Shorter University (SU)

Shorter University, a “small, Christian, liberal arts university” in Rome, Georgia, provides an “atmosphere that not only develops the student academically, but invests in their lives spiritually.” Overall students say they are “completely satisfied with [their] overall academic experience” and “absolutely enjoy every one of [their] professors.” The small student body and low student-to-faculty ratio means that everyone gets plenty of attention: “Small class sizes encourage relationships with professors, who are then able to give individual help to each student.” In the classroom “professors are very interactive and want to involve the students” in lectures and discussion, and they take time to get to “know each and everyone of their students.” Faculty are also “willing to help you outside of class,” and make themselves “available not only for class purposes, but also for spiritual uplifting purposes, which is very encouraging for students.” Indeed, many students are attracted to Shorter’s faith-based education and explain, “We do our best to transform lives through Christ by using Christian-centered critical thinking.” However, some students clamor for a greater variety of academic offerings and a greater availability of classes that cover specialized subjects. Many students “feel like the facilities need to be improved.” One student complains that “the science labs are abysmal and need to be restructured,” while another agrees that the school needs to increase science funding “so that we can have undergraduate research opportunities and have state-of-the-art labs.”

Most students are “white and Southern Baptist” and demonstrate “the typical Southern hospitality.” Students say that everyone on campus “is nice and small-talk friendly” and “usually students fit in pretty well . . . because everyone tries to take the time to get to know others.” But students often find “close friends within [their] departments” because “small class sizes have the same people in a lot of your same classes.” Shorter maintains a close-knit community, and “most of the students here are also athletes or heavily involved in the school somehow.” One student explains, “Outside of academics, there are three main veins of activity that the majority of students are involved in: Greek life, athletics, or theater. There is overlap between these social groups, which allows for relationships between students outside of their normal circle.”

“The environment is uplifting and interactive” at Shorter. Students say life on this faith-based campus “revolves around fellowship,” and “because it is a smaller school you tend you get to know everyone.” “We stay up late playing guitar and singing or playing board/card games,” one student explains, but Shorter maintains a strictly dry campus and “there isn’t much of a night life like there would be in other cities.” Nonetheless, “Downtown Rome is beautiful, with a bridge lit up every night and an old “Main Street USA” offering a safe and relaxing setting for an afternoon or evening off campus.” On campus students “bring homework or guitars outside on a nice day; sometimes the faculty and staff join in these spontaneous outdoor gatherings.” For adventure “students go on hikes in the nearby woods and mountains, stroll down old downtown, have movie nights, and even take over a building for nerf night.”