The progressive Virginia Union University is joining institutions like the University of Richmond, Sweet Briar College, and more with the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges! Learn more about the agreement in the VFIC release below!
Virginia Union University, an HBCU located in Richmond, Virginia, officially becomes the sixteenth member of the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges (VFIC) on July 1, 2021. This new affiliation is the result of a conversation that began two years ago among VFIC board members, and it recognizes the aligned missions of Virginia Union and the other fifteen schools in the VFIC consortium: to teach a broadly pragmatic liberal arts and sciences education in environments that value and encourage ethical leadership and responsible citizenship.
“Virginia Union University is pleased to join the consortium of VFIC colleges and universities,” says Dr. Hakim J. Lucas, President and CEO of Virginia Union University. “Our priorities align closely with the VFIC’s mission, which is to provide a top-quality and affordable education as we prepare tomorrow’s global leaders. Virginia’s private colleges and universities offer a unique academic experience and are critical to the creation of a diverse and inclusive workforce.”
Virginia Union University was founded in 1865 to provide newly emancipated slaves with an opportunity for education and advancement. Today, the university offers a broad range of educational opportunities that advances liberal arts education, teaching, research, science, technology, continuing education, civic engagement, and international experiences. Virginia Union University is nourished by its African American heritage and energized by a commitment to excellence and diversity.
“It’s impossible to overstate my enthusiasm for Virginia Union’s membership to the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges,” says Gary Thomson, founder and president of Thomson Consulting and chairman of the VFIC board of directors. “While I believe Virginia Union will benefit from being part of a consortium of notable institutions, I even more firmly believe our organization will benefit from Virginia Union’s talented executive leadership, dedicated faculty and staff, as well as the engaged student body.”
With a focus on offering students “The Promise of a Limitless Future,” Virginia Union provides an intellectually challenging and spiritually enriching environment for learning, empowers students to develop strong moral values for success, and develops scholars, leaders, and lifelong learners of a global society. The university community places the highest value on innovation, spiritual formation, integrity, diversity and inclusion, and excellence.
“The future of higher education in Virginia has become all the brighter because of our new partnership with such a premier academic institution,” says Thomson. “As the current chairman of the VFIC, I know I speak for all our Trustees in welcoming Virginia Union and sharing in the excitement of our collaboration.”
