Episode Recording -- "Sewanee and Women"

Women Enrolling in College: 0:23-1:08-
In this section, Jessica discusses how women were integrated into college. She starts with
discussing how women were beginning to be seen in popular culture and the emergence
of the “New Woman”, and how that socially allowed women to do more. Along with this,
the government wanted to develop more colleges and gave certain universities land grants
to make this possible. To aid in the construction and further development of these
institutions, wealthy taxpayers donated considerable amounts with the understanding
their daughters would be admitted alongside their sons. Some of the first colleges to
admit women were Oberlin College and Baylor university, though other colleges
followed suit over time.
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Title XI: 1:08-2:26-
Following a discussion on how women were even allowed to attend college, Jessica
describes the creation of the Title XI amendment that made it where women could not
only attend college but also participate in sports. Many women, as they started to receive
a higher education, desired to participate in extracurricular activities like sports, both on
university official teams and on intramural teams. Although some had issues with this,
the supreme court eventually ruled that, when it comes to sports, universities that
received financial aid from the government could not discriminate on the basis of sex for
any athlete, and that men and women should be allowed equal participation. Lastly,
-
-
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Jessica finished by setting up for the fact that, although this law seemed pretty clear,
many were still vehemently opposed to women's participation in athletics, especially at
the Sewanee: The University of the South.
Sewanee's culture involving womens admission and participation in sports: 2:25-
5:11-
In this part, Jessica focuses on the University of the South, and its journey and reaction to
letting into the college and then some different perspectives on women's participation in
sports at the college. This starts with how Sewanee was a later university to admit
women, and includes an excerpt from Henry Lodges’ (a student at the time) passionate
letter to the editor of the Sewanee Purple describing how women would ruin the college,
they break the rules, and they only function at distractions, ultimately diminishing the
quality of education he and other men would and are receiving. Eventually, women were
admitted and even could participate in sports, but this came with some challenges. When
there was overcrowding in the gymnasium, womens activities were the first to go, and as
a student writer pointed out, womens sports were hardly written about. So even though
women could go to Sewanee, and, by Title XI law, could be in sports, it is clear that
women were not given an equal opportunity or treatment in the least.
This episodes guest, Sandra “Sandy” Sanderlin Baird: 5:11-6:40-
To add more context to women athletes experiences at Sewanee, Jessica talks about the
experience of one woman athlete from the 70’s admitted to the college. Sandra Sanderlin
Baird, or as she prefers to be called, Sandy, was a gymnast in the early 70’s here and was
in one of the first classes of women to be admitted. Sandy spoke about her daily life
experiences here as a student and how she was in the definite minority as a woman.
When it came to her experience of sports here, she talks about how underfunded the
program was, to the point the women couldn't have new equipment and had to have
someone hand sew their uniforms due to lack of funds for official ones. Even though
there were these bumps in the road, Sandy was very positive when it came to talking
about her time at Sewanee and on the team, concluding with the fact that she is still very
close with her teammates and that both her children and grandchildren have gone on to
attend the college as well.
Where are women now? 6:40-7:11-
Jessica concludes with some general information about the trajectory of women now at
Sewanee and nationally. Although Sewanee no longer boasts of a gymnastics team, it still
has many sports teams that both men and women participate in. When it comes to
Sewannes composition, women, only around 50 years after being admitted, outnumber
men. This follows the national average that women are attending and graduating college
at higher rates than men. Jessica finished by restating the fact that Title Xl, which made
women's participation in sports possible, is still highly controversial and being discussed,
but overall with the conclusion that women's participation in sports have been a great
thing as it builds and positively impacts campus communities.

0:00-0:23

Introduction/ Teaser Trailer:

Hello everyone I am Jessica Cheak, and welcome to Students Podcasting History, where I will

examine historical events both as they happen and provide a modern context. Today, we will be

talking about women's sports, and discussing that, Women's collegiate sports, as made possible

by Title XI, were helpful in creating community at Sewanee. One of the most debated issues

right now in our country is that of women's sports. Often thrown around with that is Title XI and

who it includes and prohibits, from participating in sports. But before the issues in our modern

times can be answered, it is important to look back and examine how we got to women in sports

considering 100 years ago we had just been granted the right to vote. Today we will explore how

women first began attending college and the creation of Title XI, then we will specifically look at

Sewanee, the University of the South, and explore the challenges women faced as they integrated

in, and some of the backlash they received as they joined sports teams. Lastly, we will look at the

accounts of one woman and see how sports positively impacted her college experience, ending

with a brief overview of the college landscape now for women.

