According to the Richmond Times Dispatch the Attorney General has advised public institutions of higher learning in Virginia that they cannot make sexual orientation a protected class.
Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli says Virginia’s colleges and universities cannot prohibit discrimination against gays because the General Assembly has not authorized them to do so.
In a letter Thursday to the presidents, rectors and boards of visitors of Virginia public colleges, Cuccinelli said: the law and public policy of Virginia “prohibit a college or university from including ‘sexual orientation’, ‘gender identity’, ‘gender expression’ or like classification, as a protected class within its non-discrimination policy, absent specific authorization from the General Assembly.“
What kind of state do we now live in? The Richmond Times Dispatch further states:
He said the recipients must consider the letter “as the opinion and advice” of the office of Attorney General.
And the recently elected Attorney General said those colleges or universities that have included sexual orientation in their policies acted without proper authority and those policies are invalid.
Tucker Martin, Gov. Bob McDonnell’s director of communications, noted that “the legal analysis . . . is consistent with all prior opinions from the Office of the Attorney General over the last 25 years on the subject.“
But Martin added: “The governor will appoint board members based solely on their ability and on their strong commitment to educational excellence in Virginia. The governor expects that no Virginia college or university, or any other state agency, will engage in discrimination of any kind.“
Governor McDonnell can’t have it both ways. Is he saying that colleges cannot forbid bias on the basis on sexual orientation but people aren’t to discriminate? What kind of bizzaro-speak is that? Do we now have an honor system? How far will this go? Can we fire the gay History professor because he is seen having dinner with a male companion? Can we decline admissions to anyone who openly confesses to being gay? Or can students scream “faggot” and “queer” at those suspected of being gay as they walk across campus?
Supposedly a directive from the governor’s office forbids discrimination for anything other than merit or qualification. We all know how those 2 abstractions can be abused. Those words have vague meaning when trying to prove discrimination.
The Richmond Times Dispatch has posted statements from several of the state schools. All seemed to have very guarded remarks:
Most of the state’s public universities have policies prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation. Today they were exploring how to react to Cuccinelli’s letter.
“Our policy covers some things the attorney general says it can’t,“ said University of Mary Washington Rector Nanalou Sauder. She said the board and UMW administrators will need to discuss what action the university can take.
“We expect that there’s going to be significant reaction from the university community as they learn about it,“ said Virginia Commonwealth University spokeswoman Pam Lepley.
College of William and Mary spokesman Brian Whitson said the letter would need to be closely reviewed before the college can determine how to proceed.
“William and Mary has had a long tradition of inclusion and diversity,“ he said.
The University of Virginia had no comment. “The university received a letter—marked privileged and confidential—from the attorney general. Any questions about the letter will need to be addressed to the attorney general or his office,“ spokeswoman Carol Wood said in a statement.
Virginia Democrats expressed strong disapproval:
Democrats, including Warner, the Democratic Party of Virginia and the Young Democrats of Virginia condemned Cuccinelli’s opinion.
“I am puzzled why the Attorney General would authorize our public colleges and universities to discriminate,“ Warner said in a statement.
“A decision on whether to hire, promote or offer admission should be based on whether or not the individual is qualified—period.“ “I think Governor McDonnell would be wise to reign (sic) in his Attorney General and get him back to doing the work of the people,“ said C. Richard Cranwell, chairman of the state Democratic Party.
“I believe the Attorney general’s advice will hurt the ability of our colleges and universities to attract the very best faculty, staff and students and damage the Commonwealth’s reputation for academic excellence and diversity,“ Warner said.
Perhaps a good class action law suit in in order. Does the General Assembly have to approve all policy at colleges and universities? Cuccinelli is a bigot and he is spreading his bigotry throughout the Commonwealth. He should be recalled. Unless Virginia is an anomaly, 10% of its residents are gay. Is Cuccinelli attempting to codify discrimination against them? This move is a giant step backwards for civil and human rights in Virginia.
THIS is the business that Ken Cucinelli is concentrating on?! Guess it’s time that more people start taking a stand on this issue. No matter how you feel personally about sexual orientation, why is it OK for people to discriminate against others based on their personal views or prejudices?
Does this guy shave? Is he going to be like one of those Larry Criag guys? Protesting too much? I didn’t realize Virginia was this backwards.
Good on Cuccinelli. Essentially, he dismissed the notion because there is actual work to do in Virginia other than these waste of time issues. I for one (and ladies, I am so not alone) am proud we finally have an administration that doesn’t waste so much time coddling every minority, special interest and group with “hurt feelings”. The pity party for gays will be held in Washington DC next Saturday night at Swinging Richard’s End Zone Bar & Grill.
The “Bias and Discrimination” tag refers to the fact that the article was found in the Washington Post, correct?
