Fact-Checking the Superintendent's Contract Fight

The question of whether or not the VMI Board of Visitors (BOV) should give the Superintendent a new contract and, if so, for how long, erupted over the past few weeks into racial, political, and ideological disputes that did more to obscure the subject than clarify or resolve it. Using statements and publications by the key players involved, as well as publicly available documents, The Cadet attempts to inform its readers by fact-checking the various sides of the dispute. In the Feb. 8, 2025, BOV meeting, Mr. Thomas E. "Teddy" Gottwald '83 raised the issue that "a certain state senator has been calling VMI board members basically saying if we don't take certain actions, they're going to withhold our funds." In his Feb. 18, 2025, letter to the Clerks of the Virginia House and Senate demanding an ethics investigation, Congressman Ben Cline (R-VA-06), without identifying the source, named Virginia State Senator Jennifer Carroll Foy '03 as one of the callers. According to Cline's letter: "Senator Carroll-Foy recently spoke to a Board member claiming that certain members of the leadership of the General Assembly had 'placed in peril' funding for VMI, and that it could only be rectified if General Wins received a four-year contract extension." Foy countered in a Richmond Times-Dispatch article that same day. "Not once did he [Cline] call me to verify the things that he is saying," stated Foy. In that same article, Foy did not deny she made the statement Cline attributed to her. When the reporter asked directly if she did make it, Foy responded, "I would not say that this is a fair summation of my feelings about the issue right now." On Feb. 22, 2025, Foy posted a thread on her X social media account calling for the Superintendent to receive a new contract, claiming: "…Superintendent Wins has either met or exceeded his overall Management by Objectives that were set, reviewed & approved by the BOV every year since 2021. They also approved his strategic plan for the Institute." She also cites the $100,000 bonus the BOV awarded the Superintendent. The Cadet could not verify the performance evaluations she cites, as they are private in nature and exempt from disclosure under the FOIA. The BOV conducts any discussion of such personnel matters in closed session according to its By-Laws: "The Board shall annually deliver, in closed session, its evaluation of the Superintendent's performance." [emphasis added]. Foy did not provide either these records or how she obtained such sensitive personal information, so The Cadet was unable to determine the truthfulness of her claim one way or the other. The Cadet was able to determine that the BOV that approved the bonus Foy cites was under the control of then-Governor Ralph Northam '81. She did not provide any substantiation of the claim in the Times-Dispatch interview, "… members of the General Assembly have nothing but high regard for General Wins and the work that he is doing at the institute," The Senate did pass Senate Resolution 223ER on January 30, 2025 commending the Superintendent for his "legacy of service" and as an expression of its "….admiration for his contributions to the country and the Commonwealth and best wishes for his future endeavors." Foy was the Chief Patron, and fellow Democratic Senator Creigh Deeds co-sponsored. According to her Facebook Page, Foy presented this to Maj. Gen. Wins and the contingent of VMI Cadets who visited the Capitol on Feb. 7, just before the controversy broke with Mr. Gottwald's comments in the BOV meeting. Former Governor Doug Wilder, the nation's first Black governor, and Delegate Don Scott, democratic Speaker of the Virginia House, joined Foy in pushing for the Superintendent to receive a new four-year contract, citing the lack of any evidence of his failures. In the Feb. 22 thread Foy posted to her X social media account, she stated, "… there was never any tangible feedback that he failed to effectively lead VMI in the right direction or was leading the Institute down the wrong path." Wilder stated in an interview with the Richmond Times-Dispatch, "There must be a reason for that [not offering Wins a new contract]. To my knowledge, none has been stated." While The Cadet could not locate BOV documents one way or another on the Superintendent's performance, public records, including video of Senate Sessions, show the events when the Democratic-controlled Virginia Senate Privileges and Elections Committee removed Youngkin BOV nominees Quinton Elliott '85 and Clifford Foster '93 from the BOV. During those sessions, Republican Senators offered a spirited defense of Elliott and Foster, which included the Superintendent's laudable praise for their appointments and qualifications. When asked during the session for a reason why Elliott was not qualified to be confirmed for the BOV, Foy, speaking for the Democratic majority, stated, "the Privilege and Election Committee found the appointee [Elliott] is inconsistent with the goals and values of the [VMI] Board." She refused to take any further questions. Scott, however, in his Times-Dispatch interview stated, "It's not about General Wins' contract — it's about whether the school is moving in the right direction." Scott asserted in his Times-Dispatch interview that his comments were not intended to pressure the BOV on the Superintendent's contract, "I do not want to interfere with how the board hires and fires and oversees their fiduciary responsibility…It's very much so the board's decision", but added "…that doesn't mean the decision doesn't have consequences." As noted by Maj. Gen. Wins in the Feb.6 BOV Executive Committee meeting. Del. Scott's first visit to VMI was Jan 25, one day after the Senate Committee removed Elliott and Foster, two days before the House took up and supported the removals, and approximately a week before Mr. Gottwald reported the alleged threats to the BOV. In her Feb. 22 X thread, Foy charged, "VMI Board of Visitors President, McGuireWoods partner and Republican John Adams called me repeatedly