Kenyon College Top Questions

Here's your chance: Say anything about your college!

Jerry

kenyon has been a bit of a disappointment for me. Academically speaking (keep in mind--ive only been here a semester!) and socially (repetitive and limited). there is almost no political activeness on campus that i've seen. people here are very friendly, but can be fake. i've found that kenyon is a bit more high school-y than i expected, maybe that comes with the size and the location, but don't expect people to be super-mature and to have completely outgrown high school. getting off campus is virtually impossible unless you want to go to the local wal mart for an hour. if you consider yourself a city person, don't come here. its SO isolated. I cannot stress this enough. You must love nature and be willing to stay in one place for months on end.

Briana

Because Kenyon is small, you really get a strong sense of community. The small population also allows students to form deeper bonds not only with each other, but with the faculty and staff aswell. When walking down middle path (a ten foot wide path that runs the length of the College), it is not uncommon for one to know the majority of the people they pass, including professors. Even if you don't know the person by name it is almost a guarantee that you have seen them around campus before or that you know someone else that knows them.

Jamie

Kenyon food is disgusting. Terribly seasoned, always overcooked, and covered in laxative oil. You take a bite of the food and you don't know whether to shit or puke. The administration is also super grimey, and as of late, have been trying to destroy the party scene. It's absolutley ridiculous we're in the middle of nowhere and the people in the surrounding towns are either obese or addicted to crystal meth. Kenyon is also known for having really friendly people. This is true. usually when you see someone on middle path, even if you don't know them, you say hello or nod or make eye contact. However, this friendliness is quite conducive to spinelessness, and many Kenyonites are rather passive-aggressive. For example, if someone is making too much noise in the library, people will complain about it on allstu instead of turning around and telling you to shut it. Kenyon is also known for having busted girls. There's some cute boys, but many of them are pussies. But they mean well.

Ariel

There is a strong sense of community that fosters the pursuit of knowledge for personal fulfillment rather than careerism.

Emily

Everyone knows everyone. That can be good and it can be bad; it's certainly very intense--but we're a school that's very into community, into our collective history, into keeping Kenyon "Kenyon" and being active within the community as well as in the outside world. There's a hell of a lot of activism, political and otherwise, and it's an enormous inspiration. There are negative things about any environment, and believe me, Kenyon drives me bat-shit insane sometimes...but one thing you can't say about this school is that we don't care.

Emily

There is a strong sense of community on our campus that strongly appealed me that I did not find at the other schools I applied to. In addition to the sense of community, the professors seemed genuinly interested in the lives and interests of thier students.

Lindsay

Kenyon is a very close-knit environment with a lot of supportive people. In addition, the students can be kind of quirky, but in a good way.

Sarah

The school is academically very strong, yet it lacks the element of intense competition that one might expect. People really are more focused on learning than on grades, and they take time away from work to enjoy each other and the beautiful campus.

Drew

It had a homey feel to it

Rebecca

Because it is rather small, Kenyon allows professors to get to know all of their students in a very personal way. Most students can tell you stories of when they had dinner at a professor's house, or sat in office hours just to talk about anything that came to mind. Kenyon is also very focused on writing, so no matter your major, you will come out of this school with an exceptional ability to express your ideas.

Matt

TAMMY GOSCIAL IS A BITCH! (she is the Dean of Students but I can't imagine for too much longer)

Anna

I love Kenyon and have never regretted coming here.

Maria

Kenyon is Great!!!!

Laura

The athletic center is amazing! If I would have gone to another school I probably wouldn't have worked out that often, but at Kenyon I work out on a regular basis. The facilities are amazing--you have to see it to believe it.

nate

there are better places to go for a good education and college experience.

Quinn

Kenyon is great, I didn't want to come here originally but I don't think it would be possible for me to be happier anywhere else.

