By Kenric Ward
Angry alumnae of Sweet Briar College are accusing Attorney General Mark Herring of “waging war on women’s education.”
The charge comes in the wake of an abrupt announcement the historic women’s college in Amherst County will shut down Aug. 25.
Interim president Jimmy Jones has rebuffed requests for information justifying the closure. His responses thus far have been “Because we do not have to” and “We have no duty to.”
Sweet Briar supporters and Amherst County attorney Ellen Bowyer have taken Jones and his SBC board to court, seeking an injunction to halt the closure.
Herring, a Democrat who campaigned on a platform to protect women’s rights, filed a brief asserting Bowyer overstepped her authority. The attorney general said his office is responsible for reviewing the Sweet Briar situation.
“We are committed to ensuring that any changes are in the public’s interest,” said Herring spokesman Michael Kelly.
Amherst Circuit Judge James Updike granted a 60-day injunction last week, but SBC supporters fear Herring will use the time to construct a legal justification to let the college die.
“A handful of men in closed meetings (are) making decisions about women’s lives, with no input of those whose lives are affected,” says Pam Auble, who earned a degree in modern languages and literature from Sweet Briar in 1998.
County attorney Bowyer alleges that:
* School records have been illegally destroyed.
* Jones’ appointment was never properly ratified by the board of directors.
* Funds have been diverted for the purpose of closing the school, and contributions were solicited by SBC officials who failed to divulge the closure plans.
* SBC has had no full-time admissions director for the past two years.
Herring’s legal challenge to Bowyer is perhaps the most surreal aspect of the Sweet Briar showdown. Updike said he had never seen such a move in his 37-year career.
Though SBC is a private institution, Virginia Statute 57-59D empowers public prosecutors — not just the attorney general — to review any actions taken under the Charitable Solicitations Act and the Uniform Trust Code.
Critics say the current SBC leadership has opened itself to breach-of-trust accusations by seeking to use restricted scholarship funds to shutter the campus.
Opened in 1901, Sweet Briar was founded by Indiana Fletcher Williams, who bequeathed her estate to establish the liberal arts school with the express intention that it operate “forever.” Its current endowment is $94 million.
SBC board chairman Paul G. Rice said the trend lines are not healthy for the 530-student campus situated on 3,250 acres.
“We have moral and legal obligations to our students and faculties and to our staff and to our alumnae. If you take up this (closure) decision too late, you won’t be able to meet those obligations,” he said.
Auble said Sweet Briar funds are being siphoned with Herring’s acquiescence.
“For restricted gifts under $50,000, it takes 60 days to release. Yet $3 million in funds have already been released, which means that the board has been working with the AG since before the vote to close the school,” she said.
School attorney Woody Fowler confirmed that scenario in court last week.
Liberty University law school professor Phillip Kline told the Lynchburg News & Advance he believes Herring has ensured Sweet Briar’s demise by intervening.
Kline, a former attorney general of Kansas, said Herring could have filed his own legal action to stop the college from closing, or he could support Bowyer’s actions on behalf of the commonwealth.
Kenric Ward is Virginia bureau chief of Watchdog.org, where this article originally appeared. Reprinted with permission.
