Seventeen men have served as the
president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
of the
University of Florida
The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...
since the modern university was created from the
consolidation of four predecessor institutions by the Florida state legislature in 1905.
The University of Florida is a
public university
A public university or public college is a university or college that is in owned by the state or receives significant public funds through a national or subnational government, as opposed to a private university. Whether a national universit ...
, created and supported by the State of Florida. The primary campus of the university is located in
Gainesville, and it has academic, agricultural, medical and other research facilities in
Jacksonville
Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...
,
Orlando
Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures rele ...
, and throughout Florida. The university traces its origins to 1853, the founding date of the
East Florida Seminary
The East Florida Seminary was an institution of higher learning established by the State of Florida in 1853, and absorbed into the newly established University of Florida in 1905. The school operated in Ocala, Florida, Ocala from 1853 until 1861. ...
in Ocala, Florida, the oldest of the university's four predecessor institutions. Following the 1905 merger of its predecessor institutions, the newly consolidated men's university and land-grant college was first known as the "University of the State of Florida." The name was officially shortened to the "University of Florida" in 1909.
The University of Florida is one of sixty-two member institutions of the
Association of American Universities
The Association of American Universities (AAU) is an organization of American research universities devoted to maintaining a strong system of academic research and education. Founded in 1900, it consists of 63 universities in the United States ( ...
(AAU), the association of preeminent North American research universities, and the only AAU member university in Florida. Following the creation of performance standards by the Florida state legislature in 2013, the
Florida Board of Governors
The Florida Board of Governors is a 17-member governing board that serves as the governing body for the State University System of Florida, which includes all public universities in the state of Florida.
After its predecessor, the Florida Board ...
designated the University of Florida as one of two "preeminent universities" among the twelve universities of the State University System of Florida.
To date, the youngest president of the University of Florida has been
Andrew Sledd
Andrew Warren Sledd (November 7, 1870 – March 16, 1939) was an American theologian, university professor and university president. A native of Virginia, he was the son of a prominent Methodist minister, and was himself ordained as a minis ...
, who facilitated the organization of the new university from the consolidation of its predecessor institutions in 1905. When the
Florida Board of Control
The Florida Board of Control (1905-1965) was the statewide governing body for the State University System of Florida, which included all public universities in the state of Florida. It was replaced by the Florida Board of Regents in 1965. appointed Sledd as the first president of the new state university on June 7, 1905, he was five months short of his thirty-fifth birthday.
[University of Florida]
Past Presidents of the University of Florida
. Retrieved April 4, 2010. The longest-serving president of the university was
John J. Tigert
John James Tigert IV (February 11, 1882 – January 21, 1965) was an American university president, university professor and administrator, college sports coach and the U.S. Commissioner of Education. Tigert was a native of Tennessee and the ...
, who held the office for nineteen years from 1928 to 1947. The first university
faculty member to become its permanent president was
J. Wayne Reitz
Julius Wayne Reitz (December 31, 1908 – December 24, 1993) was an American agricultural economist, professor and university president. Reitz was a native of Kansas, and earned bachelor's degree, bachelor's, master's degree, master's and doc ...
in 1955, and the first university
alumnus
Alumni (singular: alumnus (masculine) or alumna (feminine)) are former students of a school, college, or university who have either attended or graduated in some fashion from the institution. The feminine plural alumnae is sometimes used for grou ...
to become its president was
Stephen C. O'Connell
Stephen Cornelius O'Connell (January 22, 1916 – April 13, 2001) was an American attorney, appellate judge and university president. O'Connell was a native of Florida, and earned bachelor's and law degrees before becoming a practicing attorne ...
in 1967.
The current president of the University of Florida is
W. Kent Fuchs. Fuchs replaced
Bernard Machen
James Bernard Machen (; born March 26, 1944) is an American university professor and administrator. Machen is a native of Mississippi, and earned several academic degrees before becoming a university administrator and president. Machen had been t ...
on January 1, 2015. Using the university's counting method (acting or "interim" presidents are not numbered), Fuchs is the twelfth president of the university. Eleven men have served as the university's permanent president, and five have served as its interim, or acting, president pending the appointment of a permanent successor.
List of presidents
Timeline of University of Florida presidential terms
See also
*
Florida Gators
The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as t ...
*
History of the University of Florida
The history of the University of Florida is firmly tied to the history of public education in the state of Florida. The University of Florida originated as several distinct institutions that were consolidated to create a single state-supported un ...
*
List of University of Florida alumni
This list of University of Florida alumni includes current students, former students, and graduates of the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. Honorary degree recipients can be found on the List of University of Florida honorary degree ...
*
List of University of Florida faculty and administrators
The List of University of Florida faculty and administrators contains people currently and formerly serving the University of Florida as professors, deans, or in other educational capacities.
Academic administrators
* Lise Abrams, cha ...
*
List of University of Florida honorary degree recipients
This list of University of Florida honorary degree recipients includes notable persons who have been recognized by the University of Florida for outstanding achievements in their fields that reflect the ideals and uphold the purposes of the unive ...
References
Bibliography
*Armstrong, Orland Kay
''The Life and Work of Dr. A.A. Murphree'' The Record Company, St. Augustine, Florida (1928).
*Barnett, Albert E., ''Andrew Sledd: His Life and Work'', Candler School of Theology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia (1956).
*Farr, James M., ''The Making of a University'' (unpublished manuscript), University of Florida, George A. Smathers Libraries, Special Collections, Gainesville, Florida (c. 1935–1941).
*Osborn, George Coleman, ''John James Tigert: American Educator'', The University Presses of Florida, Gainesville, Florida (1974).
*Pleasants, Julian M., ''Gator Tales: An Oral History of the University of Florida'', University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida (2006).
*Proctor, Samuel, & Wright Langley, ''Gator History: A Pictorial History of the University of Florida'', South Star Publishing Company, Gainesville, Florida (1986). .
*Van Ness, Carl, & Kevin McCarthy, ''Honoring the Past, Shaping the Future: The University of Florida, 1853–2003'', University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida (2003).
External links
Past Presidents– Official website of the University of Florida, Office of the President.
{{University of Florida presidents
*
Florida, University of
University of Florida presidents
Presidents
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...