VMI; the Institute shall be grounded in a strict code of honor and academic excellence, etc.

Virginia Military Institute. Provides that Virginia Military Institute (the Institute) shall be grounded in a strict code of honor and high academics, shall uphold a strict military structure, and shall remain solely an undergraduate degree-granting institution of higher education. All cadets shall participate in one of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) programs at all times while attending the Institute. The Institute shall continue to demonstrate its commitment to contributing to the elimination of sexual violence in the military and shall develop reasonable policies and procedures to demonstrate such continued commitment. The bill provides that the Adjutant General, who is a member of the board of visitors (the board), shall serve as an ex officio nonvoting member. Current law states that the Adjutant General shall serve ex officio. The bill removes the requirement that the board get the prior written consent of the Governor in order to exercise its powers regarding gifts, grants, devises, and bequests. The bill states that the board shall prescribe the terms upon which all cadets, and not just pay cadets, may be admitted, their number, the course of their instruction, and the nature and duration of their service. The bill provides that the Institute, rather than the board, may admit annually as state cadets, upon evidence of fair moral character, individuals selected from the Commonwealth at large who are at least 16 but not more than 25 years old. The bill replaces the current provision allowing the Institute to admit military scholarship cadets to allow the Institute to admit Virginia National Guard scholarship cadets and removes the annual cap of 40 such scholarships. The bill expands who can confer degrees to include the superintendent and removes the authority of the board to confer honorary degrees or diplomas of distinguished merit.