Stuart Bell, the lone finalist to be the University of Florida’s next president, made his pitch to the campus community.
He answered questions from students, faculty and staff about how he would lead the 173-year-old institution during a forum at Emerson Alumni Hall on June 3, just days before his interview with the university’s Board of Trustees.
Bell was joined by Presidential Search Committee Chair Rahul Patel, Student Body President Matthew Bravo and Faculty Senate Chair Luisa Amelia Dempere.
The Presidential Search Advisory Committee recommended Bell as the sole finalist to the Board of Trustees on May 18. Under state law, only finalists for university presidents may be publicly revealed; the identities of other applicants are shielded from disclosure.
He addressed concerns about his past support for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, his commitment to protecting Jewish students on campus, his vision for the university’s future and how he plans to support the UF community.
Drawing on his experience as former president of the University of Alabama and prior leadership roles at Louisiana State University, Bell answered questions but offered few concrete plans for how he would approach serving as UF’s 14th president.
He did, however, repeatedly emphasize his top priority: Preparing students for success through “merit, excellence, academic achievement” as he sought to defuse questions about his DEI record.
Some conservatives are skeptical that the Board of Governors, which oversees the state’s public universities, will support Bell, who previously championed DEI during his tenure at Alabama.
DEI at UA and UF
In 2020, a University of Alabama DEI committee released a report outlining strategies to expand and coordinate the university’s DEI efforts. The university later introduced anti-racism workshops and training, along with scholarship and mentorship programs for low-income and first-generation students and students of color.
Bell said that over time his views on those programs shifted, telling forum attendees they had become inconsistent with his values of merit and hard work.
After Alabama passed a measure (SB 129) in 2024, Bell disbanded UA’s DEI office and related programs.
He has denied accusations that the office was simply rebranded, saying staff were retained to keep student support services functioning as an “operational engine,” not to continue DEI initiatives. The office was replaced by the Division of Opportunities, Connections and Success.
Bell’s candidacy follows last year’s rejection by the Board of Governors of former University of Michigan President Santa Ono, who was unanimously approved by the UF Board of Trustees but later voted down over his past support for DEI and other concerns.
Ono was a staunch supporter of DEI during much of his time at UM, but said repeatedly during his UF candidacy that his views had changed. He said he closed the UM office in March 2025 because he felt the investment was going toward the bureaucracy of the office, not students.
Critics of DEI argue the programs provide preferential treatment based on identity. Supporters say they are intended to help ensure equal access to resources and opportunities for underrepresented students.
Bell said he does not plan to advance an ideological agenda if selected.
“I am not coming to Florida to bring DEI or any type of ‘woke’ back,” he assured a small crowd — and presumably his conservative critics and the Board of Governors, which will have the final say on his appointment.
Patel said the Presidential Search Committee is adamant that Bell is the right person for the job. The university recently denounced DEI in a post on X, calling it “discriminatory by design, antithetical to the purpose of a university, and incompatible with the pursuit of truth.”
The school also said in the post that Bell “is ready to lead UF forward as a university defined by merit, rigor, and the pursuit of truth.”
What’s next
Members of UF’s Board of Trustees are scheduled to interview him June 10. If selected, he will ultimately have to be approved by the Board of Governors of the State University System.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: UF presidential finalist Stuart Bell addresses DEI concerns at forum
Reporting by Chelsea Long, Gainesville Sun / The Gainesville Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Chelsea Long, Gainesville Sun | USA TODAY Network
