Just weeks after it reopened its doors, Alderman Library has a new name. At its first meeting of the calendar year, the Board of Visitors (“BOV”) voted Friday afternoon to rename the newly-renovated building after Edgar Shannon, the school’s fourth president.
After the BOV tabled the resolution in December, the issue quickly emerged as a contentious subject on and off Grounds. Flyers calling for the library’s renaming have been plastered to classroom bulletin boards and Lawn room doors since the semester began, and the Student Council penned a letter in late February calling for the renaming of the building. A few alumni groups, including the Jefferson Council, have also expressed disapproval of the proposal.
The library was previously named after Edwin Alderman, the first president of the University, who has received substantial criticism for his support of eugenics and views on race. Throughout the process, advocates for name change denounced Alderman’s hiring of eugenicists that promoted sterilization and believed in the inferiority of African Americans. The Student Council’s letter references a 1908 quote by Alderman that African Americans recently liberated from slavery were an “untaught and backward race,” adding that the school has demonstrated a precedent of renaming buildings that honored segregationists.
Many opponents of the proposal argue that Alderman’s views were mainstream for top academics at the time, and that it is irrational to impose modern standards of ethics upon individuals from disparate historical contexts. Others assert that the individuals after whom other recently-renamed buildings were named did not contribute to the school in as profound a way as Alderman. They praise the former president for vastly expanding the school’s endowment and shaping UVA into one of the top universities in the South.
The renaming of the library occupied just a brief portion of the meeting, with the BOV also discussing topics such as Darden student housing and the soon-to-be-replaced Scott Stadium scoreboard. Yet, it was clear that the proposal was the focal point of the gathering. John Nau III, chairman of the BOV’s Buildings and Grounds Committee, remarked, “During my two terms on the Board of Visitors, I’ve never had [a topic] where it was so emotional.”
The library’s new namesake is Edgar Shannon, president of the University between 1959 and 1974. In contrast to Alderman, Shannon championed integration and co-education during his tenure, hoping to cultivate a “top-flight student body.” The fourth president shepherded UVA through the turmoil of the 1960s and nearly tripled the size of the student body—a size that roughly remains to this day.
“All of the time and energy spent on this issue is an unfortunate reminder that we live in an unforgiving culture,” BOV member Paul Harris said Thursday, speaking out against the proposal. “I would rather see this university build bridges than seek flaws in past leaders who can never meet today’s standards.” Harris later expressed that he wished the BOV had had the opportunity to name the building after a woman, person of color, or another notable Virginian.
The Buildings and Grounds Committee voted to advance the proposal on Thursday, and the full BOV approved the name change Friday afternoon after a lengthy closed session. Both motions passed unanimously, although Harris abstained each time.
UVA’s largest library will now be officially known as the Edgar Shannon Library. The plaque honoring Alderman will remain mounted in Memorial Hall—the library’s fourth-floor foyer—to remind future students about the nuanced history of the school. Alderman Road will also keep its name.
Despite the controversy, the unanimous result demonstrates that students maintain substantial sway over proceedings at the University. Lillian Rojas, the BOV’s student member, remarked that the overwhelming majority of students support the name change, and numerous members seemed swayed by this answer. The character of any institution is defined by its constituents, and at a school so characterized by student self-governance, this is even more true at UVA. This spirit of involvement represents the ideals upon which the school was founded, entrusting students with the power to forge change for themselves. Regardless of the outcome, self-governance constitutes the best of UVA. It forms the fundamental essence of the University, and enables the school to flourish, even when faced with issues as emotionally-charged as this one.
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