Editor’s Note: This letter was sent via email to the Board of Visitors Aug. 10 before it was published as a guest letter in The Cavalier Daily.
The University Chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) represents over 170 faculty members and advocates for academic freedom and shared governance across our institution. In this regard, we are deeply troubled by the recent attack on our University’s autonomy by the Department of Justice, the associated resignation of University President Jim Ryan and the Board of Visitors’ response to these actions and its stated plans for moving forward. The following issues, in particular, represent egregious violations of AAUP principles regarding academic freedom and/or shared governance to which we vehemently object on behalf of our faculty:
- The resolution terminating diversity, equity and inclusion programming without legal cause or consultation with faculty
- Failure in the Board’s fiduciary responsibility to protect the University from outside political influence by lawyers in the DOJ
- Lack of transparency regarding the events and the role of DOJ and Board members that led to the resignation of Ryan
- Lack of transparency regarding settlement negotiations with the DOJ that will likely have a profound influence on teaching, research and scholarship at the University
- Initiating without explanation a compliance review that has intimidated faculty via compulsory interviews with lawyers and gag orders
- The lack of substantive involvement of faculty from multiple disciplines in the decision making related to the selection of the new interim president
- Establishment of a search committee for the new permanent president that is dominated by current and former members of the Board and administrators. Only a small fraction of the committee, 21 percent, are members of the faculty, and none were selected by the faculty.
The Board’s actions and inactions as summarized above have generated a great deal of mistrust, widespread concern and indeed fear among our faculty. We urge the Board (1) to immediately lift the veil of secrecy surrounding these events by providing our faculty with a
forthright and transparent explanation of your behavior in these matters, and (2) to greatly increase the number of faculty on the search committee for our new president. Until such time as you have done so, we feel compelled to join the Faculty Senate, General Faculty Council, the Student Council and other University groups in formally expressing no confidence in the University’s Board of Visitors.
This letter is signed by the Executive Committee for the AAUP-UVA Chapter. They can be reached at opinion@cavalierdaily.com.
The opinions expressed in this guest letter are not necessarily those of The Cavalier Daily. The letter represents the views of the signatories alone.
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