RICHMOND Va.
The Virginia Supreme Court will hear the appeals of students and alumni challenging the end of 115 years of single-sex education at the former Randolph-Macon Woman’s College.
The court, which is likely to hear the cases in 2008, agreed on Wednesday to hear two appeals of Circuit Court dismissals: One that claimed breach of contract for adopting coeducation, the other for using college assets to benefit men.
Randolph Macon-Woman’s College was established 116 years ago and accepted its first class of men this fall under a new name: Randolph College. More than 70 men are among the 660 students on Randolph’s Lynchburg campus.
Preserve Educational Choice, an alumnae group supporting the lawsuits, applauded the justices for accepting the consolidated challenges.
“These cases are not just important for members of the Randolph-Macon Woman’s College community they are important to all residents of the Commonwealth and all Americans who donate money to charities,” Ann Yastremski, executive director of the group, said in a statement issued Friday.
Amid protests, Randolph-Macon Woman’s College board voted one year ago to make the school coeducational to reverse declining enrollment and improve its financial standing.
