ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, July 13, 1996 TAG: 9607150069
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: LEXINGTON
SOURCE: ALLISON BLAKE AND JENNIFER MILLER STAFF WRITERS
THE MILITARY COLLEGE'S board emerged from Friday's meeting and indicated there may be an announcement at noon.
After seven hours behind the closed doors of Virginia Military Institute's Preston Library, the school's governing body emerged late Friday with a single message:
Come back tomorrow.
About noon today, the board of visitors is expected to announce the next step in its quest for a decision to either admit women or go private. Although Rector William Barry of Richmond said earlier this week he expected study of the two options to precede a decision, which might come in September, he refused to comment even on that outside the library Friday.
This week's much-anticipated meeting is the first since the Supreme Court ruled last month that VMI, as a public school, must admit women. The session was closed under provisions of the state Freedom of Information Act that allow state bodies to consult with legal counsel "pertaining to actual or probable litigation" and a section that lets college and university boards close meetings when discussing "matters relating to gifts, bequests and fund-raising activities... "
VMI Superintendent Josiah Bunting III said both the morning and afternoon sessions were ``very engaging and very productive,'' adding that the day was marked by "a total absence of rancor, bitterness and controversy."
Members of the 17-member board, their attorneys and school administrators were even more closed-mouth Friday than when the decision first came down. They huddled with VMI staff, public relations consultants and Deputy Attorney General Bill Hurd, who has represented the state during the long lawsuit.
Barry even declined comment on whether the school legally can go private under the strongly worded opinion from Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Nearly two weeks ago, the VMI Alumni Association met in Richmond and reportedly endorsed plans to raise money to go private.
But the association's new president, Steve Fogelman, said Friday that "we still have a lot of questions" and information to gather.
Although much has been made of the fact that the state gives VMI $10.3 million, about one-third of its annual $32.5 million operating budget, annual gifts and profits from the school's endowment equal up to $8.5 million of the budget, Bunting said. Tuition and fees, which many fear may skyrocket if the school goes private, make up the rest.
Among those closely following the board's every move are former presidents of the school's Alumni Association.
Several refused to comment when contacted by The Roanoke Times, but two who would talk had divided opinions about what VMI should do next.
"Most people who really know VMI feel the same way I do ... women don't belong at VMI," said Tazewell Ellett III of Richmond, a 1944 graduate who was Alumni Association president from 1987 to 1989.
"My first choice is to go private and keep it the way it's always been. My second choice, if we have to comply with the Supreme Court and go ahead and be coed, is to make as few changes as possible."
If VMI decides to admit women, Ellett said, he would have to think twice before making his usual contribution to the school.
``It depends on what's decided," he said. "I think that the school will lose some of its support."
Joshua Langhammer of Roanoke, a 1954 graduate who was Alumni Association president from 1989 to 1991, agreed.
"I would suspect, like any other situation, you are going to have some people who are diametrically opposed to changing the school," he said. "But things change. And VMI should forge ahead and make the best situation possible."
Langhammer showed more concern about the impact of the Supreme Court decision on single-sex education.
"It really isn't a question about women at all. Women have proved themselves in the military, business and other professions," he said. "My biggest fear is the end to single-sex education for both men and women. This is just another example of the government stepping in and telling people what to do."
Both Ellett and Langhammer agreed that, whatever the board decides, VMI will emerge as a strong military college.
"I pray that VMI will handle this in a genteel manner, and, no matter what, they will come out as a school its graduates can be proud of," Ellett said.
"You've got to admit it, though, it is going to be strange," Langhammer said. "VMI is going to have to answer another challenge in its history. VMI is going to have to prove to the world that it can produce outstanding civil military soldiers," whether they be men or women.
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