The University of Florida has a sole finalist in the search for its 14th president — again.
On Monday, the university's presidential search committee unanimously recommended Stuart Bell to the board of trustees, according to a news release. Bell previously served as president of the University of Alabama, holding the position for 10 years before his departure last summer.
Bell helped elevate Alabama's national rankings while strengthening academic standards and increasing enrollment, the release said, while advancing athletics and expanding campus facilities.
Rahul Patel is the chair of the presidential search committee, and said in the release, "[Bell's] experience at the helm of a flagship university, fundraising abilities, and deep relationships across higher education," made him a top candidate for the job.
The search for the university's next president has been a long one. Here is a look at how UF's leadership transitions have unfolded in the past two years.
After former UF President Ben Sasse stepped down in 2024, the presidential search committee got to work, once again starting the process it had completed 17 months before.
Sasse's last day in office was July 31, 2024. After he left, reports surfaced that six Sasse senior staffers racked up more than $100,000 in travel expenses after he allowed them to work remotely. More controversy swirled around staff salaries that outstripped comparable positions and reports that he spent over $1.3 million on private catering for dinners, football tailgates and extravagant social functions in his first year on the job.
Former UF president Kent Fuchs stepped in as interim president. Ten months later, the search committee announced its choice to replace Sasse: Santa Ono.
The first search
Ono, a longtime academic, was president at the University of Michigan. In its announcement last May, UF described Ono as, "a world-renowned researcher recognized for pioneering work on the immune system and eye disease," and said he would bring, "a distinguished record of leadership in academia and public health across the United States and Canada."
UF's decision on Ono was unanimous. But in Florida, a university president confirmation requires a vote of the state university system board of governors. That decision, in a 10-6 vote, failed.
"Deeply disappointing," is how UF Board of Trustees Chair Mori Hosseini described the outcome. He said the interest of academic leaders from across the country gave a "powerful signal" that Florida schools were gaining trust for their devotion to academics, neutrality and accountability.
"The symbolism and substance of the sitting president of a university as prestigious as the University of Michigan choosing to come to the University of Florida should not be lost," he said.
But the failed vote meant the search process had to begin again, and Donald Landry took over as interim president.
In the legislature
The month before the Ono vote, Florida's House of Representatives tried to change the confirmation process for university presidents. It voted 104-8 last April to give each university board of trustees the authority to name a president — without board of governors approval. It would have also rolled back a 2022 law that allowed presidential searches to occur behind closed doors, a measure that helped pave the way for the Sasse's selection.
Gov. Ron DeSantis slammed the decision, promising a swift veto if the measure cleared both the House and Senate.
“Imagine that they bring some communist in to be the president of a university and I’m just supposed to sit there and twiddle my thumbs?” DeSantis said last April. “That’s not how I roll.”
Despite the overwhelming success in the House, the measure later stalled in the Senate and died in the Rules Committee.
Bell's path forward
The bill's failure means Bell will still need a vote from the board of governors to become UF's next president, but before that board votes, the UF Board of Trustees will get its say.
The university has not yet announced its timeline for Bell's appointment process, but based on Ono's process, the next step is likely a campus visit. Ono visited campus two days after his recommendation, where he presented his vision to students, faculty, staff and administrators.
Three weeks later, the board of trustees interviewed Ono and unanimously approved his appointment as president-elect. The next week, the board of governors had its vote.
The university said it will share more on Bell's leadership, background and honors on its presidential search website.
