by Nisha Tarver
Alison Davis–a senior and assistant coach of field hockey–twirled her freshly blue hair between her fingers as she spoke: “Why did I come to a school that almost closed down literally a semester before I came, you ask?” On March 3, 2015, Sweet Briar College’s board of directors announced that they would close due to financial challenges caused by decreasing enrollment figures. For the alumnae, closing the school meant losing their second homes, and they prepared to fight! They started the “Save Sweet Briar” campaign and raised $28.5 million in only 110 days. Multiple alumnae filed lawsuits and ultimately won when the case was settled. They ensured that the Sweet Briar legacy to educate young women stayed alive. Sweet Briar College wasn’t always known as the school that almost closed. In 1900, Indiana Fletcher Williams founded Sweet Briar College in her will in memory of her daughter, Daisy Williams, who died at only sixteen years old. The women’s liberal college opened its doors in 1906 and the field hockey team was established in 1909. The field hockey team has been with Sweet Briar ever since the beginning and through their fight.
During the 2015-16 academic year, the Sweet Briar field hockey team persisted through nine games in total, finishing the season with 9 losses. The team consisted of fourteen field players and two goalies. During the year of the closure attempt, the student population was at an astounding 700 women, including part-time students. The following year, the vixens were made up of thirteen field players and two goalies. Again the season ended with 9 losses and zero wins. Sweet Briar’s student population dwindled to 365 women, including part-time students. The first-year class of 2017 consisted of 91 young women. Surprisingly, even when Sweet Briar’s student population was at an all-time low the field hockey team’s roster remained full. Hannah Lott, Sweet Briar College’s head coach, would not have her roster looking any other way. Lott’s career started with her being on the field herself, she played for the Presidents of Washington & Jefferson College for four years. After college, she went on to become an assistant coach at Smith College and Western New England University. Hannah promoted to head coach at Western New England University in spring 2014. She started her journey shortly after at Sweet Briar College in fall 2014. Some students accredit her for the reason they have decided to come to Sweet Briar College. “It [the recruitment process] was mostly coach emailing me. We talked a couple of times and then I committed. Field hockey was the main reason for me coming to Sweet Briar.” stated Emily Myers, first-year field hockey player. Similarly to Lott, other coaches of Sweet Briar College used recruitment as a technique to try to help restore the student population.
Coach Lott makes recruiting an entirely different job from coaching, both require a sufficient amount of time. “The recruitment process is an 18 to 24-month process that usually starts in the sophomore or junior year of high school,” she says. Hannah looks for prospective students at field hockey tournaments and by going to high school field hockey games. When looking for her new players, she looks for talent but also personality. Lott explains “You want to get to know the person and what their dreams are and what they care about.” She emails, texts, and calls the students to really understand what they want out of college. Hannah makes sure the prospective students know that they definitely would be joining a family environment if they decide to come to Sweet Briar. She lets the school sell itself with the beautiful campus when she invites the high school students to visit the school. During this time, the perspective would spend time with the team and they’ll be able to alert her of any red flags. It’s important that the perspective gets along with the team or that could affect whether the perspective will be a part of the team. It’s important to Hannah to make sure her student-athletes are a good fit for the team as well as the school. Alexis Jones, a sophomore field hockey player, remembers her uncertainty with Sweet Briar at first glance, “[Hannah Lott] told me basically I should check out Sweet Briar and visit. I did and I liked it. At first, I wasn’t really feeling it and then I came out and I met some of the faculty and they really encouraged me to give it a try.”. Once the team approves of a person, coach Lott starts pushing for the perspective to become a part of the Sweet Briar family. She puts them on a timeline to get their application in, and commit on paper.
The recruitment process has allowed Hannah Lott–along with the other coaches of Sweet Briar– to successfully increase the student population at Sweet Briar College. Class of 2022 consists of 129 enrolling students, including transfer students. There was a 42% increase in student enrollment between the 2016-17 and 2018-19 academic year. Of the first-year class, 32.7% are student-athletes that belong to one or more NCAA Division III sports team or NCEA riding team. The stats have also improved for individual sports, like field hockey. For the 2018-19 academic year, there are sixteen field players and two goalies. There has already been 9 games in the season and three more until the end of the season. The vixens have lost six games and won three games. The recruitment process has been effective in aiding in the growth of Sweet Briar College, after many unfortunate events. Sweet Briar College is a family and nothing breaks up a family. Best told by Alison Davis on why she decided to go to a school that almost closed, “Sweet Briar is a strong community of alums and a supportive family no matter what you do.”
Work Cited
Biemiller , Lawrence. “After All but Closing, Sweet Briar Will Shift Curriculum and Pricing.” Chronicle.com, The Chronicle of Higher Education, 6 Sept. 2017, www.chronicle.com/article/After-All-but-Closing-Sweet/241100.
Davis, Alison. Personal interview. 16 Oct 2018.
“How Does Sweet Briar College Rank Among America’s Best Colleges?” U.S. News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, www.usnews.com/best-colleges/sweet-briar-college-3742.
Jones, Alexis. Personal Interview. 16 Oct 2018.
Lott, Hannah. Personal Interview. 16 Oct 2018.
Myers, Emily. Personal interview. 16 Oct 2018.
Seltzer, Rick. “Sweet Briar Reports 95 New Students.” Inside Higher Ed, Inside Higher Ed, 29 Aug. 2017, www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2017/08/29/sweet-briar-reports-95-new-students.
“Sweet Briar Achieves 42 Percent Increase in New Student Enrollment for Fall.” Sbc.edu, Sweet Briar College, 10 July 2018, sbc.edu/news/sweet-briar-achieves-42-percent-increase-in-new-student-enrollment-for-fall/.
“Sweet Briar College.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, www.forbes.com/colleges/sweet-briar-college/.
Svrluga, Susan. “Alumnae Vowed to Save Sweet Briar from Closing Last Year. And They Did.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 3 Mar. 2016, www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2016/03/03/alumnae-vowed-to-save-sweet-briar-from-closing-last-year-and-they-did/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.e56c6bebfcda.