Deep Springs College is the most unusual college in America. Arguably, it is also the best. It is located in such a remote place in the high desert in eastern California that its mailing address is in Nevada  and the nearest gas pump is thirty miles away over a mountain pass. There are up to twenty-six students who hire and fire the faculty, design the curriculum, select the incoming students, do all of the work on the college's organic farm and ranch, cook the meals, work in the office, and generally maintain the school. Tuition is free. Does this sound like a 1960s college run by ex-hippies? Far from it. Deep Springs has been in existence since 1917.

Academically, Deep Springs is virtually unrivaled. The students at this two-year, all-male school are invited to apply from among the top two percent of College Board score achievers, though others may also apply.  In a recent poll, Deep Springs College ranked third academically, behind only Princeton and Yale.

Internationally acclaimed photographer Michael A. Smith discovered Deep Springs College quite by chance after photographing in California's remote White Mountains. He eventually went back to Deep Springs to teach for a term. While in residence he created a superb photographic portrait of the college. Since at Deep Springs the students are the college to a degree unapproached by any other college or university, Deep Springs is shown through portraits of the students. Smith's photographs impart a deeply personal vision and capture the essence of America's most remarkable educational institution."