At FIU, Jeanette Nuñez makes her pitch for a permanent presidency

Facing a skeptical campus and a largely empty ballroom, Florida International University’s interim president Jeanette Nuñez made her case to the community as to why she was the right choice to stay on as the university’s permanent leader.

Nuñez, Florida’s former lieutenant governor, answered curated questions about her vision and qualifications on Wednesday during a series of four public forums at FIU’s Graham Center Ballroom. The former state lawmaker and healthcare lobbyist touted her political clout in Tallahassee, promised she would fight to recoup canceled federal research funding and defended her emergence as the sole finalist for the job — a process critics say was marred by politics.

Nuñez also voiced her support for the state’s ban on diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, saying ideological conformity had created “chaos” on campuses. She unveiled plans for a presidential speaker series that would cultivate rigorous political debates — a remedy for what she called a lack of viewpoint diversity at FIU.

In the meetings, Nuñez cast herself as a homegrown success story who rose from a summer job at the registrar’s office to the governor’s second-in-command — and now hopes to lead her alma mater full time.

A champion for FIU

Sporting an FIU lapel pin on her blue blazer, Nuñez, herself a two-time FIU alum, emphasized her deep ties to the university. She taught briefly as an adjunct professor, and two of her three children have attended the school. She takes over after a milestone year for FIU, which was named a Top 50 public university by U.S. News & World Report, and snagged a top ranking for social mobility, which measures graduation rates and other metrics with low-income students.

“My job as interim president in the last three months has really been to shout those statistics from the rooftop,” Nuñez told the crowd. “I think you would be hard pressed to find a bigger champion in the halls of Tallahassee than me.”

Nuñez also sought to reassure faculty that her administration was working to address sweeping cuts to FIU’s federal research funding, including the cancellation of 54 grants worth $36 million and a potential $18 million loss from the Trump administration’s proposed cap on overhead cost reimbursements. She said the university was appealing to reinstate the grants and she planned to meet with leadership at the National Institutes of Health.

“Hopefully you don’t walk away with doom and gloom about the research enterprise,” Nuñez told staff, adding she was confident the university would be able to double its annual research expenditures to $600 million over the next seven years.

Nuñez spoke on several political issues as well: When asked about how she would protect students who were undocumented or part of the LGBTQ+ community, Nuñez said she “wasn’t in the business of putting students in different categories” and pledged to advocate for students regardless of their background. She defended FIU’s agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, saying campus police were better positioned than outside agencies to handle cases involving suspected undocumented students due to their community ties.

She also addressed backlash over her earlier comments on the Trump administration’s revocation of 18 student visas, which she said affected “less than half of one percent” of international students. On Wednesday, she acknowledged the disruption but said the decision was out of FIU’s hands and noted all 18 students’ visas had since been reinstated and the students re-enrolled.

Where her loyalties lie

Nuñez’ appearance comes at a pivotal moment for FIU, one of the largest Hispanic serving institutions in the nation. The forums were meant to give students, faculty, staff and the broader community a chance to ask questions and vet her candidacy before the state university system’s Board of Governors votes to make her appointment official.

But turnout at Wednesday’s sessions was sparse; at faculty and student forums, more than half of the seats were empty. Tania Lopez, the faculty union president, told the Miami Herald that some faculty felt Nunez’ hiring was a foregone conclusion and that attending the forums would legitimize what they saw as a process tainted by politics.

“Faculty are concerned about where her loyalties lie,” she said. “How does she see the vision of our university in alignment with the rhetoric coming from Tallahassee? That’s what we’re having a hard time figuring out.”

FIU’s Board of Trustees installed Nuñez as interim president in February, fast-tracking her into the $850,000-a-year role in February after the governor’s office recommended her for the job — a move that required ousting Kenneth Jessell, a longtime administrator serving as president since 2022. She emerged as the sole finalist earlier this month after the other two candidates dropped out.

The process raised alarms among faculty and students who saw the appointment as a politically-connected insider replacing a veteran academic leader, as well as a way for the term-limited governor to offload his top lieutenant into a high-paying job before leaving office in January 2027. Nuñez on Wednesday attempted to allay concerns of political patronage, telling the crowd that the search process was “grueling” and “highly competitive.”

‘She is listening’

Some DeSantis-aligned university presidents have struggled to win over skeptical students and faculty. Ben Sasse, the former GOP senator from Nebraska, resigned as University of Florida president last year after a brief but rocky tenure marked by student protests, a faculty no-confidence vote and backlash over his insular leadership style and reliance on political allies and pricey consultants in decisionmaking.

So far, Nuñez has adopted a different tone. She’s spent the first stretch of her presidency familiarizing herself with the campus community in meetings with faculty, students and union members, and pledged on Wednesday that she would continue to do so as permanent president.

“She is listening a lot and she’s not arrogant at all, which was the difference between her and Ben Sasse,” FIU business professor and former chair of the faculty senate Deanne Butchey told the Herald prior to Wednesday’s forums . “She knows she’s got a lot to learn and she’s coming from a totally different perspective.”

Butchey said Nuñez’ Tallahassee gravitas could help FIU in budget talks with state lawmakers, but questioned the staying power of that influence as DeSantis’ political reach wanes. It’s unclear how effective she’s been in her breadwinner role so far, as infighting among Florida Republicans has thrown budget discussions in limbo.

“She’s got to show those results,” Butchey said. “Otherwise, just as quickly as she came in, she can be let go.”

This story was originally published May 21, 2025 at 6:22 PM.