Todd Haymore, who served as VCU rector, joins board of Association of Governing Boards

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Todd Haymore, who served eight years on the Virginia Commonwealth University Board of Visitors, including leading it as rector from 2023 to 2025, has been named to the board of directors of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges.

AGB works with governing boards and institutional leaders across higher education to strengthen governance and advance the long-term success of colleges, universities and foundations.

Haymore earned his MBA from VCU in 2004. His professional career, which has included senior roles in both the public and private sectors, has given him a close view of the growing connections among higher education, economic development and workforce needs.

Grant Heston, vice president for Enterprise Marketing and Communications at VCU and VCU Health, recently spoke with Haymore. Their conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

Why were you interested in joining the AGB board?

When I finished eight years on the VCU Board of Visitors and two years as rector, I was ready to take a little bit of a break from higher education activities, other than having my daughters in college.

But leaders at AGB, including [President] Ross Mugler and others, reached out and were very complimentary about my time on the VCU board. Over time, they convinced me that what I had learned during those eight years, particularly as rector, could be beneficial to AGB members across the country.

I also think I can bring a somewhat different voice because I am not a full-time higher education professional. I have experience in the public and private sectors as well as firsthand experience governing a university.

What perspectives do you hope to bring to AGB?

First and foremost, I bring firsthand experience with the proper role of a university governing board. That kind of experience is hard-earned. Until you have actually served in that capacity and had responsibility for helping a university become stronger, it is difficult to fully appreciate what governing well requires.

Second, I hope to bring my experience at the intersection of higher education and economic development. Universities such as VCU are playing increasingly important roles with state and local governments to attract business investment and create jobs. Then there is the immediate connection between those companies and the talent pipeline that universities provide.

CoStar is a great example. VCU and President Rao played a role in helping recruit CoStar to Virginia and Richmond. Look at everything that has followed from that decision in terms of investment, jobs and opportunities for Richmond, Virginia and VCU. That connection among higher education, economic development and workforce development is very important to me.

The third area is the role a governing board plays in empowering a university president and leadership team to lead. Boards should govern. Presidents should be able to operationally lead their universities.

I hope my experience at VCU can help other governing board members think about how they can empower their presidents.

What do you see as the biggest challenge facing higher education today?

I would put cost, affordability and return on investment at the top of the list.

Students and families are asking what it costs to earn a degree and what they receive in return for that investment. Universities need to make sure students receive an education that prepares them to enter the workforce after graduation, succeed in their first job and continue growing throughout their careers. Students and families need to understand that the return on their investment is there.

Looking back on your eight years on the VCU Board of Visitors, what accomplishments make you most proud?

The first is empowering President Rao to continue leading VCU and helping give him the opportunity to take the university to an even higher level. I believe VCU is more highly regarded today than it was when I joined the board in 2017.

I am incredibly proud that the board voted unanimously during my time as rector to extend President Rao's contract and ask him to continue leading VCU. Our board included appointees from three gubernatorial administrations and two political parties, yet we came together thoughtfully and unanimously around the university's leadership and its future.

I'm also proud of the decisive actions the board took during very challenging periods. Some of those decisions and votes were difficult, but they were made with what we believed were the best interests of VCU in mind. VCU's continued success and acclaim seem to indicate that our decisions, thus far, have been in the university's best interests.

Finally, I am proud that two people I - with the support of my colleagues - put into leadership positions during my time as rector went on to become rectors themselves.

My successor as rector, Ellen Fitzsimmons, and I worked together closely, and I think the world of her. I was also able to put Steven DeLuca into a leadership role during my tenure, and he is now serving as rector. I know he'll lead with distinction, too.

Seeing both of them rise to lead the board gives me an incredible sense of pride. In some small way, I hope I helped put them in a position to succeed.

You emphasized transparency and open communication as rector. Why are those qualities so important to effective governance?

If you are going to be an effective governing board, there needs to be open communication and transparency.

That approach also helped build trust and credibility among board members. My door was never closed, and my phone line was never unplugged. There was always an opportunity for dialogue, whether the issue was small or highly consequential. That sometimes meant having very difficult conversations, but those conversations helped establish trust.

I think of it almost like training for an athletic event. What you do during the calm times prepares you to perform better during the difficult times. The relationships and habits you establish before a crisis matter enormously when challenges come.

You are also a VCU alum. What would you tell prospective students and their families about your university?

VCU is a leading R1 research institution, not just in Virginia but nationally. It includes an academic medical center, and serving on the board gave me a much greater appreciation for the enormous role the health system plays in VCU's impact and reputation.

VCU also has an incredible economic impact on the commonwealth. Its footprint reaches into so many areas that create economic opportunities, generate jobs and contribute to communities.

Most importantly, VCU prepares students to succeed. It produces graduates who are ready to enter the workforce, take advantage of opportunities and build successful careers over time.

Those are the things I came to appreciate much more deeply through my service on the board, and they are the things I would talk about with any student or family considering VCU.

One final thing: You're a big sports fan. This year, the VCU men's basketball team will …

Win the Atlantic 10 and make at least the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.

It is going to be incredibly difficult to replicate last March, especially the NCAA Tournament win over North Carolina - and I'm not going to call it an upset.

I am incredibly proud that I had the opportunity to work with President Rao and [Vice President and Director of Athletics] Ed McLaughlin to help recruit Phil Martelli Jr. to VCU. I'm proud of the work he and his assistant coaches are doing to take an already great basketball program and elevate it even further.

Todd P. Haymore is managing director of Hunton Andrews Kurth's public affairs consultancy. He served as Virginia's secretary of commerce and trade, secretary of agriculture and forestry, and commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.