Warm, Supportive, Friendly, Nurturing---What do these terms mean?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In my opinion, the culture of the students matters more than faculty and admin in determining the nurturing, supportive vibe of the school. For example, if a school attracts a huge percentage of pre-professional types, the school culture skews more competitive.

So basically a SLAC where kids are coddled to the end and back?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why would you assume that there's only one person posting about CTCL? None of my kids are at one, but we toured a couple and were really impressed. Do you get bent out of shape when people post about WASP / Ivy / HYPMS / NESCAC / SEC / whatever groupings? Do you assume that there's "the SEC poster" or "the NESCAC poster"?

Yes. There are certain people who only post about their favored school or grouping of schools. There's also the Jesuit school mom.

And there's that guy who posts about flagships. If he loves flagships so much he should marry one.

[Anonymous]

A lot of these posts are probably from people who don't have kids in college yet. Kids are under stress these days, including in college. If the school has a reputation for a competitive academic environment, make sure your kids can thrive in that. Competitive doesn't mean its better. It can lead some kids to be risk averse in their choice of classes and leave learning less than they could have. An environment that is socially exclusive--like a big sorority scene--carries big risks for some girls in today's online world. Supportive doesn't need to mean coddling. It can mean a nice place to be, and that matters a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A lot of these posts are probably from people who don't have kids in college yet. Kids are under stress these days, including in college. If the school has a reputation for a competitive academic environment, make sure your kids can thrive in that. Competitive doesn't mean its better. It can lead some kids to be risk averse in their choice of classes and leave learning less than they could have. An environment that is socially exclusive--like a big sorority scene--carries big risks for some girls in today's online world. Supportive doesn't need to mean coddling. It can mean a nice place to be, and that matters a lot.

It definitely doesn't mean coddling. And the goal of support is to turn out educated, ethical thinkers who perform well in life.

I think one advantage of a supportive, collaborative environment is that it becomes your norm. When you then see a workplace with a negative atmosphere, you know it doesn't need to be that way. You don't just think, well, it's just like my sink or swim college where no one really cared and students competed instead of collaborated. You know that a******s are the exception and are not normal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of these posts are probably from people who don't have kids in college yet. Kids are under stress these days, including in college. If the school has a reputation for a competitive academic environment, make sure your kids can thrive in that. Competitive doesn't mean its better. It can lead some kids to be risk averse in their choice of classes and leave learning less than they could have. An environment that is socially exclusive--like a big sorority scene--carries big risks for some girls in today's online world. Supportive doesn't need to mean coddling. It can mean a nice place to be, and that matters a lot.

It definitely doesn't mean coddling. And the goal of support is to turn out educated, ethical thinkers who perform well in life.

I think one advantage of a supportive, collaborative environment is that it becomes your norm. When you then see a workplace with a negative atmosphere, you know it doesn't need to be that way. You don't just think, well, it's just like my sink or swim college where no one really cared and students competed instead of collaborated. You know that a******s are the exception and are not normal.

This is a good point. I went to a school that was much more collaborative than competitive between students. Everyone worked hard and wanted to succeed, but not in a shove-someone-else-out-of-the-way type of success. It made for a nice environment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think of friendly/nurturing/supportive as a place where you can take risks and put yourself out there with no guarantee of success, feeling comfortable that no matter what happens it’ll be okay.

Want to go on stage for the first time? People will cheer for you even if your voice cracks. Founding a herpetology club? Not only will no one mock you, they’ll say “what a cool niche interest.” Taking a class that’s completely out of your comfort zone, whether physics or dance? People will remark it’s cool that you’re trying something hard, and they’ll offer extra help of you need it.

No pride in weeding out, or in having sharper elbows. Just a community that’s more in it together than not.

This sounds good. What colleges would fit this description?

I recommend reading Colleges that Change Lives. Just flip through it and start reading about different colleges. The author talks a lot about supportive atmospheres where students are encouraged to explore and branch out.