GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) – In an exclusive interview with interim University of Florida President Kent Fuchs, TV20′s David Snyder asked about the allegations of inappropriate spending by former President Ben Sasse, planned university expansions, P.K. Yonge High School, campus protests, and the presidential search.
Fuchs was asked to return to the role after the sudden resignation of Ben Sasse in July. Fuchs previously served as UF President from 2015 to 2023.
“The interim position itself is unique,” Fuchs said. “Now, I have the advantage. I was president until 18 months ago… My priority is really to make sure the university is in a good position for the next president.”
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He started teaching electrical engineering and will continue teaching as he serves as interim president.
“The university is really in great shape,” Fuchs said. “The state has been generous. It’s not like I’m coming in to fix anything but to make sure we are in a good stable position.”
The UF Board of Trustees is tasked with hiring a permanent university president. Fuchs said he hadn’t spoken to board chair Mori Hosseini after leaving the office.
“It was a surprise when [Hosseini] reached out. I was taking the summer off from teaching… He said very simply to ‘make sure the people of the university of the faculty, staff, students know that we as trustees care about them and the university and make sure people are working hard on what they do best.’”
Sasse cited his wife’s health when stepping down less than two years after being hired.
Sasse Spending Controversy
“President Sasse really had a vision of transforming higher education broadly speaking and having the University of Florida be a model for that transformation,” Fuchs said. “I’m a little different. My vision is not about transforming higher ed. My view is simply to build on the excellence of the institution.”
Last week, the Independent Florida Alligator student newspaper reported Sasse more than tripled his office’s spending to $17.3 million when compared to his predecessor. On Thursday, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office and state Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis raised the possibility of auditing the spending.
“I do have the responsibility of looking, examining, and making decisions around many of the initiatives President Sasse started,” Fuchs said. “Over 100 of them were discussed or in some process of having been launched.”
Sasse responded to the allegations on X, formerly known as Twitter, denying that the increased spending was inappropriate. He provided a breakdown of his justification for the various budget items.
Travel costs for Sasse’s office also jumped from $28,000 to $633,000 in one year, according to the student newspaper. His staff increased from 10 to 30.
Fuchs says they are evaluating the hires Sasse made, promising some will stay while others will not. He wouldn’t discuss specific numbers on spending cuts but said consulting contracts have ended.
“We’re putting into place a process where any new consultants that are hired at the university, anywhere in the university, the counsel has to sign off on it, the chief financial officer needs to sign off on it, and the president. So, I will have a good grasp of any new contracts, and the ones people have been asking questions about have all finished.”
University of Florida Future Projects
As Florida’s flagship university, many plans are in the works for new facilities and projects in North Central Florida and across the state.
In July, the university announced a marketing partnership with the Jacksonville Jaguars. UF is also working to establish a graduate campus in Jacksonville that will focus on fintech and medical technology. Classes begin in the fall of 2025 in a temporary space inside the JEA building.
“When are we going to see a decision about a location for the campus in Jacksonville?” Snyder asked.
“I know they are down to roughly two sites,” Fuchs replied. “I’ve committed to going over there to visit, look at them. Obviously, we have people who are helping us, members of our board have expertise in real estate. My guess is, in a month or two we’ll know where the new campus will be.”
When asked about the rising cost of the campus, already up to $300 million from $200 million, Fuchs says he expects it to cost even more. He said there would be revenue from programs and graduate tuition.
Fuchs says he doesn’t expect to launch many, if any, new initiatives but there are some he supports. His administration will double down on Artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives.
“In my past 18 months, I had more opportunity to read the newspaper and watch the news and it’s just amazing how much publicity is around AI.”
Fuchs says he is nixing a project to launch UF charter schools.
“The initiative President Sasse had around creating K-12 charter schools by the university all across the state and I’ve decided that’s an example of one we won’t do,” Fuchs shared.
P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School
The University of Florida runs one of the top-rated schools in North Central Florida, the K-12 P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School, however, a plan the UF Board of Trustees is considering is ruffling feathers.
The board is considering making P.K. Yonge a selective high school. Current middle and elementary P.K. Yonge students would have to apply to grades 9 through 12.
“I haven’t made a decision around should P.K. Yonge be selective. I know it’s a topic of debate at least before I arrive and we’ll look at that.”
The goal is to make P.K. Yonge a top 10 high school in “News and Word Report.” Some parents are concerned their children will be prevented from continuing their education at the school.
Pro-Palestinian Campus Protests
“Around the nation, we’re seeing, even in the last few weeks, universities are already announced that they’re not going to be as flexible and tolerant as they were maybe a year ago,” said Fuchs.
Over the past year, college campuses have been the site of protests over Israel’s war in Gaza following the Oct. 7th, 2023 terrorist attack perpetrated by the extremist group Hamas.
Pro-Palestinian and Jewish groups have held several protests, vigils, and teach-ins related to the conflict. UF has the largest Jewish student population in the state.
“We are going to be very clear to students that we have policies, there are laws, and we’re going to enforce those,” Fuchs said. “This coming year, we won’t allow encampments, we won’t allow masks intended to disguise the identities of people, and we won’t allow protesters or others to limit the activities of others.”
In April, nine pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested on UF’s campus after authorities said they failed to disperse. In addition to charges of failing to obey an officer, the students were placed on academic suspension.
The protestors have argued they were treated harshly due to their pro-Palestinian beliefs.
“We’re not going to do anything that gets us in the media to show we’re going to be tough on people,” Fuchs said. “We’re actually going to do our very best to limit and prevent anything that might indeed result in an arrest.”
Presidential Search
Fuchs says he trusts the board to find a great person to become the permanent president.
“We’re all biased,” Fuchs said. “We want people like us, that’ll follow us, and that’s not fair to the next president. They need to chart their own path.”
Fuchs says he thinks a lot of people will apply for the job but the job hasn’t gotten any easier.
“There are a lot of university presidents that have stepped down in the past six months, a lot of interim positions out there. It still is a wonderful place for the right person. I hope it is a person that indeed has a vision for the future.”
During the hiring of Sasse, many raised concerns about political influence in the decision to hire the Republican senator. Fuchs believes the board should listen to those with opinions on the next president, but not be “overly” persuaded.
No matter who is chosen, Fuchs thinks the students won’t be too impacted.
“I think the average student will just embrace the university and not have to worry about people changing or roles changing. Presidents come and go, like myself, but the university is here.”
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