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U. Virginia president resigns amid federal pressure, DEI probe

DOJ demands president resign to resolve investigation

University of Virginia President James Ryan resigned Friday following pressure from the U.S. Justice Department to remove him amid a federal civil rights investigation into the school’s ​​”diversity, equity and inclusion” practices.

The Justice Department requested the president’s resignation as a condition for resolving the civil rights investigation into the university’s diversity policies, The New York Times reported.

“In a letter sent on Thursday to the head of the board overseeing the university, Mr. Ryan said that he had planned to step down at the end of the next academic year but ‘given the circumstances and today’s conversations’ he had decided, ‘with deep sadness,’ to tender his resignation now, according to one of the people familiar with the matter who was briefed on the contents of the letter,” the outlet reported.

The letter also stated Ryan (pictured) would leave his position “no later than Aug. 15, 2025.”

Earlier this month, the Justice Department notified UVA of several complaints of race-based treatment on campus. It also told the school the government concluded race-based practices were “widespread … throughout every component and facet of the institution.”

DOJ Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon and Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Gregory Brown both signed the letter.

“When university leaders lack commitment to ending illegal discrimination in hiring, admissions, and student benefits – they expose the institutions they lead to legal and financial peril,” Dhillon told The Cavalier Daily. “We welcome leadership changes in higher education that signal institutional commitment to our nation’s venerable federal civil rights laws.”

However, U.S. Senators Tim Kaine and Mark Warner condemned the Trump administration’s approach in a statement Friday.

“It is outrageous that officials in the Trump Department of Justice demanded the Commonwealth’s globally recognized university remove President Ryan—a strong leader who has served UVA honorably and moved the university forward—over ridiculous ‘culture war’ traps,” they wrote.

“Decisions about UVA’s leadership belong solely to its Board of Visitors, in keeping with Virginia’s well-established and respected system of higher education governance. This is a mistake that hurts Virginia’s future,” the senators wrote.

Ryan’s resignation also follows pressure from a legal advocacy organization and UVA alumni group to oust him.

In May, America First Legal accused UVA of defying Trump’s orders by continuing its diversity programs under new names. In a news release, the group urged the Justice Department to “hold UVA accountable.”

“Rebranding discrimination does not make it legal, and changing a label doesn’t change the substance,” AFL attorney Megan Redshaw told the NYT.

“UVA’s use of sanitized language and recycled job titles is a deliberate attempt to sidestep the law,” she said.

Also last month, the Jefferson Council argued Ryan’s six-year tenure has been beset with scandal and his leadership has overseen an academic and reputational decline at the school, The College Fix previously reported.

The group published an online campaign called “Reset UVA” to lobby for change.

“What the school has done is rebrand, but they still function under DEI,” Jefferson Council President Joel Gardner previously told The Fix. He said it is another example of the “social and political justice agenda that has crept into every little bit of the university.”

The calls to oust UVA’s president and eliminate DEI follow the Trump administration’s February ban on all race-based student programs, resources, and financial aid.

The administration warned that institutions refusing to eliminate such programs could lose federal funding, The Fix reported.

MORE: Harvard announces more layoffs as fight with Trump admin continues

IMAGE CAPTION AND CREDIT: UVA President Jim Ryan addresses the campus community; UVA/YouTube

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About the Author
Gabrielle Temaat is an assistant editor at The College Fix. She holds a B.S. in economics from Barrett, the Honors College, at Arizona State University. She has years of editorial experience at the Daily Caller and various family policy councils. She also works as a tutor in all subjects and is deeply passionate about mentoring students.