Copyright Augusta Free Press
Abigail Spanberger told the UVA Board of Visitors on Wednesday to hit the pause button on its search for a new university president, maybe the least-surprising development in that story, which has been playing out for the past couple of years. “I urge you to refrain from rushing this search process and from selecting the finalists for the presidency or a president until the Board is at full complement and in statutory compliance, meaning that I have appointed and the General Assembly has confirmed new Board members. As it will be a priority of my administration to stabilize and normalize the leadership of our public colleges and universities, I will make appointments soon after my inauguration,” Spanberger, who was elected governor last week, and will assume office on Jan. 17, wrote in a letter addressed to the top two leaders on the UVA Board of Visitors, Rector Rachel Sheridan and Vice Rector Porter Wilkinson. The MAGA members of the Board of Visitors appointed by the outgoing governor, loyal MAGA Glenn Youngkin, had been scheming toward forcing Jim Ryan, appointed the UVA president in 2018, out of office, and finally got their way, with the help of Trumpers in the Justice Department. Sham investigations initiated earlier this year by the Trump DOJ were used as leverage to force Ryan to resign in June. ICYMI Jim Ryan explains decision to step down as UVA president: ‘Real and direct harm’ Faculty, staff groups at UVA pushing Board of Visitors on forced departure of Jim Ryan Jim Ryan gets the last laugh: Staying on as full professor at UVA UVA names veteran law professor Paul Mahoney new interim president UVA president search update | Faculty group wants a search committee do-over As it turns out, the plotters will wish they had been able to do the deed a few months earlier. The BOV-led search for a new president is still very much in its infancy, and with Spanberger weeks away from taking the oath of office, it’s clear that even if the Board were to find someone willing to give up whatever good job in academia they have now to be a very short-term lame duck, that person would almost certainly be replaced in short order once Spanberger follows through with her plan to “stabilize and normalize the leadership” at UVA and other public colleges and universities in Virginia. I would expect Spanberger, a UVA alum, to have a raft of executive orders, directives and appointments ready to go out within minutes of her saying “so help me, God” on Jan. 17. Text of Spanberger’s letter to the UVA Board of Visitors Dear Rector Sheridan and Vice Rector Wilkinson: As both a proud alumna and the Governor-elect of the Commonwealth of Virginia, I am deeply concerned by recent developments at the University of Virginia and how these challenges may impact the legitimacy of the current search for the University’s next president. Over the past six months, the actions of the Board of Visitors have severely undermined the public’s and the University community’s confidence in the Board’s ability to govern productively, transparently, and in the best interests of the University. This loss of confidence is reflected in the numerous votes of no confidence from both the faculty senate and the student council – constituencies essential to the University’s success and those directly affected by the critical decisions before the Board. In addition, as five Board appointees have failed to achieve confirmation by the General Assembly, the Board is not fully constituted and its composition is now in violation of statutory requirements in crucial respects, further calling into question the legitimacy of the Board and its actions. In the wake of the departure of President Jim Ryan as a result of federal overreach – unchallenged by the Board – the University now faces the serious task of selecting its tenth president. The next University president will not only lead the University of Virginia but will also serve as an example of leadership across the Commonwealth’s public institutions of higher education at a time of unprecedented challenges. The search for a university president is the most consequential action a university board can undertake, and in all cases, such a search must be conducted through a legitimate and transparent process. That requirement is especially critical for the University of Virginia at this moment, and that legitimate and transparent process must be led by a Board that is fully constituted and commands the trust of the University community and the confidence of the citizens of the Commonwealth. Accordingly, I urge you to refrain from rushing this search process and from selecting the finalists for the presidency or a president until the Board is at full complement and in statutory compliance, meaning that I have appointed and the General Assembly has confirmed new Board members. As it will be a priority of my administration to stabilize and normalize the leadership of our public colleges and universities, I will make appointments soon after my inauguration. The benefits of selecting a new president with a full, duly-constituted Board are clear and include: (1) providing credibility to the search process and the selection decision; (2) ensuring that the individual chosen to lead the University benefits from having been chosen in a credible and transparent process; and (3) removing any concern that the Board’s actions are illegitimate due to a lack of authority. Given our shared commitment to the success of the University, the aforementioned concerns, and my commitment to making Board appointments quickly upon my swearing in, I again urge the Board to refrain from making any selections of finalists or ultimately a president until the Board is fully constituted and statutorily compliant. Abigail Spanberger
