This Tiny College Wants to Close. Its Alumni Won't Let it
Sweet Briar, a small liberal arts college for women, shocked students, graduates, and donors when it announced it would close despite having a healthy endowment
Sweet Briar College, 2006
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Sweet Briar College, a 114-year-old Virginia school for women whose former students include Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis's mother, is learning that shutting down might be easier said than done.
Hundreds of graduates descended on the campus near Lynchburg, Va., on Sunday to welcome students back from spring break and to protest after the school announced March 4 it will close after this academic year. Alumnae raised $3 million within days and hired a law firm to thwart the plan. Many were stunned because the school has a $96 million endowment, making it better off than numerous peers.