UF announced Friday morning that Joe Glover, the university provost since 2008, will step down from his position at the end of July.
Ben Sasse, UF president-elect, will begin a national search for the next provost as he transitions into office in the coming weeks, according to a Friday press release.
As provost, Glover served as the university's chief academic officer, developing university policy, managing budgets and making decisions on faculty tenure. The average tenure of provost positions is four years; Glover will have served through three UF presidents.
Cynthia Roldan, UF spokesperson, declined to share more information on Glover’s transition and the upcoming search for a provost. But Roldan clarified that Glover’s departure from the role was his own decision, not Sasse’s.
During Glover’s tenure, UF has seen a surge in national prestige and attention.
While he presided over the university’s academics, UF was named by U.S. News & World Report as the No. 5 public university in the country in 2022. In 2023, UF’s online baccalaureate program was ranked No.1.
Glover also presided over UF academics while the university dealt with controversies over academic freedom and interference from Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Other notable achievements include the creation of the Innovation Academy in 2013, the PaCE admissions program in 2015 and his involvement in creating the new Global Technology and Innovation Center in West Palm Beach. The $100M center will have 1,000 graduate students studying full-time and over 100 academic staff members when it opens.
Glover has always emphasized his effort to bring UF to the forefront of AI research and technology. Some of his initiatives include introducing the HiPerGator 3.0 supercomputer in 2021, a $70M partnership with NVIDIA, an AI software corporation and the commitment to hire 100 faculty members in AI.
Although Glover will step down from his role as provost, he’ll become a senior adviser to President-elect Sasse, who will provide more details about the search in February, according to the release.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Contact Ella at ellathompson@ufl.edu. Follow her on Twitter @Elladeethompson.
Ella Thompson is a third-year journalism major and the Spring 2024 Metro Editor. In her free time, she likes to go to the beach or read a good book.