Actually, colleges and universities should be making their own policy and the AG should be tending to the business of the state. Talk about wasting time on his own personal agenda. Is Daisy on to something?
Captain, these policies of non-discrimation have been in place for quite some time. So why is Kookoonelli going out of his way to beat up on policies of non-discrimatination? I would think colleges could NOT discriminate against anything they want. They could not discriminate against sea turtles. Who cares.
Capt. I took the article out of the Richmond Times Dispatch. The Post was added as a link. They both say the same thing. Virginians elected a homophobe to AG spot.
“Actually, colleges and universities should be making their own policy and the AG should be tending to the business of the state.”
Except that the state colleges are owned by the State so they can only set policies consistant with the powers the General Assembly has delegated to it.
I’m neutral on this as I don’t think it’s really going to effect anything. A school is going to want to grab the best and brightest regardless of sexual orientation. But, I do agree with the Captain here – we need to stop running PCU focus on superior education at the undergrad-grad level.
There is a certain degree of independence inherent in each college and university. Each has its own board of regents. The USA owns West Point also, in theory. However, there are many layers of protection from West Point being a national college.
The attorney general is just attempting to advance his own uber-conservative political agenda.
Most quality people who would be attracted to a university would go elsewhere because of that discrimatination issue. Colleges and universities compete over distinguished professors and guest professors.
I have no clue what PCU focus on superior education means? Is that some sort of conservative jabberwocky?
Lewis Carroll
Let’s see, Captain, would you say it was fair to say you don’t want any sexual minority people or children of illegal aliens in state supported schools?
Is there anyone I have left out?
This is going to make it more difficult for Virginia to keep and
attract first class companies. “Virginia is for Haters”
isn’t a good business retention or attraction slogan.
No kidding, Poor Richard!
And what would we use as a symbol of hate? The heart with the circle and diagonal drawn over it? Should Moonhowlings.net start a contest for the new state slogan artwork?
When I was growing up in Charlottesville, I saw Faulkner who was a guest professor at UVA. Think he would want to go there under the Kookoonelli regime? How about Nicki Giovanni at Tech?
As I have stated previously, this is a complete non-issue for high-tech companies and universities. Hiring authorities are not allowed to ask about personal preferences. As long as a person does not wear his idiosyncracies on his sleeve, he has an excellent chance of being hired if he has good technical and people skills (math, physics, computer, etc.). If the candidate does advertise his idiosyncratic traits, regardless of what they are, his chances of being hired are much lower.
But Cuccinelli is making a good point. Public institutions are not allowed to make up their own protected classes. If universities decided that White Anglo-Saxon Protestants were a protected class and the AG declared such a class as unlawful, most people on this blog would be applauding the action.
I want the AG to be answering question number 2 regarding the legality of charging fees for the bus service to the “speciality schools” in PWC.
http://pwcs.edu/News2/stories/600-PublicInputProvidesOpps/story.html
March 3, 2010
——————————————————————————–
The Prince William County School Board held its annual budget public hearing on next year’s proposed budget on March 1 with more than 100 speakers who signed up to give their input to the nearly $80 million gap expected next year due to reduced funding coupled with continued student growth.
Based on the comments made at the hearing, there are four important points to clarify:
1) The proposed $75 fee for students to take AP/IB/Cambridge exams would not be charged to any student who is enrolled in the free lunch program.
2) Regarding the express bus service, many have asked about charging a fee to maintain this service. The School Board and administration have already been investigating this idea but it is unclear as to whether such a fee is legal under existing Virginia law. PWCS is seeking a legal opinion on this matter from the Virginia Attorney General.
3) Under the proposed budget, only kindergarten classes with less than 25 students would not have a teaching assistant. Per Virginia requirements, kindergarten classes with 25–29 students must have an assistant (29 is the maximum allowable class size).
4) While funding for the “road and range” portion of the driver education program was eliminated in the proposed budget, administrative staff is exploring options to have it operated as a self-supporting operation after the regular school day or during summer school.
There was some positive news on Tuesday, March 2 regarding the proposed budget. The Prince William Board of County Supervisors (BOCS) set an advertised property tax rate of $1.236 per $100 of assessed value. This is slightly higher than what was originally proposed and is estimated to generate $4.5 million more in potential revenue to the School Division’s current proposed budget should the BOCS adopt it as the actual rate.
The state budget has also yet to be finalized but things look hopeful for the restoration of $23 million to PWCS, thanks to the School Board’s and Superintendent’s urging the Prince William County legislative delegation and Governor McDonnell to continue the biannual adjustment to the Local Composite Index or LCI, used by the Commonwealth to distribute certain funds to school divisions. However, even with these successful efforts at the state level, there are other reductions to education in the proposed state budget that could negate some or all of the gains related to the LCI. A final vote on the Commonwealth’s budget is scheduled for March 11.
