'Florida higher ed board stuns UF, blocks Santa Ono from becoming president'
"Ono was grilled for roughly three hours on his past support of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs during his time leading the University of Michigan, his views on holistic versus merit-based admissions, gender-affirming care, climate change and his response to the COVID-19 pandemic — all of which have been flashpoints in the culture wars waged by Florida's ruling conservatives."
"He also was asked about an encampment of pro-Palestine protesters that remained on the Michigan campus for a month, and about his position on antisemitism."
"BOG Vice-Chair Alan Levine questioned Ono for nearly 40 minutes. He asked Ono about what he felt was an inadequate response while he was at Michigan to the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack in Israel."
"Ono, as he has since being announced May 4 as the sole finalist for the UF presidency, defended his actions and denounced antisemitism: 'What happened on Oct. 7 deeply affected the members of my community and me personally, and so at UF I would be consistently focused on making sure antisemitism does not rear its head again.'"
"BOG member Paul Renner, a Republican and former Florida House speaker, questioned Ono at length about past statements he had made in favor of race-based admissions and on DEI, and repeatedly questioned the timeline of those statements."
(No paywall)
https://www.gainesville.com/story/news/education/2025/06/03/board-of-governors-rejects-santa-ono-as-university-of-florida-president/84007003007/
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