Louisiana Appellate Court Rules In Favor of Tulane On Issue Of Closing Women’s College

A Louisiana Appeals Court has upheld a lower court’s dismissal of a lawsuit brought against Tulane University, which closed legendary Sophie Newcomb College after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The litigation was filed by the descendant of Newcomb’s founder, Josephine Newcomb, who donated money to establish the school in memory of her deceased daughter Sophie and desired that the school be kept open forever. The lower court held, however, that Mrs. Newcomb’s grants of money to the school did not in fact include such a condition.  The plaintiffs have not decided whether to appeal.

Newcomb College is famed for its courses of study, which during the early part of the twentieth century produced among other the young women artists who created the famed Newcomb Pottery. Some pieces sell in the thousands of dollars. Read more about Newcomb College, its work, and its legacy here.