This paper presents a multiple case study examining the institutional ethics of two large music institutions in the United States. Specifically, the purpose of this study was to examine how schools of music construct and uphold their institutional values—particularly when individual stakeholders hold ethical commitments that conflict with those values. Our research questions were as follows: (1) How do individual stakeholders perceive their collective responsibilities to construct their institution’s values, and how do they work to uphold, shape, or challenge them? (2) How are ethical tensions and disagreements regarding a school of music’s expressed values navigated between the institution and its individual stakeholders? (3) How do ethical misalignments between individuals and their institutions contribute to the perceived emergence or reinforcement of institutional virtues or vices?Using collective belief epistemology (Gilbert, 1989, 2004) and institutional virtue/vice epistemology (Fricker, 2010, 2020) as theoretical frameworks, our analysis yielded three within-case themes at each school site. At the Smith School of Music, institutional values were supported by strong faculty governance and a recent strategic planning initiative, but tensions between progressive and traditional faculty members often challenged these commitments. Many participants expressed feelings of powerlessness, resulting in a culture of inferential inertia (Fricker, 2020) in which values were upheld more in name than in practice.In contrast, while the Johnson School of Music also articulated strong joint commitments toward their institutional values, faculty members navigated tensions between autonomy and ambiguity in enacting them, due to shifts in leadership styles and a lack of clear institutional policies. Value-related tensions were often addressed through strategic rebukes and acts of passive resistance among the faculty. While the school made strides in advancing several of its values, some believed underlying motivational misalignments—largely driven by market pressures, donor interests, and administrative self-interest—occasionally led the school to stray from its student-centered mission.Our between-case analysis revealed three additional themes across both school sites: (1) Faculty Governance and Policies are Necessary but Not Sufficient; (2) Stowaways in Resisting Institutional Vice; and (3) “We Survive by Evolution”: Institutional Virtue as a Long-Term Project. We then discuss implications for music education policy, including the need to (1) clearly identify and meticulously define institutional values; (2) look beyond bottom-line, instrumental outcomes in favor of assessing the underlying motives that drive institutional action; and (3) develop and maintain formal policies that respect shared governance structures. We close by offering limitations and avenues for future research.