Editor’s note: The original version of this article that was published Jan. 10 was retracted — it did not include all key stakeholders’ statements and responses related to the 10th presidential search. Necessary revisions were made to the piece below to address these concerns before republishing.
Following former University President Jim Ryan’s resignation June 27, groups such as Wahoos4UVA, Student Council and the Faculty Senate began releasing statements expressing discontent with the Board of Visitors — other groups like the Jefferson Council defended the Board’s actions. While the search for the University’s 10th president was underway between the end of the summer and December, groups continued to call for the search to pause until Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger had taken office and filled five vacancies on the Board.
Overwhelmingly, many groups stated the Board had allowed the federal government to influence University politics, which pressured Ryan to resign. Throughout the search process, several groups also stated that the presidential search committee was not adequately considering faculty and student perspectives…