MG Wins receives performance bonus

In the May 19th, Board of Visitors (BOV) meeting to assess his performance over the past year, Maj. Gen. Wins received praise from the BOV, and remains well regarded by most of them for all the changes that he has made at the school and the Virginia Military Institute's (VMI) command climate. According to VMI's BOV website, on Friday, May 19, 2023 the BOV held a virtual meeting, conducted almost entirely in closed session, to discuss Maj. Gen. Wins' annual performance review and to make a salary bonus recommendation for the 2023-2024 academic year. At the start of the BOV meeting, Maj. Gen. Wins began by praising his own successes this past year, saying, "We've had a real good close out to a very, very good year." Following a short public session, the group went into closed session for almost 2 hours, reappearing again for a short set of public statements and vote taking at the end of the meeting. Presumably the first order of business in the closed session was a discussion and determination of Maj. Gen. Wins' performance over the past year. According to Maj. Gen. Wins' employment contract, "As a part of this process, the Board and the Superintendent together shall develop goals and expectations for the coming year, and the evaluation of MG Wins' performance in that year shall be conducted, at least in part, with reference to them." If these metrics (goals and expectations) exist, they have never been revealed publically. No performance review areas were covered in either open session, but, after returning from the closed session, the Board unanimously voted to approve the Superintendent's performance review. (This review is not publicly available). Mr. Watjen (the BOV President) added "…in closed session, I think the board had a very extensive and candid discussion of performance, both the things that worked well, but also those things where additional work is still needed at the Institute and with the Superintendent." Mr. Watjen then emphatically added "And let me be very clear today that the Superintendent has our [BOV] full support.' Mr. Watjen also briefed that prior to the meeting the Superintendent requested that his salary for the upcoming year remain unchanged. In other words, no increase in salary unless legally required by the state, emphasizing that "He's [Wins] [is] doing so to set a very strong example to others and what continues to be a very challenging time." Watjen also promised that as soon as the BOV is in a position to do so, there will be a fuller disclosure on what occurred in the closed session. The BOV then unanimously approved not providing MG Wins a pay increase. According to Maj. Gen. Wins' employment contract, "Any increase in the Base Salary will be paid only upon approval by resolution of the Board and will be based upon the Superintendent's performance during the previous twelve (12) months in connection with the annual evaluation of his performance…" The contract does not contain any automatic pay increase for Maj. Gen. Wins to decline, before or after its application. The VMI Director of Communication, Col. Wyatt confirmed "Yes. Maj. Gen. Wins can refuse to accept a pay increase." This refusal by Maj. Gen. Wins of the state's 5% salary increase for state employees next year is not of much consequence on his part, particularly since, according to a statement from the Virginia Department of Human Resources, to The Cadet, "The FY24 Statewide increase is legislatively mandated for eligible employees. Therefore, individual employees cannot decline the salary adjustment." [emphasis added]. Nonetheless, the BOV unanimously did approve this desire on his part to forgo his annual salary increase, despite the Commonwealth's basic Human Resources policies, an issue that may or may not have been intentional. Although as yet to be confirmed, it could be assumed the BOV would have put a process in place whereby if Maj. Gen. Wins could not decline the increase, then another portion of his salary would go down, keeping him flat on total salary. That has yet to be revealed. Regardless of this refusal of annual salary raise, Maj. Gen. Wins received a separate performance bonus. Regarding this bonus the minutes reflect "Additionally, a majority of the board members voted to award Maj. Gen. Wins a $50,000 bonus for his performance between July 1, 2022, through the present." This sum more than offsets what could be a meager 5% loss in pay raise that could only be applied to the portion of Wins' salary from the Commonwealth. Mr. Watjen supported the performance bonus with his own high praise, reflected by the VMI press release, stating that: 'You only needed to witness the spectacular commissioning and commencement ceremonies held earlier in the week to see that VMI continues to deliver on its mission of educating and training leaders of character,' said Tom Watjen '76, president of the VMI Board of Visitors. 'Yesterday, we had a very thorough review of the superintendent's performance, and while I believe there are many good things occurring at the Institute, there are always opportunities for improvement. I'd specifically point to the enrollment levels in the fall, which were well below our expectations which has created other challenges at the Institute. While I feel that we are now headed in the right direction, these factors needed to be included in our evaluation. The majority of the board felt that a bonus was appropriate, but at a reduced level compared to previous years.' During the vote on approving the $50,000 bonus, the motion was passed in a 12 to 4 in favor, with Northam appointee Lara Chambers joining Youngkin appointees John Adams '96, Lara Tyler Chambers '03, Thomas E. Gottwald '83, and Meaghan Mobbs voting against the motion. Former Gov. McCauliff appointees Lt. Gen. Charles E. Dominy (Ret), Hugh M. Fain III '80, David L. Miller '70, Gene Scott '80, Thomas R. "Tom" Watjen '76, Scot W. Marsh '81, and Damon Williams '90 voted for the bonus. They were joined by Former Gov. Northam appointees J. Conrad Garcia, Michael L. Hamlar, Lester Johnson, Jr. '95, and Gussie Lord '01. The only Gov. Youngkin appointee to vote for the $50,000 performance bonus for MG Wins appears from the video to have been C. Ernest Edgar IV '87. MG Wins' base salary, according to his contract, is $656,250 annually, of which, by the last information available to The Cadet, approximately 47% (est. $308,437) is paid from the VMI Alumni Agencies. For their part and contribution, the Alumni Agencies membership at large, have no participation in the performance review or salary level decisions. Maj. Gen. Wins received a performance bonus last year, in addition to the laudatory praise of his performance by Mr. Watjen, BOV President, following his having received a bonus of $25,000 in 2021, and $100,000 in 2022, all from the VMI BOV. The term of Maj. Gen. Wins' Employment Agreement will automatically renew each year and may be extended for up to three additional one-year periods, starting each July 1st of the years 2025 through 2027, unless either party gives notice of non-renewal to the other party at least 90 days before such renewal.