Washington and Lee's Coeducation Process
On July 14th, 1984, by a 17-7 vote, the Washington and Lee Board of Trustees announced its plan to go coed. At the end of the Trustee’s statement, it read that “the Trustees found unmistakable common agreement that Washington and Lee’s most precious asset are its reputation for excellence and its long and distinguished history of service to the Commonwealth and the nation” and then disputed that “the Trustees are united in pledging their full commitment to the successful implementation of the University’s new course” (see item above). Current University President at the time, John Wilson understood the tremendous undertaking of balancing alumni and current student discontent while also logistically preparing the university to start admitting women the following fall.
The Coeducation Steering Committee was formed, consisting of faculty, administrators, and students. The Admission Office also headed up a new outreach strategy to recruit women: sending out 500 letters to women who previously inquired about applying and purchased a list of 35,000 names of female high school graduates to be contacted.[1] The original plan was to admit 80 women and 320 men but in execution turned out to be 105 women in total out of a total class of 406. The freshman classes’ SAT score were 65 points than the previous year and comprised of 30 National Merit Scholars, 36 students who ranked 1st or 2nd in their class, 77 students who were student body or government presidents, and 18 National Honor Society Presidents.[2] By Washington and Lee deciding to go coed, it was taking part in a nationwide shift to new standards of equity and student responsibility which in turn marked an unprecedented path for student diversity and access to higher education.
In the fall of 1985, Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, underwent a historic transformation—welcoming women to its previously all-male campus. The debut of coeducation was captured in national headlines from Newsweek and Richmond Dispatch like "The Women Are Coming! Freshwomen: ‘89ers bring coed’s debut.", “W&L to enroll women beginning in 1985”, and additional photos from move in day in September 1985.
