The interim leader of Florida International University will become the school鈥檚 next president, pending approval by the Florida Board of Governors.
Interim President has spent decades as a student, professor and administrator at public universities across the state of Florida. But he says that in his heart he鈥檚 a panther 鈥� and that he鈥檚 ready to lead FIU into the future.
鈥淚 really did become a panther on day one,鈥� he said. 鈥淭here is no place better.鈥�
Jessell 鈥� who has led the school since being appointed in January 鈥� has acknowledged that he wasn鈥檛 initially interested in taking the permanent post. But he says his 10 months at the helm has changed him.
鈥淚t has been the realization how much I love FIU and this community,鈥� he said at Monday鈥檚 Board of Trustees meeting, pausing to apparently collect himself emotionally.
鈥淥ver the 10 months I have learned a lot about myself and even more about our great students, our great faculty and great staff members,鈥� Jessell said. 鈥淭hat in itself was a great realization. I always knew it but I didn鈥檛 realize how much. And that gave me the ability to say, 鈥業 can do this because I love this institution鈥�.鈥�
Jessell agrees to three year contract, just shy of $1M in annual compensation
Jessell won the unanimous support of FIU鈥檚 on Monday, many of whom had