Anonymous
04/27/2024 18:46
Subject: Grinnell
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:It is EXTREMELY isolated and increasingly dangerous. Meth town. The townies are bad news.
The streets around campus are wide and leafy, filled with classic midwestern craftsman and Victorian homes with broad porches. There’s an independent cinema, a family owned shoe store where your kids can buy warm boots and Birkenstocks, a foodie restaurant with craft cocktails, an indie coffee shop, a great farmers market, a decent little grocer, garden club planters on every block, lots of parking, a preschool where students volunteer or work or do research on developmental psychology. There’s not a lot of anything, it’s true, but the feel everywhere near campus is that of a sleepy midwestern town.
Talk about student stress levels and outcome. Also, is it really so elite or just another LAC.
Not elite. Boring and full of SJW tryhards who couldn’t get into an ivy.
Poor thing. Keep trying — you’ll learn to troll eventually! We believe in you!
Anonymous
04/27/2024 13:12
Subject: Grinnell
Anonymous wrote:DC told me they were accepted a couple of hours ago. I don't know anything about the school but the acceptance rate is 11%. What should I know? They were also offered a large merit scholarship ($25K/year)
With that scholarship, your DC won't get a better education for the price. However, you might want to visit the school to get a better feel for it. Some people don't like the isolated location. My DC found the small college and town very "cozy" and had an outstanding experience and education, but if you want Div. 1 football matches and a big city on hand, it's probably not ideal. It's a small school (about 1700 students), quite diverse (lots of international students), offers very intense academics, and has an enormous endowment for a school of its size, which demonstrates itself in its beautiful facilities. The students are bright, curious, and hard-working.
Anonymous
04/27/2024 01:12
Subject: Grinnell
Anonymous wrote:My son (2025) is being recruited by Grinnell.
I’m concerned that if he gets in, it will be too hard for him. His sport has a long season, he has ADHD and takes a bit longer to get his work done.
Do those familiar with the school think it’s possible for a hard working kid who has a lot of demands from his sport and who isn’t really that into school. He does well and works hard but I can tell it’s all a struggle and he hates it.
Don’t want him to be miserable, fail out or just compare himself to others and think he isn’t good enough.
Yeah, I think you're right to hesitate and question whether it sounds like the right fit. Is he being recruited by any other schools that might be a better match for his interests, priorities, and needs?
Anonymous
04/26/2024 09:39
Subject: Re:Grinnell
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:People are overstating Grinnell’s isolation. It’s located in a rural community, but so are many SLACs - and this one has several streets of commercial activity, and a Wal-Mart, and about 20 non-chain restaurants, so it actually offers more than many (in part because Grinnell is an ag and manufacturing site and not just a ‘college town’). The town of Grinnell is virtually atop the main east-west interstate across Iowa, and it’s midway between Des Moines (45 minutes away, a surprisingly sophisticated state capital and one of the fastest growing metro areas in the Midwest, and significantly larger than Portland ME, Madison, Savannah or New Haven) and Iowa City (60 minutes away), a classic lively Big Ten university town. You could find many SLACs on the east coast that are in fact more ‘isolated’ (the primary difference between Grinnell’s ‘isolation’ and that of many colleges on the east coast is that when Grinnell kids go to a nearby city for fun, they drive past 45-60 minutes of flat cornfields rather than past suburban tracts homes, but honestly to a 20 year old that’s really not much different).
I mean, Grinnell isn’t Bethesda or McLean, but I assume most posters here understand that’s not necessarily what four years of college is supposed to be about.
Oh, and the average SAT score of Iowa high school students is among the ten highest in the country, and higher than in VA, MD and DC, so some commenters might want to dial down their anti-rural anti-midwestern snobbery just a bit.
OMG. Why argue that Grinnell isn't in the middle of nowhere?
Grinnell has some fine qualities, but location isn't one of them. Its geography is an enormous liability.
True, location is just way too isolated, no party secene, and students are really quirky. I guess Grinnell tends to admit high IQ or gifted kids only who are happy with its middle of nowhere location.
My DC is a recent graduate and, perhaps unfortunately, could attest that there is a very active party scene at Grinnell. Many of the kids work hard and play hard. There is no pressure to attend parties, but they're there in abundance if you want them. Every weekend, there are multiple and diverse parties, from huge themed parties organized every weekend by the school to smaller gatherings. In an effort to spend time with all their friend groups, DC would traipse from one party to the next on Friday and Saturday nights, often getting to bed after 4 am, but they were nevertheless routinely unable to fit in all the parties they wanted to attend. There just wasn't enough time. Students also celebrate birthday parties and other events during the week, often by baking for one another. While DC was something of a partier, they also loved learning and studied very hard. An advantage of being at a small, residential college is that the parties are generally safe. They are usually either on campus or at student houses very close to the campus. Students don't need to drive or rely on others for rides, so there's almost no drunk driving. Also, people know one another and look out for one another.
