I know that I am an extremely passive user but I need to scream into the void and hope someone that may care hears.
I am a senior at Sweet Briar College, a women's college in VA. You have may have heard of SBC and think “Didn't that place close?” And you are probably thinking of the right place.
The school almost closed in 2015 due to shity decisions by the board that runs the school, and was only saved by fast acting alums to raise 1.9 million in 10 days, and 21.5 million in 90.
A few days ago we got an email that informed us that starting with the class of 2029, Sweet Briar would now only be admitting cis women.
"An applicant is qualified for admission if she confirms that her sex assigned at birth is female and that she consistently lives and identifies as a woman.”
Currently, admittance for non binary students is taken on a case by case bases. We have a huge non binary population, to the point where we introduce ourselves with our name, year, major, and pronouns (My name is Suzie Sweetbriar I am a business sophomore with a poly sci minor, and my pronounce are she/they)
The argument that the board gives is that the will of the founder must be honored with the spirit of what she wanted when she wrote it. That will was written in 1901, it calls for a school for white young girls and women. Obviously, the “spirit” of the will is flexible.
This decision is certainly not what the students want, and not what most alums want either. I definitely would think twice applying to a school in rural VA that only wanted cis people.
SBC is only around for as long as it stands in the good graces of its alums and they just pissed off quite a few of it's future ones.
I have seen the argument of changing one single contraction
"An applicant is qualified for admission if she confirms that her sex assigned at birth is female OR that she consistently lives and identifies as a woman.”
Honestly, that would be enough to keep this school a women's college.
