The Board of Visitors appointed attorney George Keith Martin as its new vice rector Thursday evening following the June resignation of former Vice Rector Mark Kington.
The Charlottesville Human Rights Task Force held its second open forum Thursday night to hear community members’ ideas about the possible creation of a more permanent commission to study discrimination within the City. City Council launched the task force in February in response to a request from the Dialogue on Race, a local group that advocates discussions on racism and diversity. The committee, if created, would investigate instances of bias or injustice in Charlottesville. About 60 community members attended the event, hosted in First Baptist Church.
The understated elegance of the room the Board of Visitors met in Thursday disguised the tensions underlying many of its discussions. Two days after the University found it had escaped the June ouster of President Teresa A.
Students, faculty and Charlottesville residents met Thursday afternoon to hear Jeffrey Walker, the former CEO of JPMorgan Chase and current chairman of the University’s Council of Foundations, discuss collaborative leadership and reflect on the leadership lessons learned from the June ouster and reinstatement of University President Teresa Sullivan. Batten School Dean Harry Harding moderated the panel, which took place in Garrett Hall.
The storm may have dissipated, but a few clouds still linger from University President Teresa Sullivan’s botched ouster as the Board of Visitors convenes on Grounds Thursday for the first time since June. A disconnect remains between the University’s attempts to move forward from the events of the summer and its desire to learn from them.
Community representatives invested in the events that occurred during the summer around University President Teresa Sullivan’s forced resignation sat in front of an eager audience Wednesday afternoon.
In a Board of Visitors committee meeting Wednesday afternoon, University Architect David Neuman presented strategies to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent from the University’s 2009 levels.
The Board of Visitors may find itself with a voting student member, if some members of Student Council have their way. But the proposal’s supporters face significant obstacles, not least of which is the legal requirement in Virginia that Board members be approved by the State Senate, House of Delegates and governor. Fourth-year Engineering student Alex Reber, chair of Council’s representative body, is leading an effort to add a student position with voting power to the Board, which is the University’s governing body.
The University maintained its position as the second best public university in the nation in the U.S.
Rector Helen Dragas’ history with firing presidents runs deeper than her botched ouster of President Teresa Sullivan this June. While serving on the Old Dominion Board of Visitors in 1988, her father George Dragas helped force the resignation of President Joseph Marchello citing poor communication with the Board and a general unease with the executive’s management style, according to news reports at the time. Marchello, an accomplished fundraiser, drew praise for his ideas but did not have a positive relationship with the state’s legislators.
The Honor Committee hosted a panel of roundtable speakers in Old Cabell Hall Tuesday to discuss the current state of the University and the honor system.
Student Council introduced its 2012-2013 budget Tuesday evening, appropriating about $90,000 for initiatives this year.
A study released Tuesday by the University’s Law School Clinic showed that more than 7,000 students in Virginia were exempted from attending primary or secondary school on religious grounds last year. Virginia law requires a school board to excuse students who hold a religious belief that conflicts with the principle of classroom education.
Three Olympic athletes had a message for University students assembled Tuesday evening at John Paul Jones arena: Don’t be afraid of failure. Gymnast Jonathan Horton knows what defeat feels like.
As the 2012 presidential election approaches, pundits are speculating about whether young voters will turn out in large numbers, as they did four years ago.
University students hoping to voice their ideas about the future of social messaging will now be able to, thanks to a partnership unveiled Monday night between the University’s OpenGrounds initiative and national communications company Vonage.
The National Science Foundation has awarded the University a five-year, $18.5 million grant to fund a research center for self-powered health devices in partnership with three other schools, the University announced last week in a press release.
Research has established that African Americans and other minority groups are more likely to suffer vascular problems, which are associated with the development of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
Preventative measures the University is taking to keep trespassers off the Rotunda scaffolding could cost the school up to $150,000 more than it had initially budgeted for the roof project, University spokesperson Carol Wood said Sunday. Facilities Management installed the scaffolding during the summer months to allow construction workers to access the Rotunda roof.
The Board of Visitors retreat last month cost more than double its original budget, according to receipts released last week. The University is footing the more than $34,000 bill, with the initial $15,000 budget funded by the University endowment and the excess costs paid for by Board office funds set aside earlier in the annual budgeting process.
