Board of Visitors members at the University of Virginia exchanged candid, critical text messages about lawmakers and faculty amid a period of campus tension, records show. The messages, obtained via public-records requests and reported by Josh Moody, reveal trustees venting frustration over political and governance disputes as the institution navigates leadership and public-pressure challenges. The texts detail private conversations among trustees that university officials had not previously disclosed, creating fresh scrutiny of board conduct and its relationship with faculty governance and state political leaders. The leak intensifies mistrust on a campus already coping with abrupt leadership changes and public criticism. University leaders and faculty governance groups are likely to press for clearer protocols around board communications and transparency. For higher-education leaders watching UVA, the episode underscores legal and reputational risks that can follow when governing boards operate behind closed lines of private messaging.