CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) -- A group of University of Virginia alumni are calling on the school's board to explain candidly its attempted ouster of President Teresa Sullivan, saying a failure to do so will hurt the university's reputation and its fundraising efforts.

In an open letter to the board sent Wednesday, 14 alumni spanning three decades equated the board's June 10 forced ouster to a "boardroom coup" more in line with a corporation than an academic institution. Sullivan's resignation was announced June 10, followed by protests and uproar on the Charlottesville campus until she was reinstated June 26.

The eight-page letter calls for an "open and dispassionate analysis" of the university's governance. It was sent before the board's retreat next week.

A university spokeswoman did not immediately return a message seeking comment.