Has anyone attended or know of anyone who did? I’d like to hear any feedback. My wife and I are building a trust fund for our three year old grandson to pay for as much of his college tuition as possible and I’m considering putting a contingency on it that he attends Hillsdale. I want my daughter and her husband to focus on a appropriate private school for his early academics.

I don't, but I approve of the college and occasionally send a donation. I think we need more colleges in that mold. (All of them should be, but that's a dream I doubt will happen.)

flashguy

Trying to decide how much to say. Our daughter did, for one year. She did not have a good experience, culminating in a bad date with an heir to a prominent family of whiskey distillers. She would not give me details—at all. I don’t think she told my wife much either. She said that the students there could generally be divided into two camps: those who sat in their dorm rooms and read the Bible, and those who went out and got themselves stupid drunk, night after night. I didn’t want her to go there in the first place.

Pretty sure Appliance Brad is from the area. Maybe he will chime in.

quote:

Originally posted by TMats:
Trying to decide how much to say. Our daughter did, for one year. She did not have a good experience, culminating in a bad date with an heir to a prominent family of whiskey distillers. She would not give me details—at all. I don’t think she told my wife much either. She said that the students there could generally be divided into two camps: those who sat in their dorm rooms and read the Bible, and those who went out and got themselves stupid drunk, night after night. I didn’t want her to go there in the first place.

Yikes! Well maybe I’ll let his dad who is a master plumber teach him the trade. No college needed I’ll save the $$ for something else!!
Why didn’t you want her to go there in the first place?

I’ll send you an email

My opinion only....

Placing stipulations on Trusts that are restrictive is incredibly myoptic. There is now way that the restrictions that you place on something now can be expected to be fully applicable or in-line with your wishes a decade or more from now. That which is "right" now may be completely wrong down the road.

Best advice, emplace a trustee who will ensure the "spirit of your requests" are adhered to for the best outcomes for your progeny. You can certainly write into the trust your guidance. But, I wouldn't put absolutes.

Think of it this way.... if you put fences all along to keep them on a certain road. They may drive off a cliff.

Andrew

^^ Sound advice thank you.

Also consider that when they hit college age in 15 years, their passion may lie in a technical career field that isn't offered at Hillsdale. Hillsdale is a liberal arts college. They don't offer majors like engineering, architecture, etc.

Or they may decide to pursue a skilled trade instead of getting a college degree.

Or they may be very skilled in a sport that isn't offered at Hillsdale, whereas they were offered a partial scholarship to a different school to play for them.

I love Hillsdale. I'm a member of the "President's Club", meaning a substantial annual pledge for 10 years.

I would love it if my granddaughters went there.
But I completely agree with El Cid 92: don't put restrictions like that on a trust. My granddaughters are one and three years old. Who knows what Hillsdale will be like in 15-20 years?

Also Rogue JSK's comment is right on. Hillsdale is a wonderful liberal arts college IMO, but that may not be the best preparation for, say, a talented mathematician.

We will set up a trust for our granddaughter's education, but our daughter and her husband will be the trustees. How much we can or should encourage going to Hillsdale is not yet something we can decide.

And yes, I dearly wish there were hundreds of colleges like Hillsdale.

RogueJSK's post is exactly where we are with our oldest. When he was 4, I was sure he would be going to Hillsdale. He's 15, a swimmer, and wants to be a volcanologist. We're looking at Division I and II schools with good Geology programs and swim teams.

I’m a big fan of Larry Arnn and look forward to every issue of Imprimis.

One of my mock trial students went there, enjoyed it, and is doing extremely well for herself (which she undoubtedly would have no matter where she went).

That’s all I can tell you.

-Rob

My experience is positive, but indirect.

My daughter’s best friend went to Hillsdale for her Masters and PhD. Now she teaches at Hillsdale.

She is a wonderful young lady and a great Mom. Ive known her most of her life and saw her really blossom while at Hillsdale.

Personally, I wouldn't fund any college education for my kids that wasn't in a STEM major or in a trade school, but that's just me.

Well I don’t always think things through as evidenced in this post. Thanks to all for the great advice. Much appreciated!

Generally I disagree with putting a specific qualifier on a trust. Especially in this case as who knows what the case will be in 15 years. And what if the kid is smart enough to go to a much better school than Hillsdale? (I've never even heard of it, fwiw, and will have to research why you might want to put that contingency on it.)

If I were hiring, Hillsdale certainly wouldn't jump off the resume page to me.

My wife went to Grove City College near Pittsburgh, PA

It’s very similar to Hillsdale and IIRC one of the very few like Hillsdale that does not accept federal student aid nor take any government money whatsoever.

Not precisely on topic, but isn't Pat Sajak now chairman of the board of trustees there? I think he'd been a vice-chairman for over 10 years.

quote:

Originally posted by lastmanstanding:
Well I don’t always think things through as evidenced in this post. Thanks to all for the great advice. Much appreciated!

Nothing wrong with planning ahead. What I'd be looking at is a 529 Investment Plan. You make contributions and they grow tax free. The beneficiary takes the money out tax free for education expenses: tuition, room and board, supplies including a computer. Before college, up to $12,000 a year can be taken out for K-12 tuition. The money in a 529 Investment Plan can be used at any school. If the student gets a scholarship, that amount can still be taken out of the plan tax and penalty free, but used for purposes other than education. The money in the plan can be used for the education expenses of relatives of the beneficiary if there is any leftover.

Planning ahead is fine, to a point.
Limiting the choices of college for an infant is a bit too much. Too many moving parts to make a prediction of any sort at this point.
Even late in grammar school or early high school years you may or may not know the direction the child is going. Things could change at the college itself, for better or worse by then too.