I'm sorry that my private college remark offended you. And I'm not being sarcastic when I say that.
I recommend that you look up BEREA COLLEGE. You'll find that it is not the sort of private college you are imagining.
Academically it is considered one of the best in the country. You will also note, when you are (with open mind) learning about it, that it is one of five schools in the country that requires ALL students to work (for the college, at less than minimum wage) the entire time they attend; a large portion of the college infrastructure is actually run by the students. As for being expensive, student costs are covered by scholarship and grants. All students pay on a sliding scale according to their ability. And there is a fairly low upper income limit for admission. IOW, if the student's parents earn over a certain amount (it's not that high, either) they cannot be admitted. I do not make a lot of money. As a matter of fact, had she not gone there I would have been hard pressed to fund a state college. We considered it a great break she was able to get in there.
In as far as this thread relates to racism, the history of Berea College should be of interest to everyone here. It was the first interracial college in the south. It was the most forward thinking institution in its attitude towards and treatment of blacks. Berea has a lot to be proud of in that regard. You should also read about the college's christian heritage and perspective.
My kid can think for herself because she is well equipped with common sense and intelligence. Not because of where she attended college.
If you still feel compelled to respond with more petty, inane sarcasm, you should at least do me (and yourself) the courtesy of learning about this school of which you know nothing and are so demeaning.
You miss a lot when you jump into a discussion with only sarcasm to contribute and make assumptions without knowing the story. Things are often not as they superficially appear to be.
http://www.berea.edu/about/default.asp
It sounds like I jumped the gun, though you have to admit that your post could come across as elitist in tone. Your post is very interesting and the thought process is reasonable. I will check out the link for Berea. I've never heard of it, but you did a good job of making me interested in it.
I visited the site. Very interesting college! I'm all for the values that the college was founded on and appears to hold dear even today.