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Florida Board of Governors Rejects Santa Ono for University of Florida President

The 10-6 vote reflected conservative unease with his past DEI leadership overshadowed by questions about his handling of campus protests.

Then-University of Michigan President Santa Ono prepares to toss t-shirts into the crowd during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Oregon, in Ann Arbor, Mich., on Nov. 2, 2024.
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University of Florida president-elect Santa Ono answers a question during a meeting of the Florida Board of Governors in Orlando, Tuesday, June 3, 2025, as Mori Hosseini, right, chairman of the UF Board of Trustees, listens. The governors’ board met at the University of Central Florida’s downtown campus in Orlando to vote on Ono becoming Florida’s 14th president. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)
Santa Ono

Overview

  • The board’s decision marked the first time it has ever voted down a finalist for UF’s presidency.
  • Ono’s proposed contract would have paid $3 million annually through 2030 and mandated alignment with Florida’s anti-DEI reforms and hiring pledges.
  • Critics pointed to his tenure at the University of Michigan, where he built an expansive DEI bureaucracy before publicly calling for its reform.
  • Governors pressed Ono over his management of Michigan campus protests, including his response to a pro-terrorist encampment and his remarks on systemic racism.
  • Supporters on UF’s Board of Trustees praised his academic credentials and leadership but could not overcome conservative objections during the nearly four-hour meeting.