The Board of Visitors did the expected at its meeting this past weekend and raised tuition, in accordance with the Finance Committee's recommendations.
However, at least one of the Board members who considered the tuition hike wasn't supposed to be there.
Gov. Mark R. Warner still has not announced his appointments to the Board, which were due March 1. That means that three Board members who are up for reappointment, and one who must step down when the appointments are announced, stayed on as Board members through this weekend's meeting.
Timothy B. Robertson, Benjamin P. Warthen and Joseph E. Wolfe each have served one four-year term and are eligible for reappointment. Charles M. Caravati is completing his second term. Because Board members only are allowed to serve two terms he must leave the Board as soon as Warner appoints a replacement.
"It's a privilege and an unexpected pleasure to be here," said Caravati at the opening of the meeting Thursday.
Warner is rumored to be making the appointments this week, Secretary to the Board Alexander "Sandy" Gilliam Jr. said.
Governors customarily do not make appointments until after the March 1 deadline because it "comes during the General Assembly session, meaning that the governor's always got more important things on his mind," Gilliam said.
The governor almost always makes the appointments before the first Board meeting after the due date, he added.
But according to an article in The Daily Progress, as the date of the meeting and new member orientation began to draw near, the Board requested that Warner postpone the appointments until after the April meeting.
Warner's changes to the appointment process, moreover, probably slowed down the system, Gilliam said.
This year, Warner broke with tradition and appointed a committee to make recommendations on Board appointments.
The committee could be good news for the three Board members eligible for reappointment if it means appointments will be based less on political affiliation than in the past. Robertson, Warthen and Wolfe all contributed to Republican candidates for state office last year. Warner is a Democrat.
But Warner did not select members for the new committee until February, possibly delaying appointments.
This weekend, new faces or not, the Board approved tuition and fee increases for students. Tuition and required fees will increase for next year by 8.8 percent for in-state undergraduates, 8.5 percent for out-of-state undergraduates, an average of 10 percent for in-state graduate students, and an average of 2.4 percent for out-of-state graduate students. The graduate increases vary by school and by students' year.
The Board also raised dining rates by an average of 2 percent.
After finishing up its executive - or closed-door - session early and rescheduling committee meetings from Saturday to Friday, the Board adjourned ahead of time Saturday morning. That meant they left the Rotunda before the rally that students, workers and community members held in front of the Rotunda calling for the University to pay its employees a "living wage"
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