LEXINGTON, Va. – The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is facing controversy after its Board of Visitors voted not to renew the contract of Superintendent Maj. General Cedric T. Wins. The decision has sparked debate, with some questioning whether race played a role, while others argue it was necessary for the school’s future.
Wins made history as the institution’s first Black superintendent. He initially took over as interim superintendent in 2020 before officially assuming the position in 2021. His appointment followed an independent state audit that found “institutional racism and sexism” were “present, tolerated, and left unaddressed” at VMI.
Reginald Early, president of the Rockbridge County NAACP, believes the board’s decision is a step backward for the institution after he says he saw progress at VMI and in the community.
“I think that him not being rehired was based solely on the color of his skin. Solely on the fact that he’s a Black man,” Early said.
He also suggested that former President Donald Trump’s executive order ending federal diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives may have influenced the board’s choice.
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“General Wins had made all kinds of achievements in the four years that he was at VMI. All kinds of achievement. Student enrollment increased, brought in millions and millions of dollars, had new buildings constructed. So why wouldn’t you want to keep somebody who was making significant changes for the better for the institution? ” Early said.
However, Jacqueline Hart, an Air Force veteran and VMI parent, supports the board’s decision.
“I’m tremendously relieved for the school,” Hart said. “Unfortunately, [Wins] just wasn’t equipped to operate the college. Everybody wanted him to do well, but he just was unsuccessful.”
Hart is the mother of a VMI Class of 2022 graduate and a VMI Class of 2027 cadet. She expressed concerns about alleged operational and financial challenges at the school under Wins’ leadership. She claims cadets were not allowed to take lunch breaks, she criticized what she called “humiliation-styled” DEI training sessions, and claimed need-based scholarships excluded white cadets.
“When I saw the scholarship that discriminated against whites and I saw some of the ways he handled behavior situations, I lost all confidence in him,” Hart said. “It was personal to me because I came from an economically disadvantaged background, and I knew that that was going to affect other students who were white, that had need for financial aid. And that’s when I realized that all of these DEI policies really were discriminatory.”
“Racism against any group should not be tolerated. And until we stop being afraid to call it out on both sides, it’s going to continue,” she added.
On February 20, Hart filed a complaint with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges regarding her concerns.
Early worries about the potential fallout from the decision.
“I think [the public is] going to think that Lexington is the racist, Confederate city that they have had the impression all along,” Early said.
While Hart says she is hopeful for the future of VMI.
“The cadets at VMI suffer a lot, and they do it willingly,” Hart said. “I just want them to be treated well, to be led well, and to be respected by their leaders, just like they respect their leaders. And I’m excited that there’s going to be somebody coming in that hopefully restores that mutual respect.”
Wins will continue serving as superintendent until his contract expires on June 30. VMI says it will provide information about the search for his replacement at a later date.
