a comment on another thread made me think of this...could americans accept voting for a president who didn't attend an elite college? could we support a president who didn't go to yale, or stanford, or harvard, or princeton? ...a sidenote: i realize many on this forum have a different view on the answer to this question because so many believe it is those elite institutions where those that conspire come from, but i'm asking you to assume that's not the case and just answer in regards to how you feel about the importance of an "ivy league-ish" education...can someone who went to purdue, or univ. of iowa, or some other similiar college become president? what if their grades were better at that kind of college then someone's who went to an elite college? (i.e. is the top 5% at univ. of kentucky better then only making the top 60% at harvard?)

Our choices are so limited to the party hacks that tow the line - we really don't have an opportunity to see anyone with vision. They are groomed their whole life for the job. I was thinking the last president to have no formal education was Harry Truman. Now personally, I liked Harry's style - maverick, independent, pissed everyone off.

The political enviroment of today just doesn't lend itself well to independent thought. If it's not the parties, it's the media ignoring someone with potential. Still it would be nice to see a "givem hell" type of personality emerge that would make both the parties and the media take note.


Bleys.

Many U.S. Presidents have gone to non-elite colleges....

Regan - Eureka College

Ford - University of Michigan

Johnson - Southwest Texas State Teachers College

Garfield - Hiram College

Harrison - Miami University in Ohio

Its no big deal.

Also, it makes perfect sense that most U.S. Presidents come from elite colleges because that where smart connected students go. Asking why most U.S. President come from there...is like asking why only good basket-ball players are in the NBA....

Bleys, i think you're dead on. Truman's attitude is exactly what is needed now.

Boatphone, i realize in the past presidents have come from non-elite colleges, but things, particularly perception, have changed since the days of for most of those presidents. as for reagan, while he didn't go to an elite college, he was a nationally recognzed movie star before becoming president. in my opinion, that basically trumped any of his shortcomings in the public's eye. thanks for the list though. in reagrads to your second post, it's basically been shown that it's not always smart kids that attend elite colleges. bush averaged C's at Yale (by the way, i am a fan of him regardless). however, i think you're right about the connections thing. connections are definitly made in college and elite colleges are likely to have better ones. i still maintain though that the college a president attended shouldn't make a difference. if someone is smart then they're smart, regardless of college. in fact, i'd much rather have someone who got straight A's at a public university then someone who got mostly C's at an elite college.

I mean, if someone graduated from University of Michigan-Ann Arbor in Politcal Science, which is an elite program in the country, I don't see why not. I think that a President needs to come from at least a top college, but Ivy League isn't neccessary.

Originally posted by Boatphone
Many U.S. Presidents have gone to non-elite colleges....

Reagan, Ford , Johnson, Garfield , Harrison,

Also, Nixon who went to a small Quaker college, Whittier. And, I think his family was rather poor. His father held several middle class jobs, one being a storekeeper.