Former Alabama president Dr. Stuart Bell named University of Florida's new leader in Gainesville

The Florida Board of Governors confirmed Wednesday, Dr. Stuart R. Bell will take over as the University of Florida's new president.

Dr. Bell will take on the role of UF's 14th president immediately -- following a nationwide search, a unanimous selection by the UF Board of Trustees and a unanimous recommendation by the Presidential Search Advisory Committee.

“Dr. Bell has fully embraced our Board of Trustees’ vision of leading UF to become one of the top three public universities in the nation, and I am absolutely confident he will take us there,” said UF Board of Trustees Chair Mori Hosseini.

Dr. Bell said he is eager and ready to get to work.

“The University of Florida is an extraordinary institution with exceptional talent, remarkable momentum and limitless opportunity. I look forward to working alongside our students, faculty, staff, alumni and supporters as we continue building one of the world’s great public universities,” Dr. Bell said.

Dr. Bell worked his way up at the University of Alabama for decades. After putting in time at the University of Kansas and Louisiana State University, he returned to UA, serving as the president of the university for over a decade.

His inauguration to UF will take place at the university later this year, UF News reports.

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