and informed me that the VMI Board of Visitors no longer wants a Black Superintendent." Foy's thread does not provide proof that she verified the statement she attributed to BOV President John Adams '96 with him. The Cadet could not locate any statements Adams made on the issue, and he is not commenting on the situation. The thread further cites "…the misinformation and barrage of attacks by Thomas Gottwald (VMI '83)…" but does not include any documented examples. The only statement The Cadet could locate through a variety of internet and posted BOV documents searches was Mr. Gottwald's statement on February 8. BOV meeting that, "a certain state senator has been calling VMI board members basically saying if we don't take certain actions, they're going to withhold our funds." Mr. Gottwald did not name the Senator, unless Congressman Cline's letter and Senator Foy's statement are meant to confirm she is that State Senator. Foy's thread continued with charges that Governor Youngkin appointed the majority of current BOV members, and the Spirit of VMI Political Action Committee (Spirit of VMI PAC) advised the Governor on all his BOV appointments." These statements are accurate. Under the Virginia Code, the Governor has the sole authority to appoint BOV members, and the majority of BOV appointees have eventually all been named by the Governor in power. It is part of the Governor's job. Anyone, including members of the public, and those who want to serve on Boards themselves, can submit nominations through the Secretary of the Commonwealth website and advise the Governor on BOV nominations. One criticism of the VMI Alumni Association by a number of its members is that its internal nominating committee, without input or approval from the alumni body writ large, develops a list of BOV nominees coordinated with the Superintendent, who carries them to the Governor. Foy's thread also claimed, "The Gottwalds have donated over $500,000 to Youngkin directly or through the Spirit of VMI PAC, which Thomas Gottwald is the top donor." Public records do show that cumulatively, during the period 2021 - 2023, Teddy Gottwald is the Spirit of VMI PAC's highest donor at $50,000, having donated $25,000 each of those years. According to public records for the period 2021 – 2024, Bruce Gottwald donated $400,000 to Youngkin's Campaign, and from 2021 to 2023, The Spirit of VMI PAC donated $25,000. Public records also show that during the same 2021 – 2024 period, Foy received $200,000 from the Defeat Republicans Political Action Committee, $1,080,000 from the liberal-leaning Clean Virginia Fund, and $750,400 from S. Sonjia Smith. The billionaire couple Sonjia Smith and Michael Bills control the Clean Virginia Fund and Commonwealth Forward PACs, whose donations combined for a total donation to Foy during the period of $1,830,400. According to its website, Clean Virginia "…works to fight corruption in Virginia politics to promote affordable clean energy and community control over our energy policy." McGuireWoods, the law firm Mr. Adams is a partner in, that Senator Foy called out in criticism of him, donated $1,250 to her campaign in 2024. For its part, the Spirit of VMI PAC responded Feb 23 on X social media thread containing the subjective observation, "For @JCarrollFoy to continue to now use race to divert attention from her own poor judgment is appalling and unethical." The group stated that, "Earlier this year, two of Governor Youngkin's nominees to the VMI Board of Visitors, both endorsed by The Spirit of VMI, were removed by the Democrat controlled Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections for no apparent reason." These claims are substantiated by The Cadet's previous coverage and video of the Committee hearings themselves. The group's claims as to Mr. Elliott's qualifications are also a matter of record, and there are no readily available sources to dispute the group's claim: "These same [VMI BOV] Board members are living by their bylaws by not discussing the performance of General Wins, the good and the bad, publicly." There is no information available to The Cadet substantiating the Spirit of VMI PAC's claim that Senator Foy "wants to tarnish his [Maj. Gen. Wins'] reputation by having his contract discussions held in public." The BOV does have the authority to hire, employ, or not employ the Superintendent and "…ensure that the Superintendent complies with all Board and statutory directives." While discussions of the Superintendent's performance must be confidential and occur in closed session, any changes must be approved by the majority of the BOV and voted on in open, public session. Former Governor Northam, for example, effectively fired former VMI Superintendent Gen. J.H. Binford Peay III '62 simply for a "lack of confidence" in his ability to lead VMI. VMI, the BOV, and Maj. Gen. Cedric T. Wins '85 has not made any public statements on the status of the Superintendent's employment. The next scheduled BOV meeting is this coming May, so if Mr. Adams does not convene a special session in March to take up the issue of the Superintendent's contract, it will automatically renew for another year on Apr. 2, 2025. As of this printing, a Special BOV Session was just called for Feb 28, but the Agenda lists the topic to be discussed only as "Closed session." The General Assembly adjourned on Feb. 22 after dropping VMI's proposed multi-million dollar Center for Leadership and Ethics (CLE) Phase II Capital Project, but left over $1.2 million in additional VMI operational funding. Republicans claimed the cut was unwarranted, and the Governor vowed to restore it, while Democrats responded that VMI was not singled out among all the overall reductions. The Cadet will continue to watch this developing story and report any significant updates. Links to all the documents and videos covered in this story are available in the online version at www.cadetnewspaper.com The Cadet does not receive any support from VMI and is 100% dependent on donations to operate. PLEASE HELP US BY DONATING AT www.thecadetfoundation.org