The committee “unanimously and enthusiastically” recommended Santa Ono, currently president of the University of Michigan, as the sole finalist for Florida. The next step is for the trustees to select him formally, after which the state board of governors must confirm the decision. While some have celebrated the move, pointing to Mr. Ono’s suspension of an anti-Israel student group and his March 27 closing of Michigan’s DEI office, his broader record is deeply concerning and appears to have shifted once the Florida job appeared on his radar. To put it bluntly, Mr. Ono is one of the primary authors of the DEI playbook in higher education.
Before Mr. Ono arrived in Michigan, he served as president of the University of British Columbia, where he was the architect of a vast DEI apparatus. In 2021 he launched the President’s Task Force on Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence, later saying he was “really proud” of its strategic plan that had become “a standard that is emulated around the world.”
That plan explicitly called for “preferential” race-based hiring of faculty, the establishment of a “Black student application program” for prospective medical students, a “zero-tolerance policy” for faculty and staff who resisted DEI re-education, and mandatory training for students and faculty on “colonialism, anti-racism, decolonization and intersectionality.” This isn’t education—it’s indoctrination.
Mr. Ono also proselytized for DEI ideology with the campus community, declaring in 2020 that it was time to “dismantle the tools of oppression and white supremacy that remain prevalent and entrenched in our everyday systems.” He later warned that you “cannot take your foot off the pedal” in eliminating “systemic racism,” which he has said “is embedded in every corner of any institution.”
In October 2022, Mr. Ono moved to Michigan, making clear in his March 2023 inaugural address that DEI would be a major focus of his presidency. He unveiled a wide-ranging new initiative focused on embedding what he called “DEI 2.0” into every aspect of campus life. The stated goal: “fully institutionalize DEI” and shift “who has power, influence, and voice in priorities and decision-making.” In 2024, the New York Times reported that under his leadership Michigan “doubled down” on DEI—even as many universities were already retreating from it.
Now that Florida’s multimillion-dollar compensation package is on the table, Mr. Ono claims he favored DEI only because he believed its original intent was “ensuring equal opportunity and fairness.”
This is patently absurd. As the leader of two universities, Mr. Ono championed DEI regimes that explicitly sought to indoctrinate students, punish thoughtcrime and hire based on race.
This is Michigan Man. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Make no mistake its a Cult . PB&Jelly Roll ( Petety and BKM1 ) were indoctrinated since birth. You guys are conversing with the salt of the earth . You know Morons. Reread their posts. Same Company line over and over .
Its more about starting to feel sorry for them ...................
LMAO

like thats going to happen.