not require fluency in Greek or French for entering freshman. The first year reading (at least fall semester) includes some English translations of Ancient Greek. So, they read The Iliad but in English. Fall semester of freshman year they take a language class in Greek. This is the first exposure to Ancient Greek that almost all students have. Down the line they are expected to be able to read Ancient Greek texts and discuss and debate the various translations into English that are commonly used in academia. Same thing happens later for French. They also take math (Euclidean Geometry like what Pres. Lincoln self-studied), science lab, and music theory freshman year. They don't just read the classics in literature. The whole curriculum is structured as a "classical" education. The different subjects are connected to one another throughout the semesters and across years. Their college recruitment materials say something like, "Life doesn't have majors, neither does SJC."

Can someone weigh in on student outcomes from this program? Seems like education for the sake of education (which is great) but wondering how that translates into employability, etc.

See where this school lands in our other rankings to get a bigger picture of the institution's offerings.

Here is data from US News - it looks promising …

#61 in National Liberal Arts Colleges (tie)

#21 in Best Undergraduate Teaching (tie)

#36 in Best Value Schools

#19 in Most Innovative Schools (tie)

#134 in Top Performers on Social Mobility (tie)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:St. John's College does not require fluency in Greek or French for entering freshman. The first year reading (at least fall semester) includes some English translations of Ancient Greek. So, they read The Iliad but in English. Fall semester of freshman year they take a language class in Greek. This is the first exposure to Ancient Greek that almost all students have. Down the line they are expected to be able to read Ancient Greek texts and discuss and debate the various translations into English that are commonly used in academia. Same thing happens later for French. They also take math (Euclidean Geometry like what Pres. Lincoln self-studied), science lab, and music theory freshman year. They don't just read the classics in literature. The whole curriculum is structured as a "classical" education. The different subjects are connected to one another throughout the semesters and across years. Their college recruitment materials say something like, "Life doesn't have majors, neither does SJC."

Can someone weigh in on student outcomes from this program? Seems like education for the sake of education (which is great) but wondering how that translates into employability, etc.

They have a high proportion of students who go on to law school and academic careers.

[Anonymous]

I'm the mom of a Johnnie. I found this video (very old) to be really helpful in addressing similar concerns. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xH5v2E5QdsE

You might also want to Google "top feeder colleges to graduate programs." St. John's College, Reed, Grinnell, and other SLACs end up on the lists when using a per capita approach. https://thecollegesolution.com/50-schools-that-produce-the-most-science-and-engineering-phds-2/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:St. John's College does not require fluency in Greek or French for entering freshman. The first year reading (at least fall semester) includes some English translations of Ancient Greek. So, they read The Iliad but in English. Fall semester of freshman year they take a language class in Greek. This is the first exposure to Ancient Greek that almost all students have. Down the line they are expected to be able to read Ancient Greek texts and discuss and debate the various translations into English that are commonly used in academia. Same thing happens later for French. They also take math (Euclidean Geometry like what Pres. Lincoln self-studied), science lab, and music theory freshman year. They don't just read the classics in literature. The whole curriculum is structured as a "classical" education. The different subjects are connected to one another throughout the semesters and across years. Their college recruitment materials say something like, "Life doesn't have majors, neither does SJC."

Can someone weigh in on student outcomes from this program? Seems like education for the sake of education (which is great) but wondering how that translates into employability, etc.

My high school friend who went there is now a college professor in the humanities.
Unless it has changed a lot, I don't think of St. John's as a school for kids who have ADHD or struggle academically in ANY way. It is an unusual school, but I think of it as quite rigorous.

[Anonymous]

What about St. Joe's in Philly?

[Anonymous]

My niece who has ADHD and dyslexia struggled in high school but did really well at Allegheny College in Meadville, PA, although that is 6 hours away from the DMV. Allegheny requires that students have a major and a minor in separate academic disciplines (science, social science, humanities), and she never thought she was good at math or stem, but she did an economics major and a computer science minor and now works at a bank.

[Anonymous]

I'd say that SJC has aspects that make it well suited for a student with ADHD but others that would make it challenging.

The pace of the work is pretty brutal. They read more than I ever did in grad school, and the material is not easy to get through. For freshman math they work through Euclid's Elements and they move through it really quickly. Even the kids who don't have ADHD are challenged by the volume and difficulty of the work. They are evaluated based on their contributions to classroom discussions instead of taking tests, so it's not like they can be accommodated with extra time on tests that don't exist. They are usually ranked among the top 25 schools nationally where students study the most.

On the other hand, the small class size keeps things at a very human level. It's very easy to get extra time with faculty if you're in need of help and they seem to have lots of student tutors paid to help the kids who are having trouble. Bureaucracy is easy to navigate since the various admin offices are a 5-minute walk from anywhere on campus and there's a live human sitting in an office who will help you. The SF campus is very heavy on yoga, meditation, and overall well-being, which I feel makes for a supportive environment for people who can get overwhelmed. They also have several therapists on campus that seem to be easy to book.

From their website: "In the Princeton Review’s 2023 The Best 388 Colleges: 2023 Edition, St. John’s beat every Ivy League school in the “Professors Get High Marks” and “Best Classroom Experience” categories, where it was ranked #6 and #7, respectively. The college ranked highly in the “Most Accessible Professors,” “Students Study the Most,” and “Lots of Race/Class Interaction” categories. The Princeton Review also named St. John’s a “Top 50 Best Value College” among private schools and one of the “Colleges That Pay You Back.” This last classification rates colleges for a combination of factors: academics, admissions, financial aid, fire safety, green, ROI (Return on Investment), and quality of life."

[Anonymous]

ODU and Radford seem to have a good amount of academic support services. I know Radford has something called MASH and also a bridge program (live on Radford’s campus, take community college classes). And my previous boss’s son who struggled in HS did quite well at ODU-I know they seem to have good academic resource offices.

[Anonymous]

One option I thought might be interesting for my kid with ADHD was one of the colleges where you only take one class at a time. The focus seems like it could work well for some kids, although ultimately mine decided it wasn't a fit for them.

However, not near DMV. Iowa and Colorado...

Cornell College https://www.cornellcollege.edu/ (82% acceptance rate)
Colorado College https://www.coloradocollege.edu/ (much more competitive, 14% acceptance rate)