Offer Solutions for Navigating Politicized Higher Education and DEI Debates.

Published on 06/04/2025Trend Spotting / Early Adopter Signals
  1. Executive Search & Advanced Vetting Services: There's a growing need for firms that can identify and vet academic leaders who not only have the traditional qualifications but also the proven ability to navigate or stand firm in highly partisan environments. This involves a deep dive into a candidate's history, especially on politically sensitive issues like DEI, to distinguish between genuine conviction and opportunism.

  2. Leadership Integrity & Crisis Navigation Consultancies: Specialized advisory services for academic leaders and institutions to help them maintain integrity and manage crises effectively during politicized appointment processes or when facing pressure to compromise on core values. This includes coaching on principled decision-making, reputation management for leaders accused of ideological inconsistency, and communicating tough choices to diverse stakeholders.

  3. Strategic Frameworks for Institutional Values & Autonomy: Consultancies that help universities develop and articulate robust frameworks for core institutional values, including nuanced approaches to diversity and inclusion, that can withstand political scrutiny. This includes advising on governance reforms to enhance institutional autonomy and protect against partisan interference in academic and administrative affairs.

  4. Independent Media & Watchdog Platforms Focused on Higher Education Governance: There's an increasing demand for media outlets and platforms that provide in-depth, investigative analysis of political influence in university leadership selections, policy decisions (especially concerning DEI and academic freedom), and the impact on institutional integrity. These platforms cater to academics, policymakers, and the public seeking transparency and accountability.

  5. Risk Assessment & Political Intelligence for Higher Education: Services that provide universities and search committees with detailed risk assessments and political intelligence related to potential leadership candidates and the prevailing political landscape. This helps anticipate challenges and assess how well candidates might fit into highly polarized contexts.

Origin Reddit Post

r/outoftheloop

What’s going on with the University of Florida rejecting Santa Ono as their president?

Posted by u/YakClear60106/04/2025
Ap link here: https://apnews.com/article/university-florida-president-ono-dei-06b275e0e7790d33f9ae7372b292c6d6 As far as electing university presidents go, is there something unusual or out

Top Comments

u/PhiloPhocion
But also worth saying that it's actually absurd how quickly DeSantis led a total and aggressive makeover of the state to be that. Florida has had state-level Republican government for a lon
u/riveter1481
Current Michigan student here, this p much nails it. It’s also worth mentioning he was originally gonna stay as president at umich til assuming the Florida position and help with the transiti
u/Charming-Command3965
Answer: Anti DEI board members as one of them stated Fucking up to the wazoo
u/Pitiful-Succotash475
I love this for him. 
u/Complete_Entry
Answer: Florida leads the nation in anti-diversity in education initiative. Santa Ono agreed with their position and his contract had strong anti-diversity language baked in, but the Governor
u/Colt1911-45
Really should be asking why a public university prez needs to make 1.3 to 3 mil per year in salary.
u/PM_ME_STEAM__KEYS_
Sounds like a win-win to me
u/Complete_Entry
It isn't even a victory for them. Like they may clap their hands and say "WE DID IT!" but in fact they are setting their own (and taxpayers) money on fire.
u/PomegranateOk1942
Leopards indeed are his face. Thanks for this synopsis! edit: mangled initially
u/YakClear601
Do you know if he left the University of Michigan of his own volition? Or is there indications that he was quietly asked to leave?
u/profnachos
The token got spent. He thought he was one of the good ones..
u/madsmarie426
When he was President of the University of British Columbia, Ono's principles were always whatever was most convenient at the time.
u/McFestus
Probably worth mentioning his time at UBC. He presented generally a quite progressive face when he was there.
u/toomuchblack
When you sit on a fence, you can’t be surprised when you get a pole up the ass.
u/CorporateHobbyist
Answer: Santa Ono was appointed to be the president of the University of Michigan in October 2022. As an alum, I was around when the last one had an [unceremonious exit](https://www.michigand
u/itsrathergood
He bent the knee for conservatives at the drop of a hat, and was still rejected by them. There are multiple lessons here. One, if you give the fascists an inch, they’ll take a mile. Two, th
u/Toepale
> This is a victory for no one It is victory for everyone when scummy snakes get found out and rejected. It doesn’t matter which side does the rejection, it’s a win for everyone but the s
u/CorporateHobbyist
It's unclear. The way I see it, there are a few possibilities: 1) The Regents want to axe DEI, Ono did it, and then was made into the scapegoat. He leaves, claims he it was his idea the whol
u/boolocap
Couldn't have happened to a better person.
u/alotistwowordssir
👆🏻👆🏻
u/Aliensinmypants
Tokens get spent.
u/CorporateHobbyist
100%. Now that I'm no longer writing a top level comment, I'm willing to be a bit more opinionated and say that Santa Ono is a bootlicking, sycophantic bum who got what's coming to him. I h

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