Davidson College

Davidson College
Davidson, North Carolina

March 25, 2010

I came to Davidson not knowing what to expect of this unique liberal arts college located in the “research triangle” of suburban North Carolina. Davidson brings together many unique, impressive pieces into one really solid liberal arts experience; first- Davidson is the smallest school in the United States to boast a complete set of Division I athletic teams, second- Davidson is one of the few nationally competitive small liberal arts colleges located in the south, third- Davidson boasts amazing graduation rates into top professional schools, and fourth- Davidson boasts the social feel of a large university with active students, established greek life, and amazing school spirit.

Stepping foot on the campus, I couldn’t help but feel welcome. The campus is huge, the grounds are neat, and the stately Georgian brick buildings are consistent with the school’s large endowment. The school was founded by a group of Presbyterian Christians, one of whom was Woodrow Wilson’s father (Wilson even attended Davidson for a few years). The once religious focus of the campus has eroded over time into a non-sectarian “honor code” emphasizing moral, religious values minus the exclusivity of a specific denomination. The honor code is a formal set moral principles that all students agree to follow. An honor board composed of students thus takes care of all discipline on campus. As all students have pledged never to cheat, steal, lie, etc. on campus, the school has a sense of trust in its air. As a result, classes require mostly take home tests, most buildings on campus do not have door locks, and the library does not have security scanners for books. Though it may sound like a minor part of campus life, it is crucial to the sense of community that I got to know while visiting Davidson.

My immediate fear was that the school would be overbearingly athletic. This concern was indeed a legitimate one, but I have learned to look on athletics in a new way. I initially believed that an athletic focus would detract from the academic quality of the student body or perhaps the arts culture on campus. When I explained my concern during the information session, however I got a satisfying response that seems to sum up Davidson's community ethos. The counselor explained that a lot of people come to Davidson not really caring about the athletic element. This counselor was, for example, a theatre major. He soon noticed that athletics became a major part of his life at Davidson, though, as he wanted to support the school that he loved, and wearing red face paint and cheering on their perennial “sweet 16” NCAA basketball team totally changed his outlook on athletics. As opposed to the athletics detracting from the arts experience or from academic focus, athletics seems to inject a campus pride into the school community. For the arts, this means sold out musical events just as popular as athletic events, and in the classroom, this means refreshing student perspectives with an active social setting in which to live and learn.

Facilities around campus were amazing, especially the athletic facilities. For a school of such a small size, Davidson is absolutely tops for athletic facilities and programs. Typical buildings such as the library and student union felt comfortable and well maintained, though nothing at the college was very original. As comfortable as campus facilities were, I was a little disappointed by how concentrated all of the academic space was. All departments (and classes) that are not hard sciences are housed in one giant academic building. Though the building is very sophisticated and possesses newly renovated classrooms, I feel that this condensation of separate departments mashes disciplines into an uncomfortable conglomeration reminiscent of high school. As opposed to the organization at most small liberal arts colleges, wherein smaller departments get their own houses just off campus and larger departments get their own medium sized building on campus, this felt like an impersonal - dare I say bureaucratic - way to learn at a place that is so proud of its close-knit community aesthetic.

I mentioned earlier that Davidson’s southern location really distinguishes it among schools. Along with Washington and Lee, it really is one of the only top liberal arts colleges located in the south, though its geography ultimately played little part in my impression of the campus. That is, Davidson, North Carolina provides an environment similar to the college towns I visited last spring break along the eastern seaboard. The students at first seemed a little bit homogeneous- mostly athletic, well dressed (wealthy?), and white. I got to seeing a lot of interesting people on the tour though, so I don’t think the school is narrow set or plain. Davidson seems to provide the diversity of an eastern liberal arts school coupled (perhaps just diluted) with a southern state school feeling of WASPY athleticism. In addition to the campus, the town of Davidson felt very neutral and was not overwhelmingly southern. Everyone I saw was noticeably well dressed and the quirky shops around campus fit well into the “quaint” New England town feeling while maintaining a comfortable and practical feeling of suburban America.

Overall, Davidson is clearly a gem of the south. It probably won't stand out for me in the long run because its strong suits, notably its athleticism and its well rounded, white, southern student body, were simply not priorities of mine, though they are certainly conducive to a high standard of living that is probably the closest you can get to having a true “college experience” at an academically rigorous liberal arts college. Personally, I’m still looking at Northeastern schools because they aren’t afraid to sacrifice the traditional athletic state school effect in exchange for added diversity, greater academic intensity, and a generally more open, liberal experience for students than what is common at Davidson.