The University of Florida Board of Trustees during its Aug. 18 virtual meeting did not reveal nor vote on a candidate for the university's next interim president.
Current interim President Kent Fuchs had his contract extended by a month after the state Board of Governors stunned the university community in June by rejecting Dr. Santa Ono, the sole finalist for the university's 14th president.
Fuchs, whose extended contract ends Sept. 1, has served as the university's interim president since Aug. 1, 2024, following the sudden resignation of Ben Sasse after just 17 months on the job. Fuchs previously served as the university's full-time president from 2015 to 2023.
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Board Chair Mori Hosseini told his fellow trustees that he is continuing the work of finding a suitable candidate for the interim position.
"This has been a focus over the past few months and I have taken a deliberate and heartfelt approach to this responsibility. President Fuchs has been extremely gracious in extending his appointment. A soon as we have an interim president candidate, we will schedule an in-person board meeting to interview and consider the candidate for interim president," Hosseini said.
The board is scheduled to meet for a two-day retreat on Sept. 18.One possible candidate that has surfaced is Robert P. George, a political philosopher and conservative legal scholar at Princeton University. George, 70, also is a senior fellow at the Witherspoon Institute, an independent conservative think tank and research center in Princeton, New Jersey, not affiliated with the university.
Gov. Ron DeSantis' schedule shows he had a meeting with George on Aug. 15. The reason for the meeting, however, was not given by the governor's office.
The Sun has emailed George seeking comment on the interim president position as well as what was discussed during his meeting with DeSantis. His office phone number listed on the Princeton University website appears to be out of service.
The university is expected to begin its search for another permanent president in early 2026.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: UF Board of Trustees still without candidate for interim president
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