Southern Utah University (SUU)

“I love SUU,” says one student, whose bubbly enthusiasm is typical among her classmates. “My professors are great. . . . One time I was struggling to write a paper for English, so I called my professor’s house, and he met up with me at the university library and helped me work on my paper. . . . I [also] dream of being a basketball coach . . . and the head basketball coach lets me . . . watch practice and . . . even got me a volunteer job at a local middle school . . . coach[ing] a 7th and 8th grade team.” We’re told that professors demonstrate “passion for the subjects they teach, but are more concerned about the student and his or her potential than the subject and thus will do everything possible to ensure” student success. Administrators are also “helpful” and “know you and why you are here.” Strong programs include “theater, business, and nursing”; the first boasts strong ties with the annual 4-month-long Utah Shakespearean Festival, and the last is simply no piece of cake. School “was a whole lot of fun during my nursing prerequisites,” says one student, “and a whole lot of work now that I’m in the program.” Retention is a problem in the student body at large---less than a third of all students graduate in 6 years.

Students tell us that the “typical T-bird” has “an eagerness for learning, a passion for involvement, and a contagious friendliness” that combine to put other students at ease. “It is fairly easy to strike up a conversation with a random student on campus.” Students are heavily “into [the] outdoors,” and proximity to the Utah Shakespearean Festival also attracts “many theater” types. In addition, “a large majority of the students belong to the LDS faith.” This homogeneity has its fans and detractors: one student enjoys having his fellow “Mormons . . . among the student body, because their morals are so high,” while another LDS student found it “hard coming from a community college [that] was highly diverse. . . . The school could use some diversity training [for] students, faculty, and staff.” There are two non-LDS Christian groups and six multicultural organizations on campus. Students are “accepting.” Students say that “everyone is treated with respect” and “fits in,” and no one “absolutely hates” anyone else---“except” when it comes to “school politics.”

SUU’s prime Cedar City location puts students within 150 miles of Bryce Canyon, Zion, and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon---and those are just the big-name national parks. Students take ample advantage of the “remarkable” setting by “hiking, kayaking, swimming, skiing, snowboarding, rock climbing, caving,” and “exploring.” In addition, “We’re not afraid to put forth a little effort to have fun,” says one undergrad. “Three days ago we drove an hour and a half to hang out in a . . . hot spring in minus-12-degree weather.” Extreme recreation goes beyond the outdoorsy: “This weekend we’re actually planning on lining a U-Haul truck with mattresses and driving around Cedar taking sharp turns to see if we can ‘surf’ in the back of the truck.” Students also play recreational sports---“football, Ultimate Frisbee,” “racquetball, basketball, [and] volleyball”---on campus, although they say that intercollegiate “Sports [are] not a very strong point” and “Athletic [events] aren’t even worth going to.” “There are tons of clubs” on campus: “I am not a music major, but I am still actively involved in five music ensembles,” says one student. More than 20 couples belong to “a married kids club” that holds “date nights [with] dinner and a movie.” Whatever your interests, we’re told that “the small student body. . . . makes it easy to make friends.” “The only thing that we are in desperate need of,” says one student, is better “shopping. Luckily, St. George is 40 minutes away, and Las Vegas is 2 hours.”