LEXINGTON, VA \u2013 Big decisions about VMI\u2019s future aren\u2019t happening on post – they\u2019re happening miles away in Richmond. <\/p>\n
Cadets 10 News spoke with say two controversial bills moving through the General Assembly could have impacts on VMI\u2019s future for years to come.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow could this be happening?\u201d Cadet Caleb Chandler asked. <\/p>\n
At VMI, tradition, discipline, and routine are part of daily life – but cadets Caleb Chandler, Carla Feaster and Maximus Ankrah say uncertainty from the Capitol is becoming part of it too.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know that the things that were in these bills were just not consistent with the things I see on a day-to-day basis,\u201d Chandler said. <\/p>\n
There are two bills. One would overhaul VMI\u2019s leadership structure. The other raises questions about whether the institute should continue receiving state support.<\/p>\n
The first, introduced by Delegate Michael Feggans (D – 97th District), follows nearly five years of debate over VMI\u2019s culture.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cChanging culture in a military environment is one of the hardest things one can undertake,\u201d Feggans said during a House Subcommittee Meeting on Higher Education on Monday. <\/p>\n That proposal would dissolve VMI\u2019s board of visitors and place the institute under the oversight of Virginia State University\u2019s board.<\/p>\n During the subcommittee meeting, Feggans cited concerns about VMI\u2019s continued focus on Confederate history, along with broader questions about race and gender.<\/p>\n \u201cThe board sometimes resisted change, culminating in the governance\u2019s decision not to renew a more than qualified superintendent,\u201d Feggans said. <\/p>\n \u201cDo you think that VMI has moved past their past?\u201d 10 News Anchor Abbie Coleman asked the cadets. <\/p>\n \u201cI do believe so. We\u2019re in the new year. Of course, we can\u2019t change history. VMI has been through some controversial stuff, to admit. But in the year 2026, we have so many key leaders that are minorities. Again, it\u2019s not because of the race, sex, religion, it\u2019s because they exude leadership abilities,\u201d Ankrah said. <\/p>\n