Sweet Briar Currency

            In the not too far future, Sweet Briar College will no longer buy and barter with common “money”.  All means of exchange will be through an electronic device, called a Sweet Briar Tracker (SBT), no larger than a cell phone. Meals at Prothro, not dollars, will be used to purchase good and services. At the beginning of each semester all students will be given 250 meals, kind of like an allowance. These meals can be used to pay for books, music lessons, tutoring sessions, or entrance to sporting and theatrical events.  At the top of the device is a place to wirelessly connect two SBTs to give and receive payment. Each student is given an SBT at orientation her first year and it is hers until she graduates. The SBT has a simple design. At the top of the green device is the pink wireless connecter. This just needs to be directly pointed at another device and the “connect” button to be pushed to exchange.

            While students are given 250 full meals, the meals may be broken up into smaller increments to pay for lesser-valued items. Each “meal” contains a drink, side item, entrée, and dessert. The items start with a drink as the lowest value and continue up in value respectively to the meal being the highest denomination. Desserts are more highly valued than snacks because of their appeal. An ice cream cone is more desirable than an apple. While it may not be the healthiest option, students are more likely to want the dessert foods than a side. Three drinks are equivalent to a snack. Two snacks equal a dessert, and two desserts are a meal.    A drink may be used to pay for a pack of pencils at the bookstore, while two desserts would be payment for a SBC t-shirt. Depending on the length of time, voice lessons could cost between five and ten meals. Just like our current money, different combinations of items may be used. A soccer game ticket may cost a side item plus a drink. Also, just like money today, all campus jobs will give paychecks in the form of more meals. Minimum wage will be four meals and a snack per hour.

The SBT can also be used as a form of credit. Eating is important to health, so if a student does not have any more meals, or combination of items, left may “borrow” food. Their meal would be a basic peanut butter, or soy butter for those with peanut allergies, sandwich and a bottle of water. This credit would be recorded on their SBT with an interest rate of one meal plus one snack for each week the credit is left unpaid. The amount is automatically deducted from the balance when sufficient funds are loaded back onto the device. All accounts are controlled and monitored by the business office.

If students can learn to balance their meals, in the same way that one balances a checkbook today, she will not have to worry about accumulating debt or running out of the ability to eat.  Just a few hours of a campus job a week would be useful to big spenders to ensure proper eating habits. The elites would be the merchants who could provide services and goods to a majority of the population. Tutors would be a part of this elite, especially the time before exams.  Also, day students that only would eat lunch during the day on campus would have a surplus in extra meals to use for other goods.

 The lowest class would more than likely become the in-season athletes. Because of intense practice schedules little time is left over, after classes and studying, to work a campus job. Athletes are also the ones who need the most nutrition since so much is lost during practice and games. This will force the athletes to barter for more meals.  This may include giving individual sport lessons or providing others with discount sporting event tickets. All students will need to become creative with how they spend their meals and how they acquire more for extra spending “money.”