Deep Springs College

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College News

This page is dedicated to occasional news from the campus and Deep Springs Valley

How Will the 2017 Tax Legislation Impact Deep Springs?

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For those of you wondering how the recently passed tax law will be felt at Deep Springs, the answer is…we don’t really know yet, but it is the impact on charitable donations that remains unknown.

Charitable Donations: Philanthropic professionals agree that the new law will reduce charitable giving by increasing the number of people who do not itemize donations, and therefore lose access to the tax advantages of their donations. But there is disagreement about the net effect of the reduction—I have seen a range of predictions, from 15% to 40%. Only time will tell.

Endowment Tax: The original bill imposed a 1.4% excise tax on the investment income of private colleges with investments of over $500,000 per student, but exempted colleges with “less than 500 tuition-paying students.” With this language Deep Springs would have been doubly protected from the tax; we have fewer than 500 students, and none of our students are tuition-paying. The final version, however, removed the term “tuition-paying,” but left intact the exemption for colleges like ours with less than 500 students. Since there are few colleges with fewer than 500 students and investments of the requisite size, (ours are nearly $800,000 per student at the present time), and the writers of the legislation did not compose the exemption with Deep Springs in mind, we have taken steps to alert our congressman in case further changes are considered.

Unrelated Business Income: The changes in the new law to the way colleges are taxed for unrelated business income do not apply to Deep Springs, because our agricultural operations are educational enterprises, not businesses.

Taxes on Interest Paid by Certain Bonds: Deep Springs does not use bond financing, so this provision does not impact the college.

Coincidence? We don’t know how those who drafted the tax bill felt about their time in higher education. But we note on reading the bill that immediately following the section increasing taxes on colleges (Part VIII) comes a section reducing taxes on beer (Part IX). Here again, because of our ground rules, Deep Springs is not impacted by this change in the law.

Further Information: We will share more information with the Deep Springs community as it becomes available to us.

Best wishes for the holiday season,

David Neidorf

Deep Springs Now Accepting Applications from Women

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The board of Deep Springs College voted August 31, 2017 to open applications to women for the 2018 entering class. The board adopted the recommendation of the college’s Coeducation Transition Committee, which read: “Having reviewed the preparation needs for admitting women in the summer of 2018, the planning structure, agenda, and the institutional resources in place to address them, the transition committee recommends to the Board of Deep Springs College that the college welcome applications from all promising young people for the incoming class of 2018.”

Deep Springs has operated for a century with an all-male student body; this vote culminates a process begun by the Board’s 2011 resolution that having “carefully considered the purpose of Deep Springs, how best to achieve the purpose, and changes in society since the college was created, the trustees determine that it is appropriate to plan and implement a transition to a coeducational student body.”

Press inquiries about coeducation: pressinquiries@deepsprings.edu

Deep Springs Board Passes Resolution Welcoming Legal Clearance for Coeducation

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Be it resolved that the Trustees of Deep Springs College acknowledge, appreciate, and applaud the June 28th California Supreme court decision not to change the California 4th District Court of Appeal’s affirmation of the Trial Court order to amend the L. L. Nunn Trust to serve all promising young people, not men only. By refusing to entertain further appeal, the Supreme Court has confirmed and empowered the 2011 Trustees’ decision to admit women to Deep Springs College.

The Trustees of Deep Springs are confident that Deep Springs College can and should implement a smooth transition to coeducation as soon as practicable. Further, the Trustees of Deep Springs College commit to work enthusiastically and in unison to support coeducation at Deep Springs College. As a body, the Trustees ask the alumni and friends of Deep Springs to join the college in supporting this endeavor.

The Trustees are also very grateful to all of those who have devoted their time, energy, and resources to achieve this result. The steadiness of this support has been an inspiration. The Trustees also thank the legal team and college counsel for their extensive labor in behalf of the Trustees’ decision, including lawyers and staff from Baker Manock & Jensen, Arnold and Porter Kaye Scholer, and Kilpatrick, Townsend & Stockton.

