FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Students, Alumnae, and Donors File Suit Against Randolph-Macon Woman's College

Second suit against college claims school failed to properly consider its obligations under charitable trust law

November 2, 2006 -- Lynchburg, VA - A second lawsuit was filed today against Randolph-Macon Woman's College ("R-MWC") in an effort to reverse the governing body's vote on September 9, 2006, to transition to coeducation. Plaintiffs in the suit include seven students, an alumnae donor of scholarships and an art donor. The lawsuit claims that the Board of Trustees may not use assets of the college in a manner inconsistent with the purposes of the corporation at the time the assets were contributed.

For 115 years the purposes of R-MWC have been the same: to provide a liberal arts education to women in a single-sex atmosphere. All gifts and donations made to R-MWC since the initial endowment in 1891 in the form of realty and both tangible and intangible personal property have been in support of R-MWC's primary purpose of educating the individual woman. Thus the college's name is "woman's college" and not "women's college."

The Board of Trustees voted on September 9, 2006, to alter the Articles of Incorporation. The Board, however, has taken no action to request permission of a circuit court to change the purposes of the charitable trust governing how R-MWC may use assets donated to R-MWC under the former Articles of Incorporation. Under Virginia law, the assets of a charitable corporation are deemed to be held in trust for the public for such purposes as are established by the governing documents of the charitable corporation. 

Prior to using the assets of a charitable corporation in a manner inconsistent with the intentions of those who donated the assets, a charitable corporation must first prove that the existing purpose is unlawful, impracticable, impossible to achieve, or wasteful. Thus, the lawsuit filed today seeks to require R-MWC to continue using the assets donated prior to September 9, 2006, to operate a woman's college, because R-MWC's Board of Trustees has not established that it is unlawful, impossible, impractical, or wasteful to continue to operate R-MWC as a woman's college. In fact, Sweet Briar College, Hollins College, and Mary Baldwin College all have found ways to continue operating women's colleges successfully in Virginia, and R-MWC has a larger endowment per student than any of those institutions.

The lawsuit is being assisted by Preserve Educational Choice, Inc. ("PEC") a non-profit corporation that was established to preserve Randolph-Macon Woman's College as a single-sex college. PEC continues to request an audience with the college's trustees to present a new business plan and a team of pro bono and low-cost professionals that will quickly make the college more viable. PEC began its "Carrot or Stick" campaign on www.PreserveEducationalChoice.org in September to offer trustees incentives for reversing their vote.

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Preserve Educational Choice, Inc. was founded September 1, 2006 as a not-for-profit corporation to pursue all reasonable avenues to preserve the 115-year tradition of Randolph-Macon Woman's College. PEC's board, committee chairwomen, volunteers and supporters consist of R-MWC alumnae, students, parents and ex-trustees. PEC is using this support to assist with litigation on behalf of multiple plaintiffs against R-MWC and create plans to help R-MWC thrive as a woman's college. For more information about Preserve Educational Choice, Inc., see their website at www.PreserveEducationalChoice.org.

DurretteBradshaw PLC concentrates on four core practice areas, including commercial and complex litigation. The firm has four offices in Virginia and is headquartered in Richmond. See www.DurretteBradshaw.com, or contact Marketing Director Amy Smith-Pike, at asmith-pike@durrettebradshaw.com, (804) 916-6596.

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