CHARLESTON, W.Va. — There are currently two pieces of legislation in Charleston that would restore higher education board of governors voting rights to all or some classes.
House Bill 3279, passed last year, made several changes to boards of governors across the state including taking away voting rights from student and faculty representatives.
Marion County state senator Joey Garcia, D-Marion, is the co-sponsor of two pieces of legislation that would at least restore voting rights to some or all classes affected under the new law.
“Yesterday it was WVU Day; the day before here at the capitol it was Marshall Day, and we had a lot of students that came around advocating that we give them their voice back,” Garcia said on WAJR’s “Talk of the Town” Thursday.
The two major higher education institutions in the state were celebrated at the state legislature this week with much fanfare. Garcia said many of the students lobbied lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to restore their voting rights.
“Right now those students have to rely on someone else who is on the board appointed by the governor,” Garcia said. “And there’s no voice necessarily coming from the students.”
This version of the legislature is not likely to restore all voting rights but Garcia believes this group is capable of making some change.
“I think that when you look at staff, faculty, and students, that’s probably harder,” Garcia said. “I voted against the bill that took those votes away, and we basically have the same legislators here.”
Most governing boards are made up of 11 or more people, making it impossible for a student to sway a vote and unlikely that a student-faculty alliance could significantly influence a board decision. Garcia said it’s important for the students to have a voice, just a voice.
“Not even having the final deciding vote on an issue but the opportunity to put together a motion where maybe they want to talk and discuss something or propose a course of action.”
Garcia said he and others will continue to bring the legislation up if it happens to fail this session. He suggested there’s enough energy within the student body and faculty overall that the issue could influence the 2026 election.
“I think it’s important we’re still trying to push for that,” Garcia said. “If it doesn’t happen this year, we need to keep coming back, coming back, and I think students might even make it an election issue this year.”