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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I don’t get it either.  Indiana is far from the worst college that a STA graduate has attended.  In the past five years, STA students have attended the following colleges 
and universities (all of which are ranked below Indiana):

Auburn University
Colorado State University
Drexel University
Durham University
Elon University
Furman University
George Mason University
Jacksonville University
Morehouse College
Northeastern University
Rollins College
Sewanee: The University of the South
St. John's University - Queens Campus
University of Kentucky
University of Mary Washington
University of Maryland, Baltimore County
University of Mississippi
University of South Carolina
University of Vermont
[/quote]

Some of these schools aren't bad at all. There is a discussion of Elon in the college forum. GMU is one of the fastest rising schools in the nation.  Durham is a UK powerhouse. [/quote]

[Edited for typos, sorry]  Here is another important point.  St. Albans gives a significant amount of financial aid -- something like 1 in 4 STA students receives financial aid.  Just thinking of those I know with college-aged children, whether grads of a private school or a MoCo school or TJ, I have a number of peers and co-workers with accomplished kids who chose a "lower ranked" school over a more "name" school because of financial aid or merit scholarships.  (In my own family, a sibling turned down a top 10 law school in favor of a 100% scholarship to a law school that was probably top 50.)  I know for sure that a couple of the schools listed above have merit programs -- University of Maryland Baltimore County offers a full-ride to draw highly selective students, for example (our neighbor's child, a National Merit Semifinalist, received one and is going there) -- so it is very possible that that went into the mix.

I also know people whose kids wanted to play Division I sports and chose a school that was lower ranked academically in order to pursue a more intense athletic experience (e.g., choosing a Division I school over a Division III NESCAC school with a higher academic profile).  It might not be the choice I would make or would hope a child of mine would make, but people do make those choices all the time.   To give examples of two schools on the list above, both Jacksonville and Furman have established Division I lacrosse programs in the last five years.  The Furman Head Coach is the former Navy head coach, and is recruiting a lot of IAC lacrosse players (a co-worker's son who attends a different IAC school than St. Albans is going to Furman, as are several of his teammates).

Lastly, where your family has roots makes a difference.  I know a number of folks here in DC who are loyal to the Crimson Tide (Alabama) or War Eagles (Auburn) or Bulldogs of Georgia, for example, because generations of their families have gone there.  I fully expect their kids will consider those schools when it comes time to apply for college -- and again, many of the state schools have very attractive honors programs that are well-regarded.

These ramblings are not meant to be specific to the reasons why families/grads of St. Albans attended colleges on the list above (because I don't know), but to give a sense of all the different factors that go into college choices.  Sometimes it really isn't just about which school ranks higher on US News & World report.  A good example from the non-independent school world would be TJ -- highly qualified students, and many, many choose University of Virginia over Ivy options because of the in-state tuition options.

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