Judge approves mediated plan to pull back private Sweet Briar College from brink of closure

BEDFORD, Va. – A judge has approved a mediated plan to keep Sweet Briar College afloat.

Michael Kelly, a spokesman for Attorney General Mark Herring, says Bedford County Circuit Judge James Updike signed the papers Monday morning.

Herring announced the agreement to keep the 114-year-old women's college open late Saturday. The agreement calls for an infusion of donated money raised by determined alumnae, a change of leadership and the use of endowed funds to launch the 2015-16 academic year.

School leaders announced in May that the college would be shuttered in late August amid insurmountable financial challenges.

The announcement was met with skepticism by alumnae, who launched an aggressive campaign to keep Sweet Briar open.

Herring credited all parties involved in the mediation and reserved special praise for passionate alumnae.