Virginia Gov. Mark R. Warner announced his most recent appointments to the University Board of Visitors yesterday. Appointees were selected after being reviewed by Warner's Advisory Commission on Higher Education Board Appointments.
Three of the appointees will be serving their first term on the University's Board. Warner also announced the reappointment of University Rector Gordon F. Rainey.
All four of the appointees are graduates of the University, according to Warner Deputy Press Secretary Kevin Hall.
G.S. "Sandy" Fitz-Hugh, Jr. currently is the President of Bank of America-Virginia and resides in Richmond. Fitz-Hugh previously served on the Board of Directors of the Virginia Athletics Foundation, according to a press release from the Office of the Governor.
Another new appointee, W. Heywood Fralin of Roanoke is CEO of Medical Facilities of America, Inc., and is the former president of the Board of Trustees of the Virginia Student Aid Foundation.
Glynn D. Key, a partner in the Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering law firm in Washington D.C., was an Echols Scholar, Jefferson Scholar and Honor Committee chair while a student at the University, the press release said.
Key also served as the student member on the Board while she was a law student at the University, said Board Secretary Alexander "Sandy" Gilliam.
"These are great appointments -- diverse, remarkably wise, intelligent and experienced, and well prepared to follow after the extraordinarily strong group whose seats they are assuming," University President John T. Casteen, III said.
Key is the third African-American that Warner has appointed to the Board during his term. It is the first time that three African-Americans will serve on the Board simultaneously.
Warner also is the first governor since 1943 to appoint three or more women to the Board, Hall said.
"This commitment to diversity is a hallmark of [Warner's] appointments," he added.
Thomas J. Bliley, Jr., Charles L. Glazer and William H. Goodwin, Jr. are the three outgoing members of the Board.
There are 16 members of the Board plus one non-voting student member, who is appointed by the Board.
"Governor Warner has changed the face of the Board of Visitors," University spokesperson Carol Wood said. "It now reflects the diversity of our state."
In February 2002, Warner established an advisory commission on higher education. The commission would be responsible for reviewing potential Board candidates for institutions across the state.
Hall said Warner created the commission because he was concerned that appointments were becoming overly politicized and he wanted to ensure that candidates were chosen based on merit, community involvement and a deep commitment to the institution they would serve.
The new appointees' terms officially began Monday and their first meeting as Board members will take place in April. Each member serves a four-year term and can serve up to two consecutive terms; the student member serves a one year term.
"All three have been thoughtful supporters of the University and I have every expectation that they will continue," Gilliam said.
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