Lewis & Clark College Top Questions

NO! Yes, there are people who are "hippies," but there are people from everywhere, and everyone is different. A true statement about the LC community is that everyone is laid back. Everyone fits in at LC because we attract open-minded, laid back, inclusive people from all over the world.

Somewhat. There are more types of students such as ones who are really focused on studying, those who party a lot, and some in the middle.

I don't think any stereotype can describe L&C students. L&C attracts a diverse group of students. Within its small student body you see just about every kind of person so I would say that these kinds of people do exist, but no, it does not describe L&C students in general.

While there are people who smoke (like there are at every campus) this definitely isn't true. One of my favorite things about LC is the diversity of experience all of my classmates have. There is no way you can classify all LC students or even the majority of them into some sort of stereotype.

no.

Somewhat. I felt like there were two distinct groups. First, the Dungeons & Dragons/ World of Warcraft type guys. I was actually surprised at new student orientation to see what a large group of D&D kids were there. They are all very nice, and always seem to have something to do. The second group are hippie but faux hippie, like designer hippie. People who have a lot of money and pay a lot of money to look like a hippie. I also got the feeling that some people could get away with more because they had money. I can't even count how many times I heard students complaining about something and say "Well, I'll just call my mother and have her complain to the dean" or "I'll just get my parents to donate a bunch of money, and this write up won't even go in my school record." Not everyone is like this but I met more of them in a semester than I ever wanted to meet in my life.

Truth is there is a huge community of students that wish they were living in the 60's. However, there are plenty of students who do other things and everyone seems to get a long really well. There is not much of a division between students. Lewis and Clark provides rigorous academics as well and everyone is focused on school no matter what other activities they enjoy in their free time.

A couple. Of course any school that's as expensive as Lewis & Clark is going to have a lot of kids with money there, so the rich/semi-spoiled rumors are true in some cases (more the "rich" than the "spoiled"). There are a lot of hippie-ish kids around for sure, so that one's also true.

Snobs

I find this stereotype to be less accurate as the years progress and new generation are ushered into the oasis on Palatine Hill, affectionately known to those who bare the Orange and Black as L&C. Sure, there are some hippies still in my grade, but that makes them all the more special and remarkable.

Yeah, a lot of people have dreadlocks, or have one or two little ones in their hair, and Birkenstocks are nice and easy to take off, weed is fantastic for conversations, and roly papers are always a quick find. There were more than just a few Fulbright scholars this year, and the curriculum is somewhat rigorous, again-when you look for it, that is.

to an extent since it's a very liberal campus, but I don't agree that you're either an athlete or a hippie, as some seem to feel the school is.

Well sort of. There's all kinds of people here though

My assessment of the aforementioned stereotypes: hippy/pot-head: You will certainly see hippy-like appearance and hippy-like behavior from a small number of students just about everyday; pot has a much smaller presence here than I expected; cigarettes, however, has a bigger presence than I imagined; other drugs can be found without too much effort (if one so desires). On the other hand, if you are annoyed by all things drug related, you can effortlessly turn a blind eye and pretend it doesn't exist (by 'it', I mean the harder drugs aside from marijuana). Liberal arts "bubble world": LC's geographical location certainly feeds that stereotype. It is situated in a quiet and peaceful forest like environment, in a wealthy part of southern Portland. If awesome natural scenery fits well with your study style, this is a serious plus. LC has, for the most part, a beautiful campus, especially during the summer. Wealth of the student body: There are no shortage of well-to-do upper-middle class students attending LC, but there are also plenty of lower income students as well. A large majority of the student body receives some kind of need-based financial aid from one source or another. Like every other student body, you'll find people who work part/full time to (barely) make ends meet. In my opinion, what perpetuates this (largely inaccurate) stereotype of a wealthy student body is the high cost of the school. The total cost for one school year could easily exceed $40,000: $30K tuition, ~$8K room & board, ~$500-$1000 books, ~$1000-2000 misc. fees, supplies, transportation/logistics, entertainment expenditures, etc. This certainly leans towards the high end as far as college education costs are concerned. Political orientation: Yes, as stereotyped, LC is overwhelmingly liberal. You can find EVERY liberal stereotype here: anti-globalization activists, extreme feminists, tiny grass-roots anti-establishment student organizations/clubs, over-zealous human rights activists, anti-war activists, socialists, idealistic philosophers, NGO volunteers, etc. However, at one point, I heard a professor comment that while there is certainly a strict adherence to the liberal/left wing ideology, it rarely translates into meaningful action. I hardly hear ANY sort of conservative leaning view points expressed on campus. I consider myself liberal leaning (especially on social issues), but sometimes LC leans too far even for my tastes. LC Academics: There are quite a few students at LC who have been awarded prestigious scholarships and fellowships at LC (i.e. Fulbright & Truman scholars). Plenty of students apply for and receive grants of all types to conduct independent research on a wide array of subjects from biology to international affairs. At the end of every semester, one would often see students who are practically living at the library (which is open practically 24/7), preparing for final projects/papers/exams. In short, there is no lack of academic rigor at LC.

Yes, to a degree. While the overwhelming majority of students are indeed white hippies, there are a lot of people here who do not come from wealthy backgrounds. There is even a small contingent of Republicans on campus. There are also several Christian groups on campus; however, many generally are annoyed with how Christianity is singled out as a terrible religion.

No. Lewis and Clark does not always help their students. They are more concerned with bringing money into the college than helping students adn keeping their promises. They are not willing to work with students to resolve issues on transferable questions. They try to take advantage of students, by making power plays and not giving students any options. They tell you what you want to hear, but don't fufill those promises. They use their positions of power to take advantage of students.

Somewhat, I think maybe a quarter of the class is actually like this. Although the more moderate people seem to hide so it can be hard to find them.

As is true at any school there are always people who will live up to the stereotypes, but I would say that for the most part people are showered and not under the influence of some substance.

It does seem like there are a lot of people who smoke pot-- you can often smell weed just walking around the school during the day. And on 4/20 there was a hundred people smoking pot outside in the daytime, while our campus security sat and watched. But, there's a substance free dorm, and you can find people who don't smoke pot all the time or at all. There do seem to be a lot of hippies, but people have recently been complaining that it's becoming more "preppie". I'm ok with that, because the hippies are trustafarians and I find them kind of annoying.

Partly, but people usually grow out of them by junior or senior year. Although many people smoke pot, everyone isn't consumed by it.