<p>“The first university in my memory to render politicians on a board impotent. Those who see comedy look uneducated.”</p>
<p>Oh, please. This whole episode has been a clown dance from start to finish. To try to elevate it into some epic struggle against corporate influence in academia is truly laughable.</p>
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<p>Agreed. I’ve been watching this mess from a distance without commenting. While the BOV’s method of removing Sullivan was poorly thought out (at best) and disrespectful to the community overall, I don’t think it reflects malice on the part of Dragas et al. Buffoons like Siva Vaidhanathan have made this into some battle evil (comprised of the usual suspects: Goldman Sachs, hedge fund managers, billionaires, corporate executives, Darden MBAs, etc) and all that is right with the world (status quo).</p>
<p>Clearly UVa has challenges ahead. Was the Dragas side motivated by greed, evil, etc? Probably not. I think they cared deeply for the future of UVa and sought to act forcefully to realize certain goals. Clearly, their actions were poorly executed and created a fiasco. Fortunately, the fiasco itself is the worst to come from this. Sullivan has returned, backed by a newly galvanized and energized student body, faculty and alumni association. I doubt that the passion for UVa shared by major donors, Dragas, Kington, et al has dimished, either. This should be a unique opportunity for the University community to come together to resolve legitimate problems. I’m optimistic we will.</p>
<p>We’ve been lucky to avoid conflicts with our board, which seem more common in other states. I don’t think they are “impotent.” They were united in their decision and they were welcomed to the Lawn with cheers. </p>
<p>[I</a> wrote before that the feeling on Grounds has been extremely positive](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/14546854-post443.html]I”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/14546854-post443.html) over the last two weeks. Today, that feeling was overwhelming. I’ve never felt our community united in this way. We have a tremendous opportunity to move forward.</p>
<p>I don’t know if the live feed included the scene on the Lawn, but [it’s</a> worth a few minutes of your time](<a href=“http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTVIUSolPk8]it’s”>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTVIUSolPk8), if you’ve been following this.</p>
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Well said! Nice to see your username pop up! :)</p>
<p>I don’t know how the BOV and president are going to work together going forward. Unless the makeup sharply changes on 7/1, they seem to be at odds on the direction and pace of change.</p>
<p>I am with cavalier and Dean J. I was quite heartened by comments of all sides today. IMHO, the letter from the Deans last week set the path to resolution, i.e., we recognize the challenges facing our beloved university, we stand ready to work with the board to tackle those challenges, we believe we will be most effective in that hard work with Terry Sullivan at the helm. Certainly this resolution took someone as gracious as Terry to make it work, but I do think she heard the wake-up call from the initial board action, and hopefully the majority of the faculty and staff heard it as well. Intransigence to all change from the those groups will only hurt Terry.</p>
<p>northwesty – one little quibble with your comments about the Rector progression – Danny Abramson was not sacked for a failure to donate to McDonnell and the Republicans. The problem was he has been a major donor to Democrats over the years.</p>
<p>I thought the proceedings today were handled almost as well as the previous events were handled poorly. Having said that though…there are a lot of things that still bother me greatly, and one thing that I find inexcusable; that is Dragas lying to the Gov. and the rest of us Virginians by saying that the initial vote was unanimous. Clearly that was a lie.</p>
<p>4caster – Fralin stated at the BOV meeting that all of the visitors were consulted and were informed that Sullivan was going to be asked to resign. So HD had a basis for saying what she did to the Gov. Fralin admitted that he and others made a huge mistake by not requesting a live meeting. He speculated that while all the Visitors had agreed or acquiesced, there might not have been enough votes to fire Sullivan if they’d actually gathered and discussed it. </p>
<p>AVA – Allen reappointed three of Wilder’s BOVs. Warner reappointed 3 of Gilmore’s. So far, McDonnell is 0 for 2 Caine’s. And I don’t think anyone has ever canned a vice rector. So McDonnell has been more aggressive cleaning house than when the governorship previously switched parties, although all the Gov’s are guilty on this. Doing that really messes up the experience, continuity and succession planning of the board.</p>
<p>McDonnell’s record on this will obviously be influenced by what he does with HD in the next few days though.</p>
