But School of Mines is a crosstown university, you'd still need to go to Boulder for the AFROTC activities, I think. My son had a NROTC spot at CU Boulder if USNA didn't work out. I was concerned about him going to school there, but he said the NROTC unit would provide him with a group that was not so far "out there." He interviewed with someone from the NROTC unit over Skype. He really liked the guy and respected everything he had to say. I don't know who he was, but the marine who interviewed him really made an impression on him. He was excited about attending there despite the reputation of the school.
Honestly, most colleges today seem pretty "messed up" to us middle-aged folk. But, I had teachers show up to class drunk at the University of Tennessee back in the day. At many schools, your kids may face having a roommate who does drugs, etc... even at private Christian colleges. CU Boulder was very generous in scholarship offers for an out-of-state student. I appreciated that about them.