Earlier this month, Deep Springs College, a tiny outpost of the liberal arts in California’s rugged High Desert, rejected the application of every female who had applied for next year’s class — over 140 in all.
The move came after a California state judge granted an injunction sought by Deep Springs alumni who had sued because they oppose the school’s decision to admit women, Inside Higher Ed reports.
Recommended Stories
The isolated, ascetic and ultra-intense college is arguably the world’s most elite and most unique junior college. In the mornings, the 26 students — all men and all on full scholarships — attend small, discussion-heavy classes. In the afternoons, they work every aspect of the on-campus cattle ranch and alfalfa farm.
Students form committees to manage admissions, hire professors and generally run the place. Their SAT scores are typically in the 700 range for any given section. (A perfect section score on the SAT is 800.) Upon graduation, students typically transfer to big-name schools like Harvard and the University of Chicago.
A tycoon named L.L. Nunn established Deep Springs in 1917, and not once in the next nine decades has the school admitted a woman as a regular student. Since the 1970s, though, the trustees of the college repelled attempts by a long succession of student bodies to bring members of the fairer sex to work the ranch.