(Passed unanimously on August 14, 2017)

Update from Dave Hitz, Chair, Trustees of Deep Springs

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Coeducation: Is it Possible in 2018?

The Trustees are pleased that the California Supreme Court decided not to review our case. This clears the way for coeducation at Deep Springs. The trust can now be modified to read, “for the education of promising young people.”

The litigation was long and sometimes frustrating. Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised that a debate spanning five decades should take a handful of years in court. I am proud of the Deep Springs community. The tone during our listening sessions, back in 2011, was calmer, more reflective, and more collaborative than the stories I heard from the seventies and nineties. The mood at the Centennial Reunion was upbeat and happy. Whatever their original feelings on the topic, I think most people are glad to have this controversy behind us. I got a warm hug from Ed Keonjian at the reunion. It’s time for all of us to come together.

Thank you to everyone who participated in listening sessions, gave advice, or supported the process in any way. Thanks also to the legal team that so ably represented us, including lawyers and staff from Baker Manock & Jensen, Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, and Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton.

At the Centennial, many people asked if we could go coed in 2018, a year from now. “Are there facilities changes we need to make? Is it even possible?” To be honest, we don’t know. There has been an injunction against any coed planning for almost five years now. We need to dust off the plans and pick up where we left off. But when the injunction hit, we were only five and a half months from admitting women. We had received many excellent applications. We are eleven months away from July 2018, when the class of 2018 will arrive, so we have twice as much time left now as we did last time. This doesn’t prove that it’s possible, but it’s a hint that it might be. If we can prudently and professionally transition in 2018, then we would certainly like to!

Now it is time to restart our planning efforts. We will keep the community posted on our progress.

As Deep Springs enters its second century, we are well positioned to promote the Nunnian ideals of service and leadership in education. What an exciting time!

Dave Hitz

Chairman, Trustees of Deep Springs

Evanne Jardine, Friend – Bishop, California

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We were saddened to learn of the death last week of long-time college friend Evanne Jardine of Bishop, California. Evanne and her husband John have been enthusiastic friends to the college ever since they moved to the Eastern Sierra two decades ago, and we have enjoyed their company at campus events and public speaking over many years. Their devoted support of our educational goals has made a very positive impact on the life of the college. John has shared the announcement of Evanne’s passing, below. We extend our deepest sympathies to John and all of their family.

Evanne Hays Jardine, 3/12/40 – 12/10/2016

On December 10, Evanne Jardine, beloved wife, mother and grandmother, ended her two years long fight with pancreatic cancer at her home in Bishop. She will always be our champ, now at rest and content with her life and achievements, centered in her indomitable spirit and held in the steadfast love and joyful memories of family, friends and colleagues.

From 1966-95, Evanne taught English composition and literature at Santa Barbara City College, with an emphasis on American literature. After retiring with her husband John Cunningham to Mammoth Lakes, she continued writing poetry and fiction as she always had, participating in two writing groups. She returned to her earlier practice of art, joining plein air classes and groups, her work frequently exhibited in Bishop and Mammoth. Her book of recent poems and watercolors, chiefly of the Sierra, Learning to Weave, was published in October, 2016 and is available through Bishop Art Supply and Spellbinder Books in Bishop. It is also available at http://stores.bishopartsupply.com/

Evanne, an avid hiker and skier, also taught courses in the history of the Eastern Sierra. With grace and humor, she demonstrated strength of character, a lifelong love of learning, appreciation of beauty, and spirit of adventure. She and John traveled the world and, with their dog Sophie, camped all over the West and Mexico.

Evanne is survived by her ever-loving husband John, her son Sean, stepchildren Barbara and Michael, and grandchildren Eamonn, Kyle, Brian, Henry and Clara, as well as her sister Debbie and her brother John Edward, known as Jed.

We let go, but we never lose sight . . . . ”All Light is Beautiful.”

Memorial service to be announced later.