University of Washington

Keith Todd, Admission Dean, Reed College, Answers 8 Questions

Founded in 1908, Reed College is a liberal arts college in Portland, Oregon, known for its rich intellectual life.  Dean of Admission Keith Todd joins us this month to answer not five -- but eight questions -- in the generous spirit of inquiry that exemplifies Reed College.

Located on 116 acres in a residential neighborhood, the Reed campus is just five miles from downtown Portland, and about 90 minutes from the Pacific coast.  Featuring a lake and Reed Canyon, a wooded wetland with abundant wildlife and native plants, the campus is home to 1400 students.

The quirky intellectualism Reed is known for is on full display even on their website, which reads like a series of droll literary vignettes -- with comic overtones. (Not to go too Reedie on you.) In fact, Reed has produced 31 Rhodes Scholars, as well as numerous winners of the Fulbright, Watson, and National Science Foundation fellowships. Classes average 15 students with a 10-to-1 student-faculty ratio. Reed offers 22 department-based majors (from Anthropology to Theater), 12 interdisciplinary majors (including History-literature or Mathematics-economics) and 6 dual degree programs (such as applied physics and electronic science).  And students can also work with their adviser to design alternate interdisciplinary majors.

Laura Stewart, Ensworth School

Laura Stewart, our March Counselor of the Month, had both a unique opportunity and challenge when she joined the college counseling program at Ensworth School, an independent college preparatory high school in Nashville, Tennessee. For 46 years -- since 1958 -- the school had served only elementary and middle school students. Then, in August, 2004, Ensworth added grades 9 through 12, opening the new 127-acre Devon Farm campus one month after Stewart joined the school as Assistant Director of College Counseling.

Over the next five years, Stewart rose to become Director of College Counseling -- in 2009, one year after Ensworth School graduated its first senior class. As a result, she has had the opportunity to participate in building a counseling program where there were no preconceived ideas. As Director, she has been able to establish policies and procedures that reflect a philosophy with her own creative stamp and then watch the program grow. "It's hard for me to imagine being anywhere else because I've been so fortunate to get to do what I want," says Stewart.

University of Washington joins the Gourmet Guide

Artisanal food, ethnic cuisines -- German, Thai, Pakistani, Korean -- and, of course, caffeine. Yes, you're in Seattle now. If you're visiting University of Washington, we've got recommendations for where to find the best breakfast -- Voula's Offshore Café; a farm-to-table lunch or dinner -- Cultivate (right on campus!); and coffee -- including Stumptown right on campus. And in addition to where to find the best espresso or a cup from Fair Trade Fidalgo Bay Coffee Roasters -- this is Seattle, remember -- we've also got your best bets for artisanal pizza and burgers (with fried egg and avocado!).  Thank you, Director of Admissions Philip Ballinger and the students of "UDub," for your advice. Check it out here.

Philip Ballinger, University of Washington, Answers Six Questions

Philip Ballinger is the Assistant Vice President for Enrollment and Director of Admissions for undergraduates at the University of Washington, the Evergreen State's flagship public university. He joins us this month to answer six questions about admissions -- and life -- at "UDub."

Founded in 1861, University of Washington began as a 10-acre campus in what is now the heart of downtown Seattle, the Pacific Northwest's largest city. Today, that campus occupies the "University District" in the city of 609,000, located on the shores of Union and Portage Bays with views of the Cascade Mountain Range.  More than 43,000 students attend UW in its 16 colleges and schools, which offer 1,800 undergraduate courses each quarter in more than 250 degree programs.  (There are also satellite campuses in Tacoma and Bothell.)