T took the PSAT as a freshman and sophomore at her school -- apparently this is the "new thing" that schools do to increase test savy and thus SAT scores early in the senior year, and also it is said to increase the chance of National Merit Scholarship finalists. T's school had six NM scholars in a single class of 80 a couple years back.

Not that being a NMS is something I believe is necessarily good for you. But we won't go there, to my prejudice (call it that, really!) against the prize.

No, what I have been amazed by is the amount of PAPER coming into this house touting colleges, some of them very well known. T apparently checked off the box "send information about universities" on her test and ever since the scores were posted, we've been deluged.

The question, of course, is why they want T? She's really a lot of trouble and she's already told me that, high maintainer that she is, she plans to stay in her bedroom and attend the local university, TCU.

The possible reasons they want T:

1) She did have unusually high scores;
2) She is a girl with a fast math track -- already taking precalculus as a sophomore which will put her in her second year of calculus as a senior; also taking AP chem as a sophomore
3) He extracurriculars -- she is in sports (although as I think I've told you, she's participating, not staring, in cross country, basketball, and track).
4) And we must admit the sinister one -- that she attends a private prep school. Admittedly T is on scholarship but these universities don't know that. The Atlantic Monthly just this fall published a long article on the private university's desire to hone in on students who have the money to pay the tuition outright. TVS would be a real hotbed of such people ...

Well, just for fun -- I'll list some of the schools:

Stanford -- ("No, too politically correct, got rid of Western Civilization requirement, forget it" -- Mom)
University of Rochester
University of Miami
Eckerd College
Hampshire
Sewanee, the University of the South
Brown (her stepfather said, "you cannot go to Brown. See note for Stanford.")
Creighton
Center College
West Point (her stepfather was very offended by a big color picture on the mailer of a military parade-dressed blond woman screaming at a company of men. He said "you cannot go to West Point either.")
Illinois institute of Technology
Texas Lutheran (I've never heard of this school yet it's right here out Our State!)
Furman -- her sister's school
Boston University -- for dissident Catholics? They were exposed by the Catholic press as being one of the U's which hosted Vagina monologues. In fairness, Furman did too and Suellen is there. But Furman doesn't claim to be Catholic.
TCU
Hanover
Caltech ("Caltech is a collaborative community of students like you -- bright minds who share your passion for exploring mathematics, science, and technology. Interested in our kind of different, A?")
University of Central Florida
Oberlin
Hendrix (Jimmi started a college? No. Sorry, couldn't help myself)
Rhodes (apparently this old college is in Memphis. Nice brochure. She has received a number of mailers from southern schools we didn't know about.)
Baylor (oh yes, we know about Baylor. Her history teacher is an alumnus. He already recommended it.)
Austin (she actually showed some interest in attending Austin. Just goes to show you never can tell, when you're in the college business, which kid will turn up their nose at Brown but be interested in Austin.)
University of Chicago
Grinnel
Emory
St Katherine's of St. Paul MN (she doesn't know this but this is her great grandmothers Alma)
Drexel
Carleton
NYU -- Letter to A.J.: "We look for students who thrive on challenges and new experiences. Students just like you." Some of the new experiences I've heard about NYU students are not what mothers want for daughters -- see Woody Allen's "everything you wanted to know ... " for details.
Washington University of Saint Louis MO
Fordham "New York City's Jesuit University" I think T would like a Jesuit university. But she can't go live in New York. No.
University of Denver
MACALESTER (huge letterhead. "We suspect you may have the ability and interests to attend an academically challenging place like Macalester") Well they weren't that academically challengeing for T's uncle, who's an alum and if it had been academic he would never have gotten all that drinking done. In their defense, he tells me they've become much more serious since he got his diploma.)
And finally, SMU. Over in Dallas.

No word from the schools which her parents attended:

University of California, Irvine
Cal Poly Pomona

Or her grandparents

UC Berkeley
University of Minnesota

Or current affiliations of the family

Texas Woman's University
University of North Texas

But those are all public schools, which I assume is why. Sorry this is so long. I am embarrassed. But T wanted me to write this. She is very proud to be wanted. By universities.

Question: If she could trade these U brochures for phone calls from guys on Facebook.com, Would She?

T?