RICHMOND, Va. β A bill to change the structure of the Virginia Military Institute's Board of Visitors has cleared its first hurdle in the General Assembly, but with significant differences from how it was originally proposed.
During an Education Committee hearing Wednesday morning, Del. Michael Feggans (D-Virginia Beach) said he had removed his initial proposal to dissolve the Board of Visitors at VMI and place it under the governance of Virginia State University.
"What you initially start off with isn't always going to be what you end up with," Feggans said. "After meeting with VMI, after talking with other stakeholders, we came up with a proposition."
The bill's new language instead calls for changes to the makeup of VMI's board.
It removes the requirement that at least 12 of the 16 members are VMI alumni. It removes that require that any members have to be alumni, but caps the total number that can be alumni at eight.
The bill adds that at least six members must be Virginia residents who are not alumni of the school.
Finally, at least five of the overall members have to be high-ranking veterans from either the enlisted or officer classes of the Armed Forces. Such as a sergeant first class or lieutenant colonel in the Army.
"This isn't about just right now who's the current governor," Feggans said. "It's about making sure that the Board of Visitors is going to be in a great structure for governors down the line."
The original version drew dozens of comments in opposition during the first hearing, including from current school leadership and alumni. Feggans said VMI needed new oversight to move past its ties to Confederacy and a 2021 report that found the school tolerated and failed to address institutional racism and sexism.
"We saw over the past few years, and especially within the past 12-to-24 months, that the current VMI Board of Visitors, just was not meeting the cut and especially on the decisions that were made," Feggans said. "It ultimately culminated, of course, in the decision to not renew General Wins contract."
General Cedric Wins was the school's first Black superintendent, whose contract was not given an extension after his first term expired.
Feggans says he agreed to changing the bill after speaking with current leadership and touring the school this past Sunday.
"Their leadership acknowledges that the troubling findings that was identified in 2021 and has committed to continued improvement," Feggans said. "Those efforts matter, and we appreciate the conversations, but there is still much work to be done."
Five Republicans voted against the bill Wednesday, including Del. Anne Farrell Tata (R-Virginia Beach). She did not speak on-camera, but told reporters she was opposed to both versions of the bill and did not think the issue should have been brought in the first place.
VMI's current superintendent told the committee he was in support of the legislation as it now stands.
"We've made significant adjustments to it in this amendment phase and I look forward to working with the new board structure as we move ahead," Lt. Gen. David Furness said. "My predecessor, General Wins, made significant progress and I intend to continue that progress going forward. You have my word on that."
This is not the first bill this session about VMI that has been pulled back from where it started.
The House has approved another bill that initially called for a study of whether VMI should continue being state-sponsored and will now review what changes VMI has made since that 2021 report.
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