Even board members appeared shocked at what they did after the Florida Governor’s Committee voted for Santa Ono as president of the state’s flagship university on Tuesday.
“The move fails,” said Chairman Brian Lamb, whose tone is his tone registers distrust after the votes were tallied. “The first time it happened.”
Ono’s refusal on the board was unanimously approved by the University of Florida Council only a week ago, but it was so unexpected that the university had not prepared an incidental statement.
Those who voted against Ono pointed out what they described during a few tense hours of interviews as substantial concerns about his record and response. Board members cited his reversal on diversity and climate change initiatives and his late response to anti-Semitism during his tenure at the University of Michigan and the University of British Columbia.
For external observers, the division between the two committees, both consisting primarily of Ron Desantis’ appointees, marks a new stage in the political transformation of Florida’s higher education system.
Holden Thorpe, former prime minister of the University of North Carolina, said after witnessing what happened to Ono, “I’m shocked if traditional scholars want to try it.”
Chairman Mori Hosseini, the board of trustees, did not immediately respond to the message regarding the board’s decision. A UF spokesman said the university is still working on a statement on its next steps.
Christopher Luffo, a conservative activist who helped launch an online campaign against Ono, targeted the trustees themselves.
“We voted for the University of Florida Council of Trustees in favor of men who promoted gender pronouns, land acknowledgements, two spirit madness, DEI 2.0, important racial theory, and child sex change treatment,” he posted on Tuesday.
Board vice-chairman Alan Levine rejected the idea that the vote against Ono was driven by political conspiracy or that the board was not welcomed by a more suitable candidate for the academia.
“Yesterday it wasn’t a scholar’s rejection,” Levine said. “My opinion was strictly based on candidate ratings.”
But votes come in the midst of a clear change in those who are thought to be acceptable to the president’s leadership. In recent months, figures with close ties to Tallahassee, including former lawmakers Eric Hassner, Manny Diaz, Janet Nunez and former education official Eric Hall, have managed to lead state and universities.
Observers say that the board’s rough treatment for Ono could have a calm effect on the ongoing presidential search at the University of South Florida and the University of West Florida.
“It’s really becoming impossible to get leaders to a presidency that both board members and local campuses can agree on,” Thorpe said. “It’s not good for anyone in the long run.”
It’s unclear what will happen next in UF. As Ono was the only finalist, there are no other public alternatives.
Retired President Kent Fuchs was recalled after Sen. Ben Sasse resigned last year, but remains in the contract as interim president until July 31. According to his contract, “mutually comfortable extensions” may be possible.
According to an email from UF journalism professor Hub Brown, five of the school’s 16 deans are left as interim placeholders, as there is no new president.
“This action places us all in unknown territory,” Brown writes. “At this time of writing there are no indications of a path forward.”
The uncertainty currently facing UF was emphasized in the tense moments after Ono’s rejection.
After he was burned for three hours, the board issued his historic responsibilities and after Ono quietly skated through the side doors caught between police, Levine approached UF Councillor Patrick Zalpsky to offer a settlement handshake.
Zalupski refused. His arms stiffened by his side, he saw Levine in his eyes.
“No,” he said. “You’re f —- d up, man.”
