Brandon Adair loves Virginia Wesleyan University.
It’s there that he not only made a name for himself, but also for the school after he led the Marlins to back-to-back Final Four appearances in basketball, including a national title in 2006. He also earned All-America selections in 2006 and 2007.
He’s been an ambassador for the school and has done whatever he could to help it grow its name.
That’s why it pains him so much to know the school is changing its name to Batten University.
The worse part is how he found out.
It wasn’t through a phone call, email, letter or anything personal.
He learned about it through an online post.
“It was confusing at first. Obviously, I’ve known the Batten family. I’ve probably met them two times throughout my time at Wesleyan. And I know what they’ve done for the school,” he said. “But it was just shock to have the whole school named after one family.”
After taking some time to let it sink in, Adair wrote a heartfelt letter to the university, letting the school know he was severing all ties.
To his surprise, he was told, “We will, of course, honor your request to remove you from the Alumni Council and from all alumni communications,” the email read. “Please know that your past contributions and commitment to Virginia Wesleyan have been deeply valued, and the impact you’ve had on the University and its community will always be recognized.”
The email continued, “While we respect your decision to step back, should you ever choose to reconnect in the future,” the email read, “you will always be welcomed with open arms.”
After reading that response, Adair felt even more pain.
“I did take some time to really think about what I was going to do,” said Adair, who will be inducted into the Hampton Roads Sports Hall of Fame in November. “And then that slap in the face of an email, saying we’ll accept your thoughts on this. And then if you happen to come back in the future, we’ll welcome you back with open arms. I’m like, ‘Wow.’ ”
Adair, now an NBA referee, isn’t sure what to think, but he knows it hurts.
“Athletics have built that school and put it on the map. And now we’re changing the whole name of the university,” said Adair, who also has been inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame, Old Dominion Athletic Conference Hall of Fame and Virginia Wesleyan Hall of Fame. “Thirty years from now, when you tell people you went to Virginia Wesleyan, they’re going to say, ‘I’ve never heard of it.’ That’s the thing that hurts the most. The history is being erased at the end of the day.”
Adair isn’t alone in his feelings.
Last week, more than 35 people gathered on Wesleyan Drive, near the school, to protest the name change.
And as of Friday, a petition protesting the change had garnered more than 5,600 signatures.
Adair is just one of many former athletes who are against the name change, which will go into effect July 1, 2026.
Former women’s soccer star Lindsey Williams said she felt “blindsided” by the news of the name change.
“I was shocked. I do remember audibly saying, ‘What! Is this April Fools?’ ” said Williams, who was inducted into the Virginia Wesleyan Athletic Hall of Fame in 2015. “I was completely shocked. I started thinking what this would mean for the school to have a new name. And various emotions came over me.”
Williams, who was the goalie on the 2006 women’s soccer Final Four and Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) championship team, couldn’t understand why this decision was made.
“They kept it so secretive, the entire process,” she said. “There was no communication and no outreach for input from any constituents, alumni, current students, faculty and staff. None of that. And no transparency at all since they made the announcement.”
She said the timing of the announcement also was unfortunate as athletes were just returning to school.
“They had no opportunity to make an informed decision as to whether they would want to continue or would they want to make a different decision about coming,” she said. “Many of them may not have, but some may have had a second thought. I have to believe that some may have decided to transfer elsewhere because that’s not the school they chose when they made that big life decision.”
When Julia Green Marks starred on the women’s soccer team, she remembers the pride she had when she wore a Virginia Wesleyan University uniform.
Now a coach herself, she always stresses to her players the pride they should have when they play.
“I take something that was said to me as an athlete, and that I say to my kids. It’s never about the name on the back of the jersey, it’s about the name that’s on the front,” said Marks, who was inducted into the Virginia Wesleyan Athletic Hall of Fame in 2012. “And that’s a message that’s been key in the entire athletic department. You play and you’re proud of the school that you represent. I think that name on the front means something. And it means something to quite a few generations who have worn it.”
In 2003, Marks was Virginia Wesleyan’s first All-American in women’s soccer and a former Old Dominion Athletic Conference Player of the Year. She has seen the school grow tremendously since then.
“Virginia Wesleyan is much different than when I was there,” she said. “It’s got a lot of oomph behind its name. To completely jettison that name is disrespectful. And it’s something that concerns a great number of alumni.”
Just think about the rise of the softball program. The Marlins have won three Division III national championships (2017, 2018, 2021) and finished runner-up last season. There will now have to an asterisk added in the record books.
Anne Marie Nash Burroughs admits all of this has been tough. She played women’s lacrosse from 2001-04 and set the Virginia Wesleyan single-game record with 11 goals in 2003. She was inducted into the Virginia Wesleyan Athletic Hall of Fame in 2013.
“I just don’t understand it,” she said about the name change. “I don’t want to take anything away from the Batten family because I think they are amazing people. But I don’t know a lot of colleges who have changed their names like that. I don’t understand the meaning behind it.”
Her fear is that Virginia Wesleyan University will be forgotten forever.
“It’s going to be sad for me when my kids will say, ‘My mom went to Virginia Wesleyan.’ And in 10 to 20 years, their friends are going to be like, ‘What was that?’ ” she said. “How you can just completely remove that for a financial decision doesn’t make sense to me. But again, I wasn’t there and I wasn’t privy to what went on in those meetings … But someone thought that was a good business move. I’m not sure it was.”
Larry Rubama, 757-575-6449, larry.rubama@pilotonline.com
