A Message to Students from PEC

The most important message that PEC has for students is the promise that we have not forgotten you, we will not forsake you, nor will we ever forget your valiant efforts in the first weeks of this campaign to change the trustees' vote. PEC commends students for their leadership and courage in standing up to an administration that threatens the core focus of R-MWC—women—and who broke the most important promise of all: to uphold the Honor Code. PEC promises that you'll soon regain faith in your school and in an Honor Code that will become one of the most important aspects of your lives. Living by the Honor Code is what makes R-MWC students and alumnae different from graduates of "brand X" colleges across the nation. Alumnae don't appreciate those who break this tradition.

Your strikes and protests were VERY important to kick-off this campaign to change the trustees' vote, but Ginger and the trustees have clearly demonstrated that they do not value your opinions or the opinions of alumnae and parents. That is why PEC has reluctantly found it necessary to use our "stick" and file multiple lawsuits against the school to show them that their decision was not only wrong, but also unlawful. While we will move forward with lawsuits, it is our hope that trustees will reverse their vote, take the carrot and let the armies of supporters behind PEC help the school prosper and maintain its reputation as a leading WOMEN'S college.

We applaud the students who demanded that trustees provide the information used to justify the coed vote. You were certainly on target with that demand and it showed your insight into the real problem. However, you surely know that Ginger's offer to "reveal" the data and research behind the coed vote was merely meant to pacify students. The student sessions with A&S and Chris Burnley were nothing more than a repeat of previous presentations and reviews of A&S reports. Realistically, students won't be able to learn the "real" answers to why trustees made their ill-advised decision. It will take PEC's very large "stick" to obtain this information.

PEC agrees with students that correcting the unreliable data trustees used is a high priority. This is why PEC formed a committee of researchers who worked night and day to provide the data which trustees should have used to make their vote a "no" vote. PEC's research document was sent to trustees the second week of October to help them understand how they were led astray. The document is titled "20 Reasons Why Trustees Should Change Their Vote: An Analysis of the Trustees' Arguments Used to Vote for Coeducation." We hope that all students will endorse PEC's document and demand that Ginger and the trustees take it seriously.

Parents are mobilizing in great numbers with PEC to not only convince trustees to change their vote, but also to help PEC create a new business plan that takes R-MWC into the future. If your parents aren't involved yet, please tell them to visit our website and the sections pertaining to parents. We really need parents to support PEC both with professional services and through generous donations to pay our legal bills.

It's important that students do three things to help PEC:

1. Continue to place notes or carrots in Ginger's office and on her front porch with a very polite message that asks her to "please take the carrot"—this will continually remind her that you still aren't happy with the Board's vote and you support PEC;
2. Give just a small donation to PEC to show that you financially support our cause. Presiding judges over our lawsuits will want to know how many supporters PEC has—we must demonstrate a large support base through both affirmations and pledges. So even if it’s just $10 a month, please pledge to PEC today; and
3. Rest up, study hard and wait for the next big push to help PEC on campus.