Western senior Val Helmbrecht has been looking forward to attending Sweet Briar College in the fall to play lacrosse, for many months. “Sweet Briar was my first choice school since the 7th grade,” Helmbrecht said. She had visited the campus many times, had a few overnight stays, and absolutely loved it. “I was so excited to spend the next 4 years of my life there.”

On February 28th, the Board of Directors at Sweet Briar College, established in 1901, voted unanimously to close the college on August 25, 2015 due to “insurmountable financial challenges.” The college will close on August 25 to allow for the completion of summer credits. The Class of 2015 will be the last graduating class and the commencement ceremony will be the last one held on campus. There will also be a final reunion on the college campus for all students and alumnae.

Sweet Briar officials are taking every effort possible to secure the safety of the future of their current students by giving them assistance in transferring to other colleges and universities. At this time, the college is hosting on-campus college fairs to help match students to other higher education institutions. Current Sweet Briar students will have the option to have an expedited transfer process to Randolph College, Hollins University, Mary Baldwin College, and Lynchburg College. Of course, students are not constricted to transferring to only these colleges, but other colleges have their own deadlines and procedures for transfer.

But current students are not the only high priority concern for the College. The status of the admitted students is of the utmost importance to the college. Although most schools have stopped accepting applications for next year, Hollins University, Mary Baldwin College, Randolph College, and Lynchburg College have all said they will accept admitted Sweet Briar students.

Helmbrecht is thinking about attending Hollins University in the fall, her second-choice school. After recently spending a weekend there and enjoying her time, she would also play lacrosse there, if she elects to attend. It will not be an easy choice for her, however.

“When I first recieved the email saying that Sweet Briar was going to close…I thought it was a joke. I showed my mom and we went online to see if it was true and it was,” Helmbrecht said.

She recounts being at home, sick, the day of the announcement, and that the news of her top-choice school closing was terrible and shocking. “I don’t cry much…or at all…but I definitely cried a lot when I heard that Sweet Briar was going to close. I had been looking forward to going there since the 7th grade after all,” Helmbrecht said. She says she felt a little misled hearing the announcement. The college gave no indication that they were going to close and did not tell prospective students, or anyone for that matter, that they were financially unstable. “I felt a little let down,” Helmbrecht said. She says she will be happy to attend Hollins, or a similar school, but as she adequately put, “there is no place like Sweet Briar.”

The “insurmountable financial challenge” facing Sweet Briar is its $25 million debt. The majority of the school’s $94 million endowment is restricted, meaning that many of the funds allotted to the school are earmarked for a certain program or department; therefore, the school does not have enough funds to cover its debts. The college is currently in the process of paying its legal obligations and fees. In addition it is also organizing the severance packages for its faculty and staff and making sure current students transfer out safely.

Saving Sweet Briar Inc., a non-profit created by alumnae, is petitioning to keep Sweet Briar open for the Class of 2020. Their goal is to raise $20 million and they have raised $3 million thus far. The group has also hired Troutman Sanders LLP, a prominent law firm with over 600 offices in North America and Asia. The legal fight will be coordinated from the Richmond offices of Troutman Sanders and led by their higher education team. This team has previously handled many cases involving Virginia colleges and universities.