“UVA can once again be a beacon of excellence, the shining city on the hill, and a model for the nation. That is my mission. I have been steadfast in this fight, and I will remain so—regardless of the Governor’s decision.“

Governor Glenn Youngkin has fired Bert Ellis from the University of Virginia Board of Visitors, terminating the most outspoken member of the board supporting his goals of reining in tuition, promoting free speech and intellectual diversity, and eliminating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) from the University’s policies and practices.

Who leaked police-cam videos meant to embarrass Bert Ellis to The Washington Post? If we knew the answer to that, we could get a clearer view of the behind-the-scenes power play to shape the future of the University of Virginia.

Having bragged on national cable news that “DEI is done” at the University of Virginia, Governor Glenn Youngkin now is asking for the resignation of the man most determined to ensure that DEI is, in fact, laid to rest.

After more than a year of delays, the University of Virginia has finally released two reports ordered by the Attorney General — one detailing the University Police Department (UPD) response to the Nov. 13, 2022, mass shooting at UVA, and one reviewing the failure of the University’s Threat Assessment Team (TAT), despite abundant red flags, to prevent the tragedy.

What might a meritocratic admissions system at the University of Virginia look like now that the Board of Visitors has banned racial preferences across the board?

At the direction of Board of Visitors Secretary Susan Harris, a compilation of nearly 50 letters and email messages to the Board and President Jim Ryan was distributed to Board members Tuesday. The letters were almost uniformly critical of the Board’s decision earlier this month to abolish the office of Equity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement.

One might think that revamping a website would be an easy start to complying with the Board of Visitors’ order to dismantle the Division for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) at the University of Virginia. Retitle the home page. Put up an “Under Construction” logo. Post a statement indicating that changes are coming. Do something! But a full week after the Board’s unanimous vote, the website still stands, as if nothing had changed.

Decision-making at the University of Virginia is shrouded in secrecy — and leadership is just fine with that.

Last week the University of Virginia Board of Visitors met to discuss one of the most contentious public-policy issues roiling American politics today: the medical treatment of transgender youth. The meeting was closed to the public, and board members were enjoined not to reveal what was said.

The University of Virginia’s “Rising Scholars” program in the College of Arts and Sciences, which dispenses graduate fellowships exclusively to racial, ethnic, sexual and gender minority students, has ceased accepting applications, according to a posting on its website. The website provides no explanation, but…

Don’t question university overhead costs or thousands will die! That is essentially the message of Virginia’s big three research universities — Virginia Tech, the University of Virginia, and Virginia Commonwealth University — in response to a National Institutes of Health initiative capping reimbursable overhead costs to 15% of the research grants it dispenses. And I’m not exaggerating about the “thousands will die” part.

Now comes the battle to replace the University of VIrginia’s provost Ian Baucom. The University has assembled a fourteen-person group to launch a national search, according to an announcement in the UVA house organ UVA Today.