Florida selects another politician to lead a public university
In January, colleges undergoing leadership changes did so against the backdrop of the beginning of the second year of President Donald Trump’s second term.
Columbia University announced its fifth leader in four years, while University of Montana lost its longtime president amid reports that he was leaving the job to run for the U.S. Senate.
Colleges that entered 2026 seeking new leadership made their appointments with an eye toward a shifting political landscape. And those that are losing leaders — either to a different institution, retirement or a career change — will likely be searching for candidates that can handle increasing federal pressure on colleges.
Below, we’re rounding up some of last month’s most significant college leadership changes.
President: Ronald Brandon
Institution: University of Michigan
Coming or going? Coming
Christian Brothers University‘s board of trustees selected Ronald Brandon as its next president, the Tennessee institution said on Jan. 6. Brandon, who has served on Christian Brothers’ senior leadership team for over eight years and is the university’s chief operating officer, will step into the role on June 1.
Until then, Brandon will work with Interim President Chris Englert and the board as the university’s president-elect.
The Catholic institution has been in a state of flux since September 2023, when it announced plans to cut $4 million from its budget after declaring financial exigency. That December, Christian Brothers’ accreditor placed the university on probation. The university announced major faculty and degree cuts one week later.
At the end of last year, Christian Brothers announced it had been removed from accreditation probation after two years spent reducing its deficit. But the university still intends to cut 16 full-time faculty positions at the end of its spring semester.
President: Tim Killeen
Institution: University of Illinois System
Coming or going? Going
University of Illinois System announced on Jan. 8 that President Tim Killeen will step down in June 2027 when his current contract ends.
Killeen, who became system president in 2015, will have served in the role for over 12 years by the time he plans to retire.
The system touted record enrollment, including of underrepresented minority students, under Killeen’s tenure. Over 101,000 students enrolled across the system’s three campuses in fall 2025, a 25.9% increase from a decade prior, per institutional data.
“An effective leader builds upon past accomplishments and paves the way for future success,” Board Chair Jesse Ruiz said in a statement. “For the University of Illinois System, Tim Killeen is that leader, and the board is deeply committed to working with him throughout his remaining time as president.”
Ruiz said the search for Killeen’s replacement would begin “in the coming weeks.”
President: Kent Syverud
Institution: University of Michigan
Coming or going? Coming
Kent Syverud has been named the next president of the University of Michigan, following a unanimous Jan. 12 vote by university trustees. He is set to assume the role on July 1.
Syverud, president and chancellor of Syracuse University, announced in August that he would step down as leader at the end of the academic year, following more than 12 years at the helm of the private New York institution.
Prior to joining Syracuse, Syverud taught at University of Michigan’s law school for a decade and served as its associate dean for academic affairs. He also is an alumnus of the university, having earned his master’s in economics and J.D. from the state flagship in the 1980s.
University of Michigan’s last permanent leader, Santa Ono, announced his departure in May following his selection as the sole finalist for president of the University of Florida. But the university system’s governing board shocked the higher ed sector by rejecting Ono, following conservative backlash over University of Michigan’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts during his tenure.
President: Kevin James
Institution: Morris Brown College
Coming or going? Going, then coming
Morris Brown College trustees fired longtime President Kevin James on Jan. 12, before quickly reversing their decision and rehiring him only days later.
The board of the Atlanta institution said in a Jan. 20 press release that it had determined James’ “separation from the College did not fully comply with the procedural and contractual requirements outlined in his employment agreement.”
On the day he was terminated, James said the board did not provide a “specific cause or substantive explanation” for its decision and that he had received “consistently strong performance reviews” throughout his seven years as president of the small historically Black college.
The day Morris Brown announced James’ return, local news outlet WSB-TV 2 reported that it had obtained “multiple documents with allegations of sexual harassment, abuse and threats by James” against college employees.
A Morris Brown spokesperson previously told Higher Ed Dive that the university couldn’t provide additional information. The spokesperson did not immediately respond to an additional request for comment Wednesday afternoon about the WSB-TV 2 allegations.
President: Seth Bodnar
Institution: University of Montana
Coming or going? Going
Seth Bodnar will depart the University of Montana after serving as its president for eight years, the institution announced Jan. 21. The university said the “leadership transition will begin immediately” and removed Bodnar’s profile from its website.
Bodnar said in a statement that he would “like to consider whether to pursue a new way to serve our state and our nation.” Prior to his resignation, Montana media outlets reported that he is expected to announce a run for U.S. Senate. Bodnar would be running as an independent against Republican incumbent Steve Daines, a move backed by former U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, a Montana Democrat, the Montana Free Press reported.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Bodnar had not filed campaign documents with the Federal Election Commission.
“Today, I remain all in on Montana, UM, and the vital work we do — for our students, for our state, and for our country,” he said in a statement shared by the university. “What we do here matters. Now more than ever.”
The University of Montana did not announce an interim leader. Montana Commissioner of Higher Education Clay Christian told Montana Public Radio it will not be necessary and that he will help manage the campus in the meantime.
President: Jennifer Mnookin
Institution: Columbia University
Coming or going? Coming
On Jan. 25, Columbia selected Jennifer Mnookin as its next president. Mnookin will depart from her role as the University of Wisconsin–Madison’s chancellor at the end of the academic year and assume the presidency at Columbia on July 1.
Her appointment comes during a difficult period for the Ivy League institution.
Since 2023, Columbia has met fierce criticism over its response to pro-Palestinian student demonstrations, faced an incursion of financial attacks from the Trump administration, and struck an unprecedented deal with the federal government to regain access to federal funding.
Minouche Shafik resigned as Columbia’s president in August 2024, just over a year after she took the job. She had faced calls to resign from both Republican lawmakers and pro-Palestinian protesters over her handling of the campus’s demonstrations that spring.
Shafik’s interim replacement, Dr. Katrina Armstrong, helmed the university for less than eight months before she resigned. Since then, Claire Shipman, co-chair of Columbia’s trustee board, has served as acting president.
President: Manny Diaz Jr.
Institution: University of West Florida
Coming or going? Coming
The State University System of Florida’s governing board on Jan. 29 selected Manny Diaz Jr. as the next president of the University of West Florida.
The system has a history of selecting state politicians to lead its institutions, and Diaz, an ally of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, is no exception.
From 2022 to 2025, Diaz served as the state’s education commissioner and sat on the system’s board as a result. Prior to that, he served in the Florida Legislature for nearly a decade in both the House and Senate.
Diaz led the University of West Florida as its interim president since July and was the only finalist for the permanent position. During that time, he fired the university’s general counsel after she objected to the hiring of a law firm long favored by Diaz and DeSantis, WUFT reported.
That firm then helped steer the university’s presidential search that selected Diaz.
Diaz assumed the presidency on Feb. 1.