<p>Thanks to Dean J, a direct link to President Sullivan’s remarks. </p>
<p>[Notes</a> from Peabody: The UVA Application Process: A message from the President](<a href=“http://uvaapplication.blogspot.com/2012/06/message-from-president.html]Notes”>Notes from Peabody: The UVA Application Process: A message from the President)</p>
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<p>I know. To me, the facts make her statement a lie. To say that it was unanimous implies everyone agreed. Everyone did not agree. She can’t even claim she was talking about the vote, and not the action itself because there never was a vote. She may have been dealing in semantics but the fact is she either lied or misled people in her statements. Either one is inexcusable.</p>
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<p>[University</a> of Virginia student leaders stop short of saying ‘Reinstate Sullivan’ - Campus Overload - The Washington Post](<a href=“http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/campus-overload/post/university-of-virginia-student-leaders-stop-short-of-saying-reinstate-sullivan/2012/06/25/gJQAzSgH2V_blog.html]University”>http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/campus-overload/post/university-of-virginia-student-leaders-stop-short-of-saying-reinstate-sullivan/2012/06/25/gJQAzSgH2V_blog.html)</p>
<p>[Some</a> assembly required | The Cavalier Daily](<a href=“http://www.cavalierdaily.com/2012/06/25/some-assembly-required/]Some”>http://www.cavalierdaily.com/2012/06/25/some-assembly-required/)</p>
<p>Much of student leadership has failed its constituents during this crisis by being timid and cowardly. Maybe they do really only care about resume-padding for their careers and throwing large parties for secret society acceptance. In fact, the secret societies have said nothing at all. They would defer to authority in order to advance their careers rather than speak up for what is right. Shame, shame.</p>
<p>Sullivan read from Jefferson’s letter to Warren to make an amusing transition: “It is pleasant for those who have just escaped threatened shipwreck, to hail one another when landed in unexpected safety.” </p>
<p>–But she clearly expected the scholarly in her audience to read on and hear her making a serious charge: “The resistance which our republic has opposed to a course of operation, for which it was not destined, shows a strength of body which affords the most flattering presage of duration. I hope we shall now be permitted to steer her in her natural course, and to show by the smoothness of her motion the skill with Which she has been formed for it. I have seen with great grief yourself and so many other venerable patriots, retired and weeping in silence over the rapid subversion of those principles for the attachment of which you had sacrificed the ease and comforts of life; but I rejoice that you have lived to see us revindicate our rights, and regain manfully the ground from which fraud, not force, had for a moment driven us. The character which our fellow-citizens have displayed on this occasion, gives us everything to hope for the permanence of our government. Its extent has saved us. While some parts Were laboring under the paroxysm of delusion, others retained their senses, and time was thus given to the affected parts to recover their health.”</p>
<p>I wouldn’t call the struggle against the complete corporatization of the University (a course of operation for which it was not destined) an “epic” struggle exactly, but it is real, it matters, and is no joke. I’d count what happened at UVA as a small victory against the greater paroxysm of delusion afflicting our stewards of public education.</p>
<p>As one of the few on here that wanted to see Sullivan replaced, I remain skeptical about how this will end, but if the result of all of this is a unified UVA community and a willingness and an informed consensus on how to tackle the hard issues, then this mess will have had some constructive benefit. </p>
<p>The problems that the University faces are real and the leadership (or perceived lack thereof) that Sullivan provided pre-dismissal will need to change. Hopefully she realizes this and the faculty wont protest too loudly when/if she enacts some of the needed changes. Plus, because of the way that Dragas, Kington, Kiernan and others handled this, the task got even more difficult as some major donors like PT Jones went on record opposing her. I expect that theyll be back publicly, but Im less confident in how soon or how far they will go in re-opening their wallets to support the University. Given the schools financial challenges, this is not inconsequential. </p>
<p>Sullivan handled this all with impressive grace and that makes it much more possible for some of the divisions to heal. Still, the challenges wont disappear and time will tell if the capital she amassed in this episode will be used to make the difficult decisions that the school has ahead of it. </p>
