I am an alumnus of the University and the father of two University alumnae. I care deeply about this place.
Recently, there have been several articles from The Cavalier Daily concerning former University President Jim Ryan’s resignation and the Faculty Senate’s public proclamations — criticizing Interim President Paul Mahoney’s conduct as well as demanding that Rector Rachel Sheridan and Vice Rector Porter Wilkinson resign. I differ with these criticisms. Contrary to the prevailing conclusions presented by The Cavalier Daily and Faculty Senate, I offer that moderate and conservative viewpoints were suppressed under Ryan. The Faculty Senate only seems tolerant of those who agree with their progressive perspective. That’s not intellectual diversity.
An independent study by the Heritage Foundation in 2021 showed the University had the second largest university DEI bureaucracy in America. By his own admission, Ryan chose not to respond to Justice Department either rationalizing the University’s extensive DEI personnel overhead or explaining how he would dismantle the bureaucracy to respond to the DOJ edict. That is not leadership.
Mahoney’s DOJ actions should be deemed a victory for the University, retaining hundreds of millions in federal grant dollars. This NPR article cites a quote from Mahoney that succinctly sums up his decision: “Fairly or unfairly, the DOJ believed that the University had not cooperated with it in the early stages of those investigations. That was the situation I inherited, and certainly not the one I would have wished for.”
This is in stark contrast to Ryan’s silence and refusal to address the University’s multi-million-dollar DEI operations, a “strategy” that could have ultimately led to a situation like Harvard University’s — embroiled in a massive lawsuit resisting the DOJ. Mahoney avoided similar protracted negotiations, potentially millions in legal defense expenses, and assured negative publicity by reaching a compromise agreement comparatively quickly with the DOJ.
Rector Sheridan and Vice Rector Wilkinson have also been criticized by the Faculty Senate who called for their resignation last month due to what they perceive as their lack of response to inquiries. The Faculty Senate can opine all they want. Choosing a new president is simply not part of their mandate. Per the Faculty Senate Constitution and Bylaws, the Faculty Senate may “advise” but not dictate to the Board of Visitors. They have no direct decision-making authority.
Where were critics in January 2022 when Ryan arbitrarily appointed Ian Baucom as the new provost to replace Liz Magill with no input from the broader University community? Was that okay, but a Youngkin-appointed Board that oversees the University and created a 28-person presidential selection committee must be vilified?
Where were the critics when Ryan refused to address the third-party legal review concerning Darnell Jones’ murder of three University football players for over a year and a half? After the trial concluded, the University released a redacted version which revealed nothing.
Ryan did not exhibit transparency in the incidents cited above. These critiques of Mahoney and the Board of Visitors are egregious double standards that I believe are motivated by political differences with Mahoney and the Board, not objective analyses of their actions or governance.
Thomas M. Neale is a Class of 1974 College alumnus and the father of two alumnae daughters. He can be reached at opinion@cavalierdaily.com.
The opinions expressed in this guest letter are not necessarily those of The Cavalier Daily. The guest letter represents the views of the columnist alone.
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