Is the UVA and Charlottesville brand damaged forever?

[Anonymous]

One-off bad things happen on campuses and they usually have nothing to do with the institution.

The only people truly avoiding those campuses for that reason alone are either poor critical thinkers or have mental health issues. Or both.

Then you have people on a forum such as this, who pretend that the school is now somehow sullied so that they can fully enjoy the schadenfreude. Why they don’t like the school is something only they can truly know.

[Anonymous]

UVa often has the highest African-American graduation rate among public universities in the country, rivaling the Ivy League in this regard. Clearly African-American students who enroll at the school feel sufficiently comfortable to stay there.

The OP is a troll. It is OK if your kids aren’t good enough to get accepted. It really is.

- parent of 2 in state UVA grads who laughs her way to the bank

[Anonymous]

I know this isn't directly on point, but if my kid goes there it will probably be a situation like this.

[Anonymous]

^ "We can use a man like Joel at Princeton"

Sometimes you just have to say "what the [heck]."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One-off bad things happen on campuses and they usually have nothing to do with the institution.

The only people truly avoiding those campuses for that reason alone are either poor critical thinkers or have mental health issues. Or both.

Then you have people on a forum such as this, who pretend that the school is now somehow sullied so that they can fully enjoy the schadenfreude. Why they don’t like the school is something only they can truly know.

/thread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One-off bad things happen on campuses and they usually have nothing to do with the institution.

The only people truly avoiding those campuses for that reason alone are either poor critical thinkers or have mental health issues. Or both.

Then you have people on a forum such as this, who pretend that the school is now somehow sullied so that they can fully enjoy the schadenfreude. Why they don’t like the school is something only they can truly know.

Yeah, just a one-off bad thing. A UVA alum led a torch parade--right through the middle of campus--of neo-Nazis, mimicking Hitlerian rallies and using Nazi Germany racist and anti-Semitic chants, followed by a complete nightmare the next day.

[Anonymous]

For me, the lacrosse murder and then the Rolling Stone article were strike one and two with strike 3 being the neo nazi march. I don't think that makes me oversensitive.

To the PP who suggests the AA female student attend GMU instead, academically GMU might not be the right fit.

[Anonymous]

Forever or critically, of course not. But there is a sliming by association and I’m sure the vast majority of people who have any connection to UVA are hoping for a constructive, lasting resolution. It’s never a great thing for your college or its town to be all over the news sharing sentences with “Nazi”, “alt-right”, “protest”, “state of emergency”, “riot police”, “Confederate”, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For me, the lacrosse murder and then the Rolling Stone article were strike one and two with strike 3 being the neo nazi march. I don't think that makes me oversensitive.

To the PP who suggests the AA female student attend GMU instead, academically GMU might not be the right fit.

I think you are oversensitive if you base your opinion on an unrepresentative alum who lead a bunch of wackos who weren't from Charlottesville or the university, an unrepresentative student and an article that was 100% false.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For me, the lacrosse murder and then the Rolling Stone article were strike one and two with strike 3 being the neo nazi march. I don't think that makes me oversensitive.

To the PP who suggests the AA female student attend GMU instead, academically GMU might not be the right fit.

...did you follow up on that story, orrrr?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Forever or critically, of course not. But there is a sliming by association and I’m sure the vast majority of people who have any connection to UVA are hoping for a constructive, lasting resolution. It’s never a great thing for your college or its town to be all over the news sharing sentences with “Nazi”, “alt-right”, “protest”, “state of emergency”, “riot police”, “Confederate”, etc.

I have two sons at UVA right now. While we find what happened in Charlottesville last year terrible, none of are concerned that their diplomas will somehow be tainted by last year's events. Any employer with half a brain or grad school knows what happened has nothing to do with the students, or the univeristy for that matter.

[Anonymous]

Parent here who posted yesterday about my Black junior son. The bottom-line for him, and the bottom-line line for us, is that he doesn't feel that he will feel safe or fully included and welcome at UVA. If we had no other choice, my advice to him would be to do what a previous posters's daughter does and avoid parts of campus. But he has other choices, beginning with William & Mary, which is academically just as good, if not better. Particularly when UVA is supported by our tax dollars, it should be doing a much better job of cleaning up its act and making sure that all Virginians feel welcome and fully included in its educational programs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Forever or critically, of course not. But there is a sliming by association and I’m sure the vast majority of people who have any connection to UVA are hoping for a constructive, lasting resolution. It’s never a great thing for your college or its town to be all over the news sharing sentences with “Nazi”, “alt-right”, “protest”, “state of emergency”, “riot police”, “Confederate”, etc.

I have two sons at UVA right now. While we find what happened in Charlottesville last year terrible, none of are concerned that their diplomas will somehow be tainted by last year's events. Any employer with half a brain or grad school knows what happened has nothing to do with the students, or the univeristy for that matter.

Agreed, but brand is more than employer and grad school decisions. It also impacts student interest. We know lots of kids who just didn’t feel like dealing with the PSU debacle and didn’t apply. My brother went to PSU (long before the JoPa mess went down) and he definitely hears the “ped state” thing from time to time. It sucks for him. I don’t think UVA is to blame but if good prospectives are turned off by this situation then the school is impacted. Obviously OP’s question is absurdly worded.

I actually think the one year was generally positive for the city. It could’ve been a far uglier scene.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Parent here who posted yesterday about my Black junior son. The bottom-line for him, and the bottom-line line for us, is that he doesn't feel that he will feel safe or fully included and welcome at UVA. If we had no other choice, my advice to him would be to do what a previous posters's daughter does and avoid parts of campus. But he has other choices, beginning with William & Mary, which is academically just as good, if not better. Particularly when UVA is supported by our tax dollars, it should be doing a much better job of cleaning up its act and making sure that all Virginians feel welcome and fully included in its educational programs.

I am not questioning how either you or your son feels but I genuinely want to know if there are specific, concrete things that lead you to these conclusions or whether this is just a general overall feeling? Have you spoken with black students at UVA? What "act" do you think UVA needs to clean up? I am the poster with 2 sons at UVA and I have met many of their friends, which so far are very diverse racially, economically and geographically.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Parent here who posted yesterday about my Black junior son. The bottom-line for him, and the bottom-line line for us, is that he doesn't feel that he will feel safe or fully included and welcome at UVA. If we had no other choice, my advice to him would be to do what a previous posters's daughter does and avoid parts of campus. But he has other choices, beginning with William & Mary, which is academically just as good, if not better. Particularly when UVA is supported by our tax dollars, it should be doing a much better job of cleaning up its act and making sure that all Virginians feel welcome and fully included in its educational programs.

Exactly