Bert Ellis has been the Board’s most consistent and vocal advocate for transparency, accountability, and responsible governance. Removing him now sends the wrong message to students, faculty, alumni, and the broader UVA community.

Governor Glenn Youngkin has fired Bert Ellis from the University of Virginia Board of Visitors, terminating the most outspoken member of the board supporting his goals of reining in tuition, promoting free speech and intellectual diversity, and eliminating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) from the University’s policies and practices.

TJC urges the UVA Board of Visitors to take a strong stand for the Kalven Principles and to embrace this opportunity to return the University to its true mission: the pursuit of knowledge and truth without political interference.

Now comes the battle to replace the University of VIrginia’s provost Ian Baucom. The University has assembled a fourteen-person group to launch a national search, according to an announcement in the UVA house organ UVA Today.

The Jefferson Council is very pleased to announce that Joel Gardner has agreed to succeed Tom Neale as the president of The Jefferson Council.

Donovan Golich may have been excessively zealous in his investigations, but the University’s problematic approach to fraternities does not end with his departure.

Jed Atkins, head of the Chapel Hill campus’s new School of Civic Life and Leadership, wants to teach students to be tolerant, in an old-school way.

The College Fix contributor Colleen Dean quotes The Jefferson Council President Tom Neale: "We made the board aware of this three years ago."

The Cavalier Daily's Thomas Baxter and Ford McCracken: That accountability process was on display in an audio recording of Golich leaked last week by alumni group The Jefferson Council — an organization with the stated mission of preserving the legacy of Thomas Jefferson at the University.

The University of Virginia has adopted a high-tuition, high-aid business model, similar to that of Ivy League schools. A clear understanding of how all the pieces work creates an opportunity.

The University of Virginia Honor System is governed by students, but the Board of Visitors is enjoined by its mission statement to support and uphold the Honor System. Here's what the Board can do to strengthen the culture of Honor at UVA without infringing upon student sovereignty.

The University of Virginia's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs fail to contribute to, even undermine, the University’s educational mission. We call upon the Board of Visitors to defund the vast DEI infrastructure and redirect such resources toward mission-critical activities.

The Board of Visitors and President of the University have a duty to the people of the Commonwealth of Virginia to preserve the beauty and dignity of the Academical Village as a UNESCO World Heritage site. The current regulations have proven inadequate and unenforceable.

Read The Jefferson Council President Tom Neale's letter to the UVA Board of Visitors, included in TJC's Fall 2024 BOV Welcome Brief.

As an organization committed to those Jeffersonian principles which formed UVA 205 years ago, The Jefferson Council is prepared to serve as an independent source of information and analysis for the new Board of Visitors.