'Face plant': College admin applicant 'debased himself' to appease MAGA — and lost anyway

04 June 2025

Donald Trump Jr. at the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 15, 2024 (Maxim Elramsisy/ Shutterstock.com)

In May, University of Michigan President Santa Ono resigned from that position in order to pursue the same position at the University of Florida. But thanks to Florida's far-right political climate, Ono ended up not getting the job.

During his years at the University of Michigan — where he became president in 2022 — Ono supported diversity initiatives, according to Slate reporter Alex Kirshner. And that came back to haunt him in a big way.

Despite what Slate describes an effort to give himself a "face plant" and downplay the University of Michigan policies he embraced, Slate emphasizes, Ono encountered fierce opposition from MAGA Republicans in the Sunshine State.

Slate's Alex Kirshner, in an article published on June 4, explains, "Consistent with his mission to make Florida the kind of place where 'woke goes to die,' Gov. Ron DeSantis and his allies had been steadily building up power in Florida's higher-education system. The state's public universities, not just UF in Gainesville, were turning over their presidents at a rapid rate. DeSantis effectively controls the state university system's 'board of governors,' which this past winter, gave itself the power to approve the picks by the campus-level board of trustees."

Kirshner continues, "It was for this conservative audience that Ono had spent weeks, if not longer, trying to establish himself as a good soldier in the culture war against higher education. And it was this same audience that, on Tuesday, (June 3), denied Ono his next job."

The fact Ono "previously supported diversity initiatives" at the University of Michigan, Kirshner emphasizes, was a deal-breaker in Florida.

"Though Ono had gone to pains to distance himself from his own record on that issue," Kirshner reports, "Republican politicians from around the state pounced on it anyway. Donald Trump Jr. asked whether Florida's bosses had 'lost their minds.' Republican Florida Rep. Byron Donalds called for a new search…. Ono had a long, distinguished resume. It didn't help him, because the people who denied him this latest dream job aren't running universities to teach. They're running them to make a point."

Kirshner adds, "By debasing himself at their feet, Ono helped them do exactly that."

Read the full Slate article at this link (subscription required).

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