In a Washington Post op-ed, Former Rector Helen E. Dragas accused the University of hiding a “slush fund” of $2.3 billion in order to bypass the Board of Visitors. According to Dragas, the University willingly chose not to disclose any type of information regarding the fund in order to approve a tuition increase. This distorted depiction of the fund and groundless attack on the University failed to highlight any real issue of illicit activity within the administration — however, Dragas’ arguments present an opportunity to point out the fund’s role in improving our education’s value.
The “pot of reserves” Dragas refers to is the University’s Strategic Investment Fund, which was authorized by the Board of Visitors last February. Despite being oversimplified by the former rector, it is in reality a fund that shows significant educational promise to Virginia students and families. With a payout of more than $100 million a year, the fund uses the money to invest “in initiatives with the highest promise to significantly improve the University and enhance quality and access for students.”
According to Dragas, the problem lies in the lack of information the Board of Visitors had on the fund prior to a vote on a tuition increase. Dragas argued that had the Board shared information with the public about the fund’s payout, it might have decided to use those resources to ease the cost burden on undergraduates instead of raising their tuition.
While tuition prices are an essential concern for medium- and low-income Virginians, it is unreasonable for Dragas to argue that reducing tuition pressure for Virginians should be the University’s and the Fund’s top priority. In UVA Today, William H. Goodwin Jr. argued the fund was designed to continue the University’s longstanding tradition of “producing citizen leaders” through strategic investments in projects that enhance quality and access for students. If the University’s goal is to provide the best public education in the nation, lowering tuition is not going to be its only priority.
Instead, in order to offer the best education to its students, the University should focus on other determinative factors best highlighted by the Cornerstone Plan, which interacts heavily with the fund. The plan will focus mainly on investment in technology infrastructure and financial incentives created to attract top researchers to Grounds. University spokesman Anthony de Bruyn told the Daily Progress that the fund will “allow the administration to pay for the Cornerstone Plan at minimal cost to students,” emphasizing the idea that higher education comes from strategic planning and investing — not from tuition decreases.
The University’s recent efforts to focus on providing for low-income Virginians — such as the recently approved financial program Affordable Excellence — show affordability is a priority. Yet, focusing all of the available funds towards increasing affordability will mean sacrificing an opportunity to increase the quality of education students will receive today and in the years to come.
Nowadays, an increase in tuition seems inevitable for colleges around the nation. While Dragas might argue the fund’s payout could be used to ease the pressure on undergraduates struggling to pay tuition, it ensures that their educational value is maximized while minimizing any necessary increase on their tuition.
Carlos Lopez is an Opinion columnist for The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at c.lopez@cavalierdaily.com.
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