0:00-0:23

Reintroduction:

Today we will be discussing the history of women's collegiate sports and how we got from

women even being allowed to attend college to their fight to participate and the positive

outcomes. This history is long, so we will be taking a birds eye view when it comes to the historyon a national level, but also getting to look at a specific example from the University of the

South when it first started to integrate. There is alot to cover, so let's get started!

0:23–2:26:

National Stage, Title XI, and Women's Rights

To begin to discuss women's sports at Sewanee, a large step needs to be taken back. To start,

where did the revolutionary idea of women attending college even originate? In the late 1800’s,

following the civil war, the idea of the “New Woman Developed”. This woman didn't just belong

at home, like in previous eras, she was educated, confident, athletic, and could participate in

activities like working, shopping, and studying. (Dr Molly Brookfield, “The New Woman,”

History 238: Women in U.S. History, 1870 to Present, (Class Lecture, Sewanee: The University

of the South, Sewanee, Tennessee, January 30, 2025) ) To parallel this idea, women started to

gain admission into colleges around the same time, some examples being Oberlin College and

Baylor. Federal land grants allowed new colleges to be built, with many wealthy taxpayers

suggesting that both their sons and daughters be allowed to enroll as an unspoken part of their

donation. (Dr Andrew Maginn, “Gender Rights Movement,” History 202: History of the United

States II, (Class Lecture, Sewanee: The University of the South, Sewanee, Tennessee, April 7,

2025) The next question then is what bridged the gap from women being allowed to enroll and

graduate in colleges, to fully being allowed to participate in extracurriculars like sports? While

some thought women should just be content to attend college quietly, many others felt as if

women should be able to fully participate in all these institutions had to offer, both in and out of

the classroom. In 1972, title xi was enacted into congress which allowed full and equal

participation in sports for women, officially saying, “No person in the United States shall, on the

basis of sex, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to

discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.” (

Ginsburg, Ruth Bader. “The Need for the Equal Rights Amendment.” American Bar Association

Journal, vol. 59, no. 9, 1973, pp. 1013–19. JSTOR,. https://www.jstor.org/stable/25726416

Accessed 8 Apr. 2025) From then on, any college that received government funding was

mandated to let women compete in sports, which, as straightforward sounding as it is, was not so

easily implemented. Issues were present as women faced waves of discrimination when it came

to their access and treatment within collegiate sports. A specific example would be Sewanee: the

University of the South, where women climbed an uphill battle just to be admitted into the

college, and where a modern audience has the pleasure of listening to these women's stories, both

actively as change was happening, and also now as some give first hand accounts.

2:26-5:11

Sewanee's Culture surrounding women and sports:

As a 1983 article in The Sewanee Purple recounts,” THE ENROLLMENT of women working

for a Sewanee Bachelors degree began in 1969 when 82 freshmen, 23 transfer sophomores and

juniors, and 3 students from the previous summer school began classes.” As the article goes on, “

Arguments used in opposition to coeducation turned out not to be true. Male athletic teams

continued to flourish, even with a smaller number of males in the student body. Women did not

marry and depart after a year or two any more than men did.” (E.N Chitty, “Women as Students,

a brief history”, The Sewanee Purple, February 9th, 1983) Some, however, did not take kindly to

the idea of women being allowed to join the college, with a 1970 “letter to the editor” saying,

“This University is suffering because of the girls. They present a devastating factor in our

community of friendship and learning. We and the administration must awaken to the fact that

girls are in serious trouble at the University of the South. Do not be caught off guard. Do not letthem arouse you; arouse yourself, Their presence at Sewanee threatens the accomplishments of

over a century of work by all the gentlemen of the University of the South.” (Henry Lodge,

“Letter to Concerned Sewanee Gentlemen”, The Sewanee Purple, 1970.) Besides the controversy

of women even attending Sewanee as a college, women also faced incredible discrimination

when it came to collegiate activity, often being an afterthought. When there were overcrowding

complaints for the gymnasium, women's intramural activities were considered expendable,

though some tried to keep them afloat. As Jay Fisher, a student at the time wrote, “Since the

beginning of the semester, many people have been using the facilities at the University

Gymnasium, and many have found the gym overcrowded or, in certain places, in poor condition.

