President of the University of Michigan

The president of the University of Michigan is a constitutional officer who serves as the principal executive officer of the University of Michigan. The president is chosen by the Board of Regents of the University of Michigan, as provided for in the Constitution of the State of Michigan. Fifteen people—fourteen men and one woman—have held the office, in addition to several others who have held it in either an acting or interim capacity.

President of the
University of Michigan
Incumbent
Santa Ono
since October 14, 2022
University of Michigan
Reports toBoard of Regents
ResidencePresident's House
AppointerBoard of Regents
Constituting instrumentConstitution of Michigan
Formation1850 (1850)
First holderHenry Philip Tappan
Salary$1,014,000[1]
Websitepresident.umich.edu

The University of Michigan's current president is Santa Ono, formerly the president of the University of British Columbia in Canada. He took office on 14 October 2022.[2]

History

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The office was created by the Michigan Constitution of 1850, which also specified that the president was to be appointed by the Regents of the University of Michigan and preside at their meetings, but without a vote.[3] The precise wording has evolved through subsequent state constitutions, and as of November 2018 the office is defined by Article VIII, section 5 of the Constitution of 1963:[4]

The regents of the University of Michigan and their successors in office shall constitute a body corporate known as the Regents of the University of Michigan; ... Each board shall, as often as necessary, elect a president of the institution under its supervision. He shall be the principal executive officer of the institution, be ex-officio a member of the board without the right to vote and preside at meetings of the board. ...

Between the establishment of the University of Michigan in 1837 and 1850, the Board of Regents ran the university directly; by law, they were supposed to appoint a chancellor to administer the university, but they never did, and a rotating roster of professors carried out the day-to-day administrative duties instead.[5]

While the modern office was created in 1850, the University of Michigan itself now traces its date of founding to 1817, when its precursor, the University of Michigania, was founded. The only president of that institution, Rev. John Monteith, appears in the list of presidents but is not officially considered to have been a president of the University of Michigan.[6]

List of University of Michigan presidents

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The 15th and most recent president of the university is Santa Ono, appointed in 2022. Of the previous presidents:

Presidents of the University of Michigan
No. Name Portrait Years in office Notes
Rev. John Monteith   1817–1821 First and only president of the University of Michigania; 4 years in office
Vacant 1821–1837 Office abolished in favor of a Board of Trustees
1837–1852 Board of Regents replaces Board of Trustees
1 Henry Philip Tappan   1852–1863 First president of the University of Michigan, removed by regents; 11 years in office
2 Erastus Otis Haven   1863–1869 Resigned to become President of Northwestern University; 6 years in office
acting Henry S. Frieze   1869–1871 Following President Haven's resignation.
3 James Burrill Angell   1871–1909 Retired after 38 years in office (longest-serving president)
acting Henry S. Frieze   1880–1882 While President Angell is U.S. Minister to China
1887–1888 While President Angell is on the commission negotiating the Bayard-Chamberlain Treaty
acting Harry Burns Hutchins   1897–1898 While President Angell is U.S. Minister to Turkey
interim 1909–1910 Following President Angell's retirement.
4 1910–1920 Was the first student to receive a degree from James B. Angell at Michigan; retired after 10 year in office
5 Marion LeRoy Burton   1920–1925 Died in office
acting Alfred Henry Lloyd   1925 From February through September after the death of President Burton
6 Clarence Cook Little   1925–1929 Resigned to conduct research at Bar Harbor, Maine; 4 years in office
7 Alexander Grant Ruthven   1929–1951 Retired after 22 years in office
8 Harlan Hatcher   1951–1968 Retired after 17 years in office
9 Robben Wright Fleming 1968–1979 Resigned after 11 years in office; was chairman of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
interim Allan Frederick Smith   1979 Following President Fleming's resignation.
10 Harold Tafler Shapiro   1980–1988 Resigned to become president of Princeton University; 8 years in office
interim Robben Wright Fleming 1988 Following President Shapiro's resignation.
11 James Johnson Duderstadt   1988–1996 Resigned to return to teaching; 8 years in office
interim Homer A. Neal   1996 Following President Duderstadt's resignation.
12 Lee Bollinger   1996–2002 Resigned to become president of Columbia University; 6 years in office
interim B. Joseph White   2002 Following President Bollinger's resignation.
13 Mary Sue Coleman   2002–2014 Retired[7] after 12 years in office as the first female president of the University of Michigan
14 Mark Schlissel   2014–2022 Removed[8] by regents
interim Mary Sue Coleman   2022 Following President Schlissel's termination
15 Santa Ono   2022–present Incumbent, took office on October 14, 2022

Source: (Bentley Historical Library 2004)

Notes

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  1. ^ "Regents laud Ono's performance in first year". record.umich.edu/. University of Michigan Record. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  2. ^ "The Ono presidency begins | The University Record". record.umich.edu. Retrieved 2022-10-24.
  3. ^ State of Michigan 1850, Article 13, section 8
  4. ^ State of Michigan 1963, Article VIII, section 5
  5. ^ Hinsdale 1906, p. 37
  6. ^ Bentley Historical Library
  7. ^ "University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman to retire in 2014". Archived from the original on 2014-10-07. Retrieved 2015-05-05.
  8. ^ https://www.freep.com/story/news/education/2022/01/15/university-michigan-president-mark-schlissel-fired-board-investigation/ [bare URL]

References

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