Approximately 41 percent of students have a favorable impression of University President Teresa Sullivan, while approximately 76 percent said the same for Dean of Students Allen Groves, according to a recent poll conducted by The Cavalier Daily with assistance from the Center for Survey Research.
In the poll, students were asked to rate their favorability impressions of each administrator. About 14 percent of students said they had an unfavorable impression of Sullivan, while about 5 percent said the same of Groves.
Approximately 30 percent and 13 percent of respondents said they didn’t know enough about Sullivan and Groves, respectively, to form opinions of them.
The Cavalier Daily also found nearly 60 percent of students reported not knowing enough about the Board of Visitors to report an opinion about the University’s governing body.
Groves said he thinks his favorability ratings turned out the way they did because of his attempts to make himself approachable to students.
“I believe this helps students feel comfortable approaching me with problems or concerns, and I try to be a good listener,” Groves said in an email statement. “Most important, I have a very experienced and caring team in ODOS and I benefit from the work they do in supporting our students.”
With regard to the students who did not have enough information to comment, Groves said ODOS has a wide reach, but many students may interact with the office without realizing they do.
“Perhaps they don’t realize that ODOS includes units such as Housing and Residence Life, Student Activities, Fraternity and Sorority Life, Multicultural Student Services and student spaces such as Newcomb Hall, Ern Commons and the soon-to-open 1515 Building on the Corner,” Groves said.
Similarly, Sullivan said although students might not recognize they are experiencing the results of the Office of the President’s work, they likely do in their daily lives. She also noted her personal efforts to engage with the student body.
“One of the most enjoyable aspects of the presidency is getting to know students,” Sullivan said in an email statement. “I do this through the COLA I teach, by eating with students at one of our dining halls, attending meetings with student groups, cheering on the Cavaliers at athletic events, and in other venues. I’m also active on Twitter, which helps me engage students in social media.”
Second-year College student Alexa Iadarola said her impression of Groves and Sullivan is neutral because although she appreciates their emails to the community, she has never interacted with either of them directly.
“Dean Groves and President Sullivan come across as making significant efforts to consistently remain in touch with the student body,” Iadarola said in an email statement. “I have generally agreed with the way they have responded to University events and the fact that they haven't been afraid to take stances or opinions with which some students likely will not agree but which are consistent with how they seek to represent the University.”
Third-year College student Clay Kulesza added that Sullivan’s emails make her seem more vocal.
“She’s usually commenting and making her voice heard,” Kulesza said.
Third-year College student Gordon Knapp said he didn’t think the favorability ratings necessarily reflected Sullivan’s actual work.
“Teresa Sullivan has been thrust into a very forefront media presence, she has to be the face of all the bad things associated with U.Va.,” Knapp said, noting her responses to the disappearance of then second-year College student Hannah Graham and Rolling Stone’s now-retracted article on sexual assault.
Kulesza also commented on the student body’s generally positive impression of Groves.
“I know Dean Groves is a likable guy because he’s always smiling at students when he walks around and getting lunches and dinners with them,” Kulesza said.
However, Knapp said Sullivan’s role at the University may not be as well-defined to students as Groves’s, leading to the discrepancy in their favorability ratings.
“Dean Groves is always a positive fun guy,” Knapp said. “I feel like they perform very different functions and because of that students interpret that differently.”
To learn more about The Cavalier Daily’s polling methodology, click here.
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