Story at a glance
- The Virginia Military Institute has a historically racist past and was associated with the pro-slavery Confederacy during the Civil War.
- Last year, a report by the Washington Post revealed ongoing racism and discrimination at the school, spurring change.
- The college is appointing Cedric T. Wins to be the first Black superintendent in its history.
The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is appointing the first Black superintendent in its history to oversee reforms at the historically Confederate school.
“The VMI Board of Visitors is pleased that Maj. Gen. Wins has agreed to lead the Institute during this critical time of transition,” John William Boland, president of the VMI Board of Visitors, said in a release. “Gen. Peay’s 17 years of service to the Institute were transformative, and I am confident that Maj. Gen. Wins’ experience and values will provide steady and principled leadership as we continue to move the Institute forward.”
Cedric T. Wins, who was appointed by the college’s Board of Visitors, attended the school about a decade after it first began accepting Black students in 1968, graduating in 1985. The country’s first state military college was established in 1839, and its cadets and graduates fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War, including General Stonewall Jackson.
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Just last year, the school removed a statue of the Confederate general as part of several diversity and inclusion initiatives that followed a report by the Washington Post about rampant racism at the school.
“More than a half century after the Virginia Military Institute integrated its ranks, Black cadets still endure relentless racism at the nation’s oldest state-supported military college. The atmosphere of hostility and cultural insensitivity makes VMI — whose cadets fought and died for the slaveholding South during the Civil War and whose leaders still celebrate that history — especially difficult for non-White students to attend,” the Post reported, citing “more than a dozen current and former students of color.”
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Wins, a retired Army major general, took over after the previous superintendent stepped down in the wake of the report and has already overseen historic changes, including the selection of the college’s first female regimental commander, the highest-ranking position in the corps of cadets.
“I am excited to return to VMI, a place that had an extraordinary impact on me as a leader and person,” said Wins in a statement. “Now, more than ever, the lessons and values of VMI are needed in the world, and I am humbled to be a part of making that happen. I most look forward to leading the cadets and ensuring we have a safe and successful conclusion to the academic year, hit the ground running during the spring sports season, and continue fulfilling our vital mission of producing educated and honorable men and women.”
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