Rationally Ignorant about the Board of Visitors

The Board of Visitors at the University of Virginia plays a very influential and powerful role. According to UVA's site:  "The Board approves the policies and budget for the University, and is entrusted with the preservation of the University's many traditions, including the Honor System." As the BoV is able to significantly shape students' experiences during their time at the University, I would expect students to be aware of the BoV's activities and the issues on which they vote. However, according to an article from The Cavalier Daily, "nearly 60 percent of students do not know enough about the Board of Visitors to form an opinion about them". This is an example of rational ignorance. Learning about the Board of Visitors takes time, and it is evident that the marginal benefit would be less than its associated marginal cost, if students were to gain additional knowledge about the BoV.

The student member of the BoV is trying to lower the marginal cost of acquiring knowledge on the BoV by "actively working to make information about the Board more transparent and accessible to the student body,” However, perhaps the reason the majority of students are not knowledgeable about the BoV is not because the marginal cost is too high, but because the marginal benefit of acquiring knowledge about them is too low. In this case, these students don't perceive the activities of the BoV to significantly affect their lives. Assuming they are acting rationally in their best interest, there is not much we can do!