This story has been updated with additional information.
University of Michigan President Santa Ono said Sunday that he plans to leave Ann Arbor to become the next president of the University of Florida.
“I write today to share that I have been selected as the sole finalist for the presidency of the University of Florida, and once the appointment is approved by their Board of Governors, I expect to assume that role later this summer,” Ono wrote in a message to the Michigan community on the president office’s website.
Ono wrote that he did not make the decision lightly and that he had already informed the chair of the university’s Board of Regents, Kathy White, of his decision to leave.
“Serving as your president these past three academic years has been a distinct honor,” he wrote.
The Free Press left messages with several U-M regents seeking comment.
The University of Florida announced the decision on its website, saying Ono was chosen through an “extensive and thorough” selection process.
“Dr. Ono’s proven record of academic excellence, innovation and collaborative leadership at world-class institutions made him our unanimous choice,” Rahul Patel, chair of the presidential search committee, said in a statement. “We are confident he is the right person to build on UF’s strong foundation and help realize our bold vision for the future.”
A vision researcher whose work focuses on the immune system and eye diseases, Ono had previously served as president of the University of British Columbia and the University of Cincinnati. When he was sworn in as Michigan’s 15th president in March 2023, he said the Covid-19 pandemic, climate change and racism were tasks that demanded attention and that Michigan was up to the task.
Ono initially signed a five-year contract that paid him $975,000 a year, plus an additional $350,000 in deferred compensation. In October, the Board of Regents extended his contract through 2032 and increased his base salary to $1.3 million per year.
In his message announcing his departure, Ono touted as accomplishments several initiatives, including those aimed at sustainability, artificial intelligence, urban outreach and the “Look to Michigan” campaign, a $7 billion fund-raising effort that is more than half way to its goal. He also noted the launch of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute to combat antisemitism and the planned Institute on Civic Discourse, which aims to promote dialogue and understanding.
But his tenure at the University of Michigan has been marked by controversies, especially the school’s handling of protests against the Gaza War and its seeming reluctance to challenge some of the dictates of the Trump administration.
The school was accused at times, of doing too little to combat anti-semitism on campus and at other times of ignoring reports of Islamophobia. Gaza War protesters have demanded the university divest its endowment holdings from companies doing business in Israel. The school has rejected those calls.
Vandals have attacked Ono’s home and the homes of other U-M officials, spray-painting pro-Palestinian messages and breaking windows.
The school announced in March that it was shuttering its office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion after Trump targeted DEI programs for elimination. Many critics accused the school of capitulating to Trump.
U-M said it was shifting money out of DEI programs into more student-facing initiatives, including an expansion of the Go Blue Guarantee, which provides free tuition to in-state students whose household incomes are $125,000 or less.
Contact John Wisely: [email protected]. On X: @jwisely
