Prospective UF president faces a trio of forums next week

Last updated: June 6, 2026

The University of Florida will host three public forums Wednesday, putting Stuart Bell, the sole finalist to become president of the institution, in the public eye.

Bell will face pre-screened questions submitted by the public in three forums, first in front of the faculty, second in front of students, and third in front of administration and staff.

A week later, on June 10, university trustees will interview Bell. If they approve, his name will be offered for the Board of Governors for final approval.

Bell’s selection as sole finalist came with controversy. Shortly after the university announced it, Gov. Ron DeSantis came out in support of him while other conservatives attacked Bell’s support for diversity, equity, and inclusion while at the helm of the University of Alabama.

Since the Phoenix published a story about the backlash, former governor and now-U.S. Sen. Rick Scott chimed in, deriding the process UF used to select Bell.

“The public and students have no idea if this candidate will be successful at helping UF graduates get good paying jobs since there has not been any public input,” Scott wrote in part in a letter to the State University System.

“To be clear, I am not advocating for any potential candidate. Frankly, how could I? No one really knows anything about either of these people, or any other candidate, because there was no public search or vetting process,” Scott said, referring to Bell and interim president Donald Landry.

In response to Landry having a clause in his contract that pays him for not being selected as president, Scott in his letter said, “That is crazy.”

“I am frankly tired of hearing ‘there is only one sole finalist because no one else was willing to do a public interview.’ That is BS,” Scott wrote. “Are there really no other qualified people on the planet willing to go through a public interview to be the President of one of our nation’s most premier public institutions? Give me a break.”

UF in a social media post refuted Scott’s claims. saying his suggestion the institution avoided transparency and violated state law is “categorically untrue.”

“Members of the community will have the opportunity to ask questions on a wide range of topics, including Dr. Bell’s positions on leadership decisions regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives,” UF wrote.

U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon chimed in on the search, too, replying to Scott’s letter on social media. “Florida has led the fight to get discriminatory DEI out of our schools and universities. UF deserves a president who will continue to drive those reforms.”

U.S. Rep. Greg Steube, a Republican from Sarasota, said on social media, “Pretty embarrassing for UF that the Secretary of Education has to step in because the Board’s decisions are so egregious. UF deserves leadership focused on merit … not another DEI devotee.”

He blamed Florida Senate President Ben Albritton for “green-lighting these board [of trustees] appointments right before a new governor takes office.” DeSantis will term out following the November elections.

This is the second consecutive search UF has conducted since having its last permanent president, Ben Sasse, who was in the role for less than a year and a half. The first failed search ended when the Board of Governors rejected former University of Michigan President Santa Ono, despite his enjoying the UF trustees’ approval.

“With his experience at the helm of a flagship university, fundraising abilities, and deep relationships across higher education, within the Southeastern Conference, and beyond, we are confident Dr. Bell will transition seamlessly into this new role and build on UF’s reputation as one of the nation’s leading public universities,” Rahul Patel, chair of the Presidential Search Advisory committee, said in a news release announcing Bell’s selection as sole finalist.