I guess what I expected, and remember, I spent 18 years in the area(Wake Forest, NC) before coming to Georgia Tech, but I never really spent any time at the universities save for visiting friends for a night when I was back home... ANYWAY, I picture NC State as a poor mans Ga Tech. It's a good engineering school, and a good math school, which, not to stereotype TOO much, attracts a signifigant number of non-white non-southerners. And with Duke being private and so damn expensive, it would attract all kinds of people from all over I would think.
So, I would have expected a much more diverse experience. But I totally see the point you're making.
And yeah the UNC thing disgusted me. Like I said, going to Atlanta people were shocked I wouldn't jump at the chance to go to UNC. My response is, "What do you mean? I have friends that have never left the county, that got 850s on their SATs, who are at UNC right now. I wanted to go to a school that would be challenging!" That actually pissed off a few people, with replies like "really, I have a 1350 SAT score and was valedictorian and I didn't get in there"... public schools are weird I guess.
Bucc, why did you know I'd reply?
I'm loyal to the area because I grew up there, and loyal to the death to UNC basketball, but I do have my basketball and education separate and in perspective