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UVA accused of setting up ‘slush fund’ by outgoing board member

Posted at 3:19 PM, Jul 08, 2016
and last updated 2016-07-08 15:19:49-04

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Prominent Virginia Beach developer Helen Dragas fired a parting shot at the University of Virginia as she left her term on the school’s governing board.

In an opinion piece in the Washington Post, Dragas wrote that through “financial maneuvering” the school had “created a $2.3 billion dollar slush fund.”

Dragas was sharply critical of rising tuition rates, noting that since 2009 in-state tuition at UVA has gone up by 74 percent, while aid to the neediest students has been cut.

She claimed UVA is “slowly being privatized.”

Dragas went on to say that she and other board members had made “futile requests” for more information about the school’s finances.

Dragas was appointed to UVA’s board in 2008 and in 2012 became the first woman to lead the board.

In response, UVA sent the Post a response saying the school offers “affordable excellence,” and has a commitment to “remain one of the best values in higher education.”