<p>Re the question of whether UVA will be an attractive place to go to college, I dont think that many students spend a lot of time thinking about who the President is or who is on the BOV (especially the latter). Among the applicant pool, this kerfuffle will pass even though it has given us a black eye for the moment.</p>
<p>To JHS,
The faculty at the University of Texas are renown as very liberal and certainly Austin is a liberal outpost in a very conservative state. Its sort of like how Chapel Hill is viewed by the rest of North Carolina.<br>
I didnt bring up the Catholic part. I was merely responding to another poster. I could not care less that she is a Catholic. I do care that she is a liberal as I think that is out of step with the state and many of the students and alumni and reflects a governing approach unsuited for the schools challenges.</p>
<p>Thank you to Dean J for posting the YouTube link of Sullivan’s remarks following her reinstatement. I found her remarks dignified, gracious, and inclusive. I think this was the best outcome from a difficult situation.</p>
<p>"I do care that she is a liberal as I think that is out of step with the state and many of the students and alumni and reflects a governing approach unsuited for the school’s challenges.</p>
<p>Whaaat? out of step with the state??? The state has become purple in the last few years, don’t know if you noticed. And how can you qualify her stewardship of the university as a “liberal governing approach”? This is too funny for words.</p>
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<p>It was clear from the beginning when you labeled her a big, bad “liberal” that this characterization is the only thing that really bothers you about her. I’m sure you’re not alone.</p>
<p>The Commonwealth may have gone for Obama last time, but it’s unlikely to repeat that in 2012. NoVa is purple, but the rest of the state remains solidly red. If you live here and travel the state, then you know this. If you don’t live her, then look at the voting data and local indicators like the House of Delegates which is 67-32 in favor of the Republicans. And while the state Senate is 20-20, many of the Democrats are conservative in their voting records (some might call them Blue Dogs). Virginia is not Elizabeth Warren/Nancy Pelosi territory.</p>
<p>As for the University, it’s certainly more liberal than the state in its faculty and its students, but no where near as liberal as most colleges in the country. My guess is that its student body is one of the most politically balanced campuses out there. </p>
<p>Sullivan is the President so I will support her and hope that my misgivings are wrong. She certainly deserved better than the hatchet job Dragas, Kington, and Kiernan delivered. But based on what I’ve seen the last few years and what is needed now, I’m not at all convinced that she is the right choice. And you’re right that there are plenty of alums that are close to the school who have similar thoughts. We’ll see……</p>
<p>Plus, because of the way that Dragas, Kington, Kiernan and others handled this, the task got even more difficult as some major donors like PT Jones went on record opposing her. I expect that they’ll be back publicly, but I’m less confident in how soon or how far they will go in re-opening their wallets to support the University. Given the school’s financial challenges, this is not inconsequential."</p>
<p>"Down with the 1%! " (But please help fund our endowment.)</p>
<p>Does anyone notice – or care – that, after all of the calls for transparency, honesty, and disclosure, the reinstatement of President Sullivan more or less completely lacks all three? It was a beautiful and satisfying bit of staged public theater with a deliberately mediocre, obviously negotiated script. (Thanks to creaturely, though, I understand that Sullivan’s lines were a good deal more sly than I imagined.) In two weeks’ time, the Board went from unanimous support (or at least noninterference) for radical actions and what sounded like a radical (but never explained) agenda, to unanimous support for the status quo ante. And not a word of explanation, really, or discussion of how they plan to avoid doing something like that again.</p>
<p>This article is the most reasoned explanation I’ve seen for how this whole “recent unpleasantness” could happen at UVA and at other institutions. He doesn’t take a stand on the solutions or the politics or the future of higher education, just explores the ways boards can make flawed decisions and how to avoid future mistakes. </p>
<p>[Michael</a> Bastedo, Ph.D.: What’s the Lesson at UVA?](<a href=“HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News | HuffPost”>What's the Lesson at UVA? | HuffPost College)</p>
<p>[McDonnell</a>, Sullivan look to move foward as Dragas remains on Board | The Cavalier Daily](<a href=“http://www.cavalierdaily.com/2012/06/29/mcdonnell-sullivan-look-to-move-foward-as-dragas-remains-on-board/]McDonnell”>http://www.cavalierdaily.com/2012/06/29/mcdonnell-sullivan-look-to-move-foward-as-dragas-remains-on-board/)</p>