Pomona College, the elite private liberal arts school in Claremont, California, released its admissions decisions for the Early Action round on December 6th. In all, 120 students — or students Pomona’s admissions office deems “the early birds” earned admission to Pomona College through the school’s binding Early Decision program. And every one of Ivy Coach’s students who applied to Pomona’s Class of 2024 this Early Decision cycle earned admission and will be Sagehens. And what exactly is a Sagehen? Since Pomona hasn’t yet released Early Decision admissions statistics beyond announcing that 120 students earned admission during ED1, we figured we’d satiate your curiosity with information about Sagehens. Naturally.

As Pomona College explains, “What is a Sagehen, and how did it become our mascot? The first question is far easier to answer than the second one. The Sage Grouse, and more specifically, the Greater Sage Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) is a large ground-dwelling bird that can reach up to 30 inches in length and two feet in height. It is distinguished by its long pointed tail. The Greater Sage Grouse is an omnivore and eats mainly insects and sagebrush, hence its name. It is unique for its fierce loyalty to a specific area, and thus its livelihood can be completely reliant on the existence of sagebrush.” But of course! Who doesn’t know what a Sagehen is?

In any case, congratulations to the 120 future Sagehens. Pomona’s admissions office happened to post a fun video of a student learning of her admission to the Claremont, California-based institution. Check it out. You’ll smile! Congratulations to all students who earned admission to Pomona’s Class of 2024. Way to go!