Facilities such as the swimming pool and the indoor tennis courts have been found closed by

would be users…has found the gym a crowded place and a problem when trying to schedule the

girls intramural games, The Interdormitory Council has had to postpone their volleyball games

until March, and their tennis matches are being held in a very limited time causing many girls to

have to forfeit their matches.” (Jay Fisher, “Athletic Facilities Crowded”, The Sewanee Purple ,

February 25th, 1977) How women faced discrimination is the very fact that their sports and

activities were the first to go, and that many hardworking teams had to forfeit. It would not seem

men were expected to give up what was important to them in the same way at all. A beacon of

light though, was how few women let behavior like this slide. In two different articles, Purple

writer Cindy Irvin calls fellow writers out for not including womens sports as prominently and

promising readers she will do more to let womens sports news be published. (Cindy Irvin,

“Women's Athletics- A Call for organization”, The Sewanee Purple, September 17th, 1976 and

Cindy Irvin, “Womens Sports- A New Approach”, The Sewanee Purple, October 1st, 1976)

Besides what articles decided to print, it is worth looking at the individual athletes themselves

and how they felt about their experiences at Sewanee, which is where Sandra “Sandy”

Sanderlines Bairds story comes in.

5:11-7:07-

One Woman's Perspective:

Sandra Sanderlin Baird, or as she goes by, Sandy, was a student and graduate of Sewanee in the

70’s. Her story and memories are things you might still hear a current student talk about. Some

examples are her time in Johnson, before it had mold, and her other dorm Benedict, though she

jokes she spent many a weekend at the Delt fraternity house. Sandy also talks about her love of

stirling's coffee and how she found out about Sewanee through a college night at her highschool.

When it came to her feelings about going to college, she repeated the familiar line of “ I had no

clue what my major would be”. What is most striking is her experience with sports at Sewanee.

Sandy was a gymnast and speaks highly of her time on the team. There were only 6 students on

the team her freshman year, and their resources were limited to put it kindly. Ms Swazey, their

coach, had to drive from Chattanooga every day to them, and worked painstakingly to acquire

refurbished equipment to practice with. Furthermore, the team could not even afford uniforms.

But despite the challenges, Sandy remembers it fondly. Her teammates became her best friends,

and she makes it a point to still see many regularly 50 years later. When she was a student here,

she was able to advocate with her teammates against things that made them uncomfortable like

male trainers. Eventually, Sandy and her team even competed locally and therefore could engage

with women at other colleges. Sandra Sanderlines story is not unique, and as the years have

progressed, Sewanee has evolved to be a primarily female school with many women stillparticipating and being recruited for sports teams. (Sanderlin Baird, Sandy. Interview. By Gillian

Campbell. June 14th, 2022.) On a national level, the tables have seemed to flip as women are

graduating more and going to college more than men. (Nietzel, M. T., Women Continue To

Outpace Men In College Enrollment And Graduation. Forbes. 2024, August 7, 2024) Although

women's collegiate sports still manage to be a hot topic, it is undeniable that the community and

camaraderie brought about from them have positively impacted women as they integrate into and

receive higher education.

7:07- 7:34:

Outro:

Thank you so much for tuning into Students Podcasting History, where we just learned about

another interesting topic of American and Women's History. Today we covered women's journey

through getting to attend college, the development of Title XI, and then womens controversial

involvement in sports, specifically looking at Sewanee, the University of the South. Again, thank

yall for tuning in, this is Jessica Cheak, and remember to ask yourself, what's on your checklist

to learn?

7:53 - 7:26:

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