Category: Education (higher ed)
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A Project 2025 Revolution at GMU?
by James A. Bacon Lefty professors are fearful that a new Board of Visitors, now comprised of a majority of Youngkin appointees, is about to unleash a right-wing revolution at George Mason University, Virginia’s largest public university. Six of the 12 Youngkin-appointed board members are, or have been, affiliated with the conservative Heritage Foundation think…
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DEI at UVA Astronomy: The Stars Are Not Aligned
by James A. Bacon Back in 2020, the University of Virginia Astronomy Department jumped on the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) bandwagon. Ashamed of its history of attracting so few Blacks and Hispanics, the Department formed a DEI committee to advance the goal of making the department more demographically diverse. The committee quickly resolved to…
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Keep Politics Out of University Investment Decisions
by James A. Bacon I didn’t see this one coming, but I’m delighted to hear of it: Secretary of Education Aimee Guidera and Secretary of Finance Stephen Cummings have written the presidents of Virginia’s public universities asking them to verify that their endowment investments are not influenced by political considerations. The state wants to ensure…
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A Diversity Director for Every Department
by James A. Bacon John McLaren is a full professor in the Economics Department of the University of Virginia. He has written dozens of papers and journal articles in his specialty fields of globalization and international trade, and has given keynote speeches in conferences around the world. He also serves as the departmental Director of…
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UVA Arts & Sciences to Conduct “Belonging” Survey
by James A. Bacon The College of Arts & Sciences at the University of Virginia is undertaking a campus climate survey to gauge the extent to which students, faculty and staff in the college’s many departments feel a sense of “belonging.” The priority at the moment is choosing among 16 themes to be explored in…
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Down the Memory Hole
by James A. Bacon “How do you squeeze the essence of Wahoowa into 90 seconds?” So asks an article in UVA Today. Here’s what UVA’s video producers came up with: What’s missing from the video? There are 50 scenes, including shots of the Rotunda and the Lawn, but no mention of their designer. Apparently,…
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A Playpen for Social-Justice Activists
by James A. Bacon Jim Ryan’s vision for the University of Virginia is to build an institution that is both “great and good,” an institution that strives for excellence while also advancing the common welfare. There are many paths to achieving the common good — entrepreneurship, economic development, effective government, strong families, vibrant civic life,…
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Somebody Call a Waaambulance!
by James A. Bacon Four students who participated in the pro-Gaza encampment protest May 4 are complaining that the University of Virginia is withholding their degrees pending the outcome of University Judiciary Committee hearings into their cases. Go ahead and berate me for my cold, cold heart but I feel zero sympathy for their plight.…
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Ryan’s Testimony All Over the Map
by James A. Bacon Testifying under oath several days ago in a Daily Progress lawsuit to pry open a report into the slaying of three UVA football players, University of Virginia President Jim Ryan elaborated upon his official explanation of why he decided to withhold the report until after the trial of the alleged shooter…
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Youngkin Appointees Now a Majority in Virginia University Boards
by James A. Bacon With the announcement of his third round of appointees to the governing boards of Virginia’s public universities, Governor Glenn Youngkin has ushered in a new era for higher education in Virginia. For the first time in his two-and-a-half years in office, he will enjoy board majorities to back his priorities of…
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Is Something Wrong at UVA Health?
by James A. Bacon An anonymous group of Charlottesville residents has organized to bring attention to issues troubling the $3.3 billion UVA Health division of the University of Virginia. Calling itself Parrhesia — Greek for speaking candidly and freely — the group of “concerned citizens of Charlottesville and patients of UVA Health” portrays the healthcare…
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Lawsuit Details How VMI Has Captured Its Alumni Association
by James A. Bacon Twenty-nine Virginia Military Institute (VMI) alumni have filed suit in federal court against the VMI Alumni Association, alleging that the organization is entwined so tightly with the VMI administration that it operates for the benefit of VMI and not its alumni members. The lawsuit recapitulates numerous controversies between dissident alumni and…
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The Cost of DEI? That’s the Easy Part.
by Dick Hall-Sizemore This whole argument over the cost of DEI at UVa. is a tempest in a teapot in budget terms. Even if one accepts the inflated figure of $20 million put forth by Open the Books, that is less than one percent of UVa.’s adopted budget of $2.40 billion for the academic division…
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Another Rubber-Stamped UVA Budget, But Some Useful Discussion This Time
by James A. Bacon The University of Virginia Board of Visitors unanimously approved a $5.9 billion budget for UVA in 2024-25. The $2.4 billion budget for the academic campus in Charlottesville represents a 6.8% spending increase over the current year. The budget also includes $3.3 billion for the UVA medical center and $76 million…
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Acampora Previews Religious-Diversity Recommendations
by James A. Bacon The University of Virginia’s task force on religious diversity and belonging won’t issue formal recommendations until the end of the month, but task force chair Christa Acampora gave the Board of Visitors a preview today of the topics it likely will address. At the top of the list will be integrating…