Alex

Our food is not good, and included in tuition (as of right now... hopefully they're changing this). Basically, you pay for the meal whether or not you go, and usually it's not worth the $7 or so they're charging you. A lot of people complain about it, and I think the food service is trying to take into account the feedback they're getting. I've gotten food poisoning a couple of times from things as basic as salad. You can usually find something to eat, but it won't necessarily be tasty. Our housing is just OK. The housing lottery is the most stressful day of the year!! Bushell and Manning have TINY rooms, because they were originally built to be nice singles, but have since been made into doubles. The was the worst housing I ever had. Two people should not be squished into a room that small. Tafts are wonderful, but you have a be a senior to live there. New Apts are nice, but were built as temporary housing so the walls are really thin and they're far far away from classes. For freshman housing, Lewis and Norton have the thickest walls and biggest rooms. They're about to start building new housing, but nobody knows what it's going to be like.

Chris

Our administration sucks!

Phil

Let me reiterate... the food is very very bad and hard getting away from, since there are very few (4) restaurants in the direct vicinity, and not many more in the town (Mt. Vernon) a little less than ten minutes away.

Sara

Kenyon used to be more of a hippie school, but now that it's harder to get into, there are a lot more emo over-achievers that suck. They don't contribute to the social scene.

Caroline

Laundry can be a little expensive ($1.50 per wash load, and 25 cents for 10 minutes in the dryer--but 2 wash loads usually equals one dry load). Also, all students in the Freshman quad use the laundry facility in Gund (this means if you live in Lewis or Norton, you've got to lug your laundry about). It would seem that not all freshman come prepared knowing how to do laundry--sometimes the washers are overloaded and then they break... People also seem to have a tendency of leaving thier laundry in the washer or dryer for a couple hours, frustrating everyone else who needs to do laundry. Thankfully, I've heard this is less common in upperclass dorms!

Terry

Too many people smoke here and I hate stepping on cigarette butts everywhere I go. In the winter, the sidewalks and Middle Path are atrocious. The elitist mentality sucks too. We are all smart since we got into Kenyon, so they need to get off their high horse. The food in the dining halls isn't that great either except when it's admissions season. There needs to be more parking, and the dorms suck. The showers have no water pressure, and the hot water is scalding. Everything here is expensive too. You would think they would give us a break since this is the second-most expensive school in the world, but they don't. They need to update the dorms and stop taking forever to renovate buildings.

Harper

This is a temporary stage in our lives and everybody knows it. This is very, very sad environment in which to exist if one needs meaning in one's life to survive. It's very stifling.

Heather

Seriously, the administration sucks.

Christa

Generally a kind and noncompetitive school. Some really really really smart people but... there's an edge of american suburbia that can be kind of overwhelming if that isn't where you come from. And if you're from a city, expect a hard first month or so, adjusting to being in the tiny town of Gambier.

Shawn

the amount of parent involvement at kenyon sickens me. when i heard parents were pushing for the dorm locks, i spent a lot time thinking about why i came to kenyon in the first place. I did not come to still be under the control of my parents, I did not come so the administration could hold my hand, and i sure as hell did not come and have my mother sign up for the PTA! honestly, kenyon makes me feel like a child. if I had known this before i put my deposit down, i wouldnt have come. i probably wouldve gone to colby. and, even though its so beautiful here and i love the village, im really looking forward to my year abroad to stretch my wings.

Kai

Fuck swipe cards. The administration better pay for them, because none of us will.

Andy

The weather is horrible. I'm from Texas a place where there is snow 2 days on the ground... and then it doesn't come back until the next year. That's how it's supposed to be ..you see it .. you enjoy it.. and then it leaves... However at Kenyon... it just stays and stays and stays The boys look semi-appealing until they open their mouths. A lot of them talk about how much money they're going to make, how much money they already have.. or how much the girls at Kenyon blow. I hate the fact that people are dependent on alcohol to have a good time. You can't attend a stand up comedy show, or a party without being semi-buzzed. It's pathetic. The students are brilliant.. but seriously.. seriously.. can we work on social skills first???

Blake

Residential Life at the moment is terrible - although students are all housed and mostly happy, the administration of Res Life is driving their CAs away and their policies are making life difficult for a lot of people. This year, nine CAs have left and not many are interested in returning for another year.