| | Jim: Sorry to get off-topic, but you mentioned Hillsdale College, so I figured I'd give you some perspective on that. Maybe it could help your daughter out.
I spent four of the best years of my life at Hillsdale, and would happily go back for four more if I could. You are correct that the radical feminism and other types of overbearing Leftism stereotypical of the Ivy League don't appear there. And it wasn't difficult for me to find a cadre of libertarian-leaning individualists there, several of whom became my best friends to this day.
That said, I was the only Objectivist I knew on campus (Gennady Stolyarov started there the year after I graduated), and one of only a handful of atheists. The overriding ideology of most of the faculty and student body is a strong religious conservatism. It's not as restrictive or in-your-face as it is at Calvin College or Grove City, to be sure, but it definitely makes its presence known.
The other negative aspect of Hillsdale is that it is in the middle of nowhere. The campus only has 1200 students, the town is tiny and full of hillbillys, and Ann Arbor and Lansing are at least an hour away.
Of course, the positives far outweigh the negatives. Despite the general politico-philosophical leanings of the school, the students and faculty are all (or mostly all) quite open-minded. I often (almost always) disagreed with the mainstream there, but I was given a fair hearing and never shouted down.
Most importantly, the professors are fantastic, the courses are fun and challenging, class sizes are small, social and extra-curricular activities abound, and the small-school atmosphere makes it easy to meet and get to know people.
It's not for everybody - it's a small school, as I said, and not too ethnically diverse - but all in all (keeping in mind the above caveats), I highly recommend Hillsdale, for a great education and a fun college experience.
And that's my sales pitch. Sorry again about the thread segue.
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