A new scandal at the University of Virginia has prompted questions from Richmond and criticism from a surprising source as Sandy Hausman reports.
Four years ago, the head of the University of Virginia’s Board of Visitors says she learned a valuable lesson. Helen Dragas had a series of one-on-one conversations with others on the board, then met behind closed doors with a few of them to accept Teresa Sullivan’s resignation.
“You know while we were trying to do things in a quiet, more dignified way, we absolutely learned that all the public’s business should be done in public," she says. "We made sincere promises to deliver on that.”
Now, she’s openly questioned what administrators recently renamed their strategic investment fund -- cash that can be used for whatever committees of faculty, administrators and board members approve.
“We were fully informed of the fund and its balances in preparation for our June 2016 meeting," Dragas recalls. "That was the first time we were made aware that the fund had $2.3 billion in it. That’s an awful lot of money to have at your disposal for unrestricted projects.”
During that – her last meeting on the board – Dragas was told not to discuss the fund publicly.
“We were asked to keep the fund and its balances quiet," she claims. "My reaction was the public has a right and a need to know about this money, especially in light of tuition increases of about 74% since 2009.”
Dragas calls the strategic investment money a slush fund and is calling on the board to roll back tuition at UVA and to freeze rates for the next five years. University administrators have had no comment, and the current rector was not available for an interview. William Goodwin did issue a statement branding comments from Dragas as false and irresponsible. He said the fund could be used to improve academic quality, hire the finest faculty, provide student aid, support research and enhance student life.
Some state lawmakers have requested a detailed accounting of the fund and are calling for an investigation.