Ole Miss: A True Southern Belle

Paris-Yates Chapel

It is the second day of College Tour 2015, and I have learned what the term “Hotty Toddy” means.  We visited the University of Mississippi on Wednesday, the 24^th, and yet again found a college that exceeds expectations.  Located in Oxford, Mississippi, Ole Miss plays the role of the “flagship” university of Mississippi with all the genteel gestures that you would expect from this southern jewel. Established in 1848, Ole Miss hosts 20,000 students on the main campus which is adorned with classical architecture and facilities that are on the National Registry of Historical Places.  Ole Miss, like many other locations in the South, finds its roots intertwined with Antebellum and Civil War history, with great loss and struggle in the aftermath of this divisive conflict.  

The Lyceum

The Lyceum, the focal point of historical buildings on campus and the inspiration for the University’s current logo, was the University’s first all-purpose building and served as a hospital to both Confederate and Union soldiers during the war. It still displays bullet holes inflicted during the stormy days of integration in 1962.  James Meredith was the first African American student to integrate Ole Miss, and is immortalized on campus with a statue to commemorate his courageous act.  Ole Miss continues to shed its ties with Old South emblems and ideologies and embrace the more progressive New South.  The Rebel Flag, Colonel Reb (mascot) and relinquishing of Dixie as a common song that the marching

James Meredith Statue

band would play at football games are all parts of the transformation process that has started and still moves forward today.  Ole Miss finds itself leading the charge as an institution to remove the Confederate Battle Flag from the State Flag of Mississippi by removing the state flag from campus in October, 2015.  Its history and identity are quite complicated, and is something constantly evolving to inclusively represent more fully the ideals held by the 2311 African American students, approximately 11% of the total enrolment. 

One cannot think of Ole Miss without thinking of famed American author, William Faulkner.  A resident of Oxford and former student, Faulkner was named Nobel Laureate in 1950.  Credited with writing some of the greatest American novels of all time, Faulkner hosted question and answer sessions at Bondurant Hall to students in the English Department in the 1950s.  The College of Liberal Arts offers a degree in professional writing due in large part to the influence Faulkner’s life and work.  His impact on Ole Miss and American Literature cannot be overestimated.

History is not all that Ole Miss has to offer.  Ole Miss offers great opportunities to prospective and current students.  The Law, Medical and Pharmacy Schools all offer professional degrees to students with high pass rates on professional exiting exams.  All of the typical majors one would expect from a flagship, liberal arts institution can be found there as well.   Several majors of interest include Integrated Marketing, offered through the Journalism School, Geological Engineering offered through the College of Engineering, and intensive language programs that produce fluency and culminate in an extended stay in the country of the language being studied.  Class sizes are 34 students on average with a 19:1 ratio of student to professor.  As for safety, last year Ole Miss was voted the safest campus in the SEC.

Admissions at Ole Miss offers access to many students to this large, SEC school education. If a student earns at least a 2.75 and a 1020 (Critical Reading and Math) SAT or a 22 composite ACT, that student is automatically accepted to the University of Mississippi.  Better scores garner respectable scholarships.  For students interested in teaching either English, math or science and are willing to work in the State of Mississippi for up to eight years after graduation, service cancelable loans are available to cover the expenses that the scholarship programs in place will not, so this can mean a virtually free education.  A much more detailed listing of scholarships (including monies given for high SAT or ACT scores) can be found at http://finaid.olemiss.edu/scholarships/#9.

 

The Grove

As with every other SEC school, athletics, namely football, is the thing.  Ole Miss’s traditions that surround football are as rich as any other.  Archie Manning being honored by having all speed limits set to match his jersey number of 18, tailgating in the Grove, dressing in your Sunday’s best for a Saturday game are each integral to the game day experience at Ole Miss.  The term Hotty Toddy was a derivative taken from when visiting fans would describe Ole Miss fans as “hoity toity” describing their seemingly overdressed nature.  Bowties for the guys and heels for the girls is the norm for students to Ole Miss games.  This matches the flare that tailgating takes on in the Grove.  Linen table cloths are standard for this austere occasion. 

As with Mississippi Sate, character matters at Ole Miss.  They too have an honor code that is meant to ensure that students graduate with honor.  Character matters more than degrees.

Once again, I can find a ton of things to like about being an undergraduate student at Ole Miss.  A special note to my seniors- whether you are going to stay local or go off to lands far to get your college education, one thing is for sure, you are entering into a very special time in your life.  The setting is not nearly as important as the mindset you have going in.  Remember that in addition to being there for the opportunity to learn about things you have never imagined, you are also there to grow as a human into adulthood.  You are there to progress, and in doing so, you will emerge on the other side with the same realization that I have- those were an amazing four years.  See you guys on Monday when we finish this semester strong!