Ahhh, the stereotyping us gunnies love to do! (rant off)
To deal with the question directly: tell her to add Carleton College in Northfield, MN to that list. I'm a graduate of the Class of '67, and I feel the education I received there served me well. And, for a second college, she can also consider Wellesley College in Wellesley, MA. My oldest daughter graduated from there, despite my initial misgivings about her selection--and she did not suffer in the least from inappropriate 'liberal' taint. (She graduated Summa Cum Laude and went on to become a DVM--in short, she is a talented practical scientist with her core social values intact.)
Here's my take on the "socio-political liberalism" in the context of a liberal arts education: You have to differentiate the implementation of the mission by the college from the general population behavior. In short, you can find leftist loonies and right wing nuts at any college, and the various power struggles ebb and flow. But, if the college is committed to a mission of student education and the development of critical analysis, she should do just fine if she is committed to that kind of learning.
Here's a tip: the schools that are most selective from their application base are probably the best ones to consider--e.g., a bigger applicant pool makes it easier to select a good mix of students that fulfill the school objectives. And, a second tip: look at the class sizes, especially for the Freshman / core curriculum classes. My freshman Rhetoric class had 16 students in it; Jennifer's similar class had under twenty.
The 'political' values one may gain at any given time of study--e.g., the Carleton of the mid-Sixties I knew is not the Carleton of the Class of 2010--will vary, but the demanding study (no matter what major) should serve her well. And, truth be known, the networking contacts she may develop out of her college years will be better from the more-highly selective colleges.
Having said all that--I have no trouble freely admitting that I share some of the observations in this topic about the political inclinations of certain campuses--Reed, for example.
But I hope you are serious about the "cost-is-MOT-an-issue" thing--Carleton or Wellesley, when you add in some travel and personal expenses, will push towards $50K/year right now. But, both schools have support programs--and if she should end up as a geology major at Carleton, maybe I can help out.