Anonymous
04/26/2024 09:26
Subject: Grinnell
Anonymous wrote:My son (2025) is being recruited by Grinnell.
I’m concerned that if he gets in, it will be too hard for him. His sport has a long season, he has ADHD and takes a bit longer to get his work done.
Do those familiar with the school think it’s possible for a hard working kid who has a lot of demands from his sport and who isn’t really that into school. He does well and works hard but I can tell it’s all a struggle and he hates it.
Don’t want him to be miserable, fail out or just compare himself to others and think he isn’t good enough.
Grinnell might not be the best fit for a kid who hates school, although it's always possible that the open curriculum, with its diverse range of classes, could spark a passion in your son. The students at Grinnell are generally kind and supportive but tend to be extremely involved in learning. They won't look down on your son, but he might feel a bit left out if he "isn't really that into school." Grinnell students are often VERY into school. When I visited my DC at Grinnell, I usually picked up on excited conversations among students about their studies. They read one another's essays out of curiosity and often went above and beyond the curriculum. They tend to be internally driven learners. Because classes are small, they are easily individualized, and students can run with projects that interest them. My DC loved their classes and chose to work extremely hard. The kids who didn't feel that way about learning sometimes transferred or became discouraged. The workload is hefty, the kids have to do an unusual amount of reading, and student involvement in learning is usually very high.
Anonymous
04/26/2024 06:01
Subject: Grinnell
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:My son (2025) is being recruited by Grinnell.
I’m concerned that if he gets in, it will be too hard for him. His sport has a long season, he has ADHD and takes a bit longer to get his work done.
Do those familiar with the school think it’s possible for a hard working kid who has a lot of demands from his sport and who isn’t really that into school. He does well and works hard but I can tell it’s all a struggle and he hates it.
Don’t want him to be miserable, fail out or just compare himself to others and think he isn’t good enough.
I wouldn't send a kid who isn't really into school to Grinnell. Grinnell is a challenging school full of kids who love learning. I have one kid at Grinnell but would never consider a school like that for my other kid. I don't mean that as a knock against the school or the kid. There are many different types of colleges and kids. Nobody is a perfect match for all of them for any number of valid reasons
On the other hand, Grinnell has an open curriculum which would allow a kid to move toward his interests and strengths. That can go a long way.
Anonymous
04/26/2024 04:17
Subject: Grinnell
Anonymous wrote:My son (2025) is being recruited by Grinnell.
I’m concerned that if he gets in, it will be too hard for him. His sport has a long season, he has ADHD and takes a bit longer to get his work done.
Do those familiar with the school think it’s possible for a hard working kid who has a lot of demands from his sport and who isn’t really that into school. He does well and works hard but I can tell it’s all a struggle and he hates it.
Don’t want him to be miserable, fail out or just compare himself to others and think he isn’t good enough.
I wouldn't send a kid who isn't really into school to Grinnell. Grinnell is a challenging school full of kids who love learning. I have one kid at Grinnell but would never consider a school like that for my other kid. I don't mean that as a knock against the school or the kid. There are many different types of colleges and kids. Nobody is a perfect match for all of them for any number of valid reasons
Anonymous
04/26/2024 00:02
Subject: Re:Grinnell
Anonymous wrote:People are overstating Grinnell’s isolation. It’s located in a rural community, but so are many SLACs - and this one has several streets of commercial activity, and a Wal-Mart, and about 20 non-chain restaurants, so it actually offers more than many (in part because Grinnell is an ag and manufacturing site and not just a ‘college town’). The town of Grinnell is virtually atop the main east-west interstate across Iowa, and it’s midway between Des Moines (45 minutes away, a surprisingly sophisticated state capital and one of the fastest growing metro areas in the Midwest, and significantly larger than Portland ME, Madison, Savannah or New Haven) and Iowa City (60 minutes away), a classic lively Big Ten university town. You could find many SLACs on the east coast that are in fact more ‘isolated’ (the primary difference between Grinnell’s ‘isolation’ and that of many colleges on the east coast is that when Grinnell kids go to a nearby city for fun, they drive past 45-60 minutes of flat cornfields rather than past suburban tracts homes, but honestly to a 20 year old that’s really not much different).
I mean, Grinnell isn’t Bethesda or McLean, but I assume most posters here understand that’s not necessarily what four years of college is supposed to be about.
Oh, and the average SAT score of Iowa high school students is among the ten highest in the country, and higher than in VA, MD and DC, so some commenters might want to dial down their anti-rural anti-midwestern snobbery just a bit.
The town gun emporium, somewhat far left campus climate, far right surrounding area, and loose state gun laws can give some people pause.
Grinnell had the least desirable location of the many LACs we visited, though imo that shouldn’t in itself rule out the school. Be skeptical of those disparaging the school itself, which is fantastic, but also be skeptical of claims the location isn’t reason for concern. Research and decide for yourselves.