MH,
Simple typo. The line should be; we need to stop running PCU *and* focus on superior education at the undergrad-grad level.
The Board of Regents are government appointees as has been mentioned on a few threads now.
The schools have independance in as much as what is provided to them under state law. This doesn’t change anything but rather clarifies the position that the schools must act in accordance with the provisions made by the General Assembly and cannot exceed that authority.
Essentially, the AG just reminded the schools that the legislature makes the laws and they (the schools) have to follow them.
You see the same issues crop up all the time.. Local school boards complaining they don’t have x.y.z authority or that a county govt wants to do a.b.c but can’t because that’s a state power and not a county power.
See Dillon Rule for a better explanation of the issue in general.
Kelly, where do you draw the line? I graduated from a state school and attended several others post graduate. They all had different policies. I disagree with Ken Cuccinelli. Vehemently. He is over-reaching to advance his own uber conservative ideology. Does he feel the state should be setting dorm curfew? Honor system policy?
The governor could step up to the plate and end this. I suppose he doesn’t want to offend his base.
Once again, I find it so odd that conservatives really don’t want less government. Someone who really wanted less government would leave policy up to the Regents, the provost, the president or those hired to manage each University.
Marin, you are confusing law with policy. i still don’t know what PCU is.
PCU = Politically Correct University (its a pop culture thing; a film with Jeremy Pivon)
Not speaking for other people but I want government and it’s agencies and divisions to follow the law.
kelly…what if a man who was interviewing for a position had great education, experience, and professional presentation, but also exhibited what some perceive as more feminine characteristics: sibilant /s/s, particular manner of movement, etc? Would this be considered wearing “his idiosyncracies on his sleeve?” Are you saying it would be OK for someone not to hire a person for this reason?
I want colleges and universities to provide a welcoming and accepting environment in which all students can learn and all teachers can teach. It leads to better education for all.
hell of a concept DG.
Marin, I don’t see universities as government and its agencies. And I believe they are following the law. There are plenty of policies that aren’t law.
Dorm curfew is at 1 at one school. 2 at another school and at yet another, there is no curfew. These are all policies. They can vary.
I want the government to stay out of policy making at universities when it comes to social policies. Enforcing laws is one thing…ie…allowing blacks back in the 60’s. This negative enforcement is for the birds.
I got an F in pop culture.
I thought you are still getting F’s in pop culture. 😉
Why do I care who is having sex with who as long as they are two consenting adults? Seriously, I really do mean that, who cares!!!!! I guess I am pretty secure in my own sexuality so I have more important issues to worry about.
Cuccinelli, get a life, and start working on the real issues that effect Virginians!
@Moon-howler
Right on!
Wanting public State colleges and universities to be seperate in terms of law and policy and it being reality are two different things. The fact is they are a legal creature of the State and funded with the public treasury. They must follow what the GA puts out.
@Moon-howler
Private universities and colleges in Virginia are not subject to this meddling by the state. You may not agree with the decision, but the state has every right to control the hiring/firing practices of public universities. Government funding is always a double-edged sword …..
This case illustrates perfectly why I do not want government subsidies and government involvement in healthcare.
Kelly, bless you. Sometimes I think I’m alone in thinking the govt is too large and too intrusive.
kelly, your thoughts on my question?
We are not talking about health care here. This has nothing to do with health care. There have been no health care threads here.
We are talking about an uber-conservative telling state universities that it cannot have a policy of non discrimination. A freaking policy. It is a negative.
kenny boy is going to be very sorry he stepped in this one. The problem with uber-conservatives is that they think the rest of the folks feel like they do. No we don’t. And we have long memories.
We also aren’t talking about just hiring practices. In essence, the AG has directed all public institutions of higher learning to stop protecting all LGBT students.
That to me, is unacceptable. We don’t need laws to say that people can be protected.
Kookoonelli is a bigot. Who else does he think should be fair game?
I have many “sexual minority” friends…..Jesus, is that what we’re calling them these days? I could care less about what Joe Blow wants to smack his pee-pee against…other dudes, camels, seaweed, whatever. Not my business. Children of illegal aliens should be back in their home countries along with their parents. Man, that was easy!
Sorry. I missed your missed your post with the question.
Effeminate characteristics are not disqualifying. Some of the best technical people can be very effeminate and downright strange. The more important question is whether he can do the work and fit in with the team. Someone with a confrontational or harsh personality might not fit in.
If the effeminate person shows up with Birkenstocks and a rainbow T-shirt and chooses to discuss the importance of diversity, rather than his potential contributions to the organization, then that might raise a red flag.
I believe this very question is a pending court case.
@marinm
Sometimes I do not post any comments because you have already covered the conservative view point very well.
If they don’t want to come, then stay home. There are plenty of other opportunities to learn. Only flaming liberals care so much about what “other people” think. I can’t imagine the knots you must twist yourself in worrying about what the gay, undocumented, black, red, and yellow, left-handed transvestite down the street thinks about Virginia. It’s really hilarious.
You are talking about government interference into inappropriate issues. I can think of no better example of that than the pending healthcare legislation.
Yeah, I bet he’s quaking in his boots right now. Don’t make the gays mad! They’ll hiss at you with a razor-sharp lisp! Then you’ll see! Here’s the deal, conservatives like me have a long history of not remembering what it’s like to hear liberals spew their crap all over the place, turning pure clean air into clouds of fart-smell. But it’s a little different now. We’re not in such a forgetful mood anymore. We’ll keep pounding on liberals until there’s nothing left. And for every time some lib says “you’ll be sorry”, we’ll point out twice as hard “no, we won’t”. Time for compassionate conservatism is over. The left is always telling their representatives to “get into the faces of conservatives”. Well, we’re ready, bring it on.
Actually no one (admins) on the blog has taken a position on health care other than changes need to happen.
Captain, it isn’t about making gays mad. It is about making mainstream people mad enough to go for his political jugular vein when elections roll around. I know some rather conservative people who are up in arms over this stunt. He is trying to prove himself to his base. The sad news is, his base is rather limited. He fooled people to get into office. It won’t happen again.
I think it is going to be brought on and by people who are much more liberal than Elena and I.
People were concerned about the economy, not about removing anti discriminatory protection against LGBT college students.
KooKoonelli needs to get un-puffed and answer the questions posed by our school board rather than having his head buried in his political social agenda.
btw, Slow, I hate bathroom humor.
Kelly, it isn’t just about hiring and firing practices. Probably 10% or higher Virginia students are sexual minority. I think it is the duty of any public or private college or university to not discriminate against these students.
It’s gonna be a long, long four years. 🙁
Two toilets walk into a bar…….
Yeah, speaking of which…….see ya’ this November! Oh, and mainstream people really give a flip about this issue. Do a poll, I bet it’s right up there with controlling the unicorn population and the sudden and shocking rise in the rate of men who rob banks wearing fishnet stockings.
So now homosexuality is equivalent to an indiosyncrasy? Great…just as we’re getting rid of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in the Armed Services, Cuccinelli is bringing it to Virginia’s higher education system.
What about all those kids who are effectively out in high school? Does the AG want colleges and universities to deep dive into applicants’ social networking sights, looking for evidence that they have a particular idiosycrasy? Or what if an applicant presents as too effeminate or too butch in an admissions interview? Of course, these kids have no recourse if they’re rejected, because schools don’t have to say why any applicant is rejected.
It will also be interesting to see what calibre of academics will be inclined to join the faculty of Virginia’s institutes of higher learning.
Thank goodness my kids go to private, out-of-state schools.
Captain, state folks aren’t running for election in Nov. You care comparing apples to oranges.
Kookoonelli will find out in 3 years. He is too puffed up and on a roll not to make serious mistakes. This was one of them.
Casual, you brought up some really important points. There really are no checks and balances. No college owes a student an explanation as to why someone is rejected for admissions. So if Cuccinelli has his way, we can effectly keep gays and lesbians out of Virginia colleges. Not nice.
I don’t think this is as much about government intrusion, since the schools targeted are state supported. It is more about blatant, unvarnished bigotry and prejudice.
HUH Kelly? You said: “But Cuccinelli is making a good point. Public institutions are not allowed to make up their own protected classes”.
This is about discrimination not PREFERENTIAL treatment. Does help clarify the issue for you? Once again, why do you care who is having sex with who as long as they are adults?
Private universities generally cost more that state universities. Saying that state schools and the people who attend them should just deal with this because they receive public funding doesn’t cut it for me. Basically, that’s like saying that if students want a guarantee that they will be in a supportive environment that will protect them from discrimination, they should pay more money and go to a private school.
Captain, you are bringing out the lisp thing? If you are going to use a stereotype, at least educate yourself a bit more about it. You are presumably speaking about a sibilant, emphasized, or hyper-correct /s/; a lisp is an inability to correctly pronounce an /s/.
I am hoping that university students in Virginia are going to be angry about this, and are going to be moved to action. BTW Captain, liberals like myself not only care about the thoughts of others, we also care about and are capable of sharing the feelings of others. That’s called empathy, and it’s not a bad thing in my book.
Capt, I forgot to respond to something you said…Children of illegal aliens should be back at home with their parents. Do you mean if a student goes through the public school system, works hard and is admitted to college, you want to send him or her to the country of his or her parents’ origin? That is harsh.