At the end school last year, it was announced that President Arvid Johnson will retire after this current academic year on May 31, 2025. Having served as the university’s ninth president since June 2013, President Johnson has dedicated 12 years to the role here at USF.
In preparation for his departure, President Johnson has accepted the role to be available as a resource for the new president and to help the Board of Trustees as needed but will stay out of the way for the new president to leave their mark on the university.
“The board simply asked if I could still be available to be a resource for the board and or the new president,” President Johnson said. “Because depending on who we get they may or may not be available prior to June 1st to kind of do a transition and if I disappear June 1st, then they come in, there’s no transition. This way I will be a resource to the new president if they need me and if they don’t, they don’t.”
President Johnson also said the board agreed to let him continue to advise them which he has been doing for 12 years.
The search for the University’s tenth president is still underway, with the Presidential Search Committee overseeing the selection process. As part of the search, an open forum was held on September 5 by Academic Search to gather input from the university community. Consultants met with faculty, staff and students to determine the desired qualities for the next president.
“Last Thursday was all about was academic search which is the national search that the board has engaged to conduct it,” President Johnson said. “With members of the presidential search committee they met with representatives of the faculty, staff, I know they had a student meeting, they had a general open meeting to find out what characteristics they would like in the next president.”
President Johnson believes this is such a great opportunity for the University. The school hasn’t done a presidential search in 12 years and says that the open forum on Thursday is a great way to get what characteristic the faculty, staff and students want.
“One thing that I understand that was discussed by the search for last Thursday is the great opportunity it is for the university. We have not done a presidential search for 12 years," President Johnson said. “Some schools unfortunately get pretty good at doing searches, others don't have that much experience, but this is a opportunity for the university to decide what the characteristics are and who they would like to help lead it into the future.”
No new information has been released regarding potential candidates or whether the search will be internal or external. The President Search Committee will handle the selection process with President Johnson being there as an aid and not helping to recruit the new president.
“All that is done under the purview of the presidential search committee, which I am not a part of. I have no role in bringing in a new president and recruiting the new president. I might meet with them as they do an interview as a candidate,” President Johnson said.
The next step in the search will be for the committee to release a job description and interviews starting possibly in January.
“Their next step is going to be is to generate a job description and publish that to attract candidates that the presidential search committee can then evaluate to determine who they would like to bring onto campus as finalists for an interview. Probably sometime early next year,” President Johnson said.
With the search still going on, President Johnson says this is an exciting time for the University and hope faculty, staff and students participate in the process looking for the tenth president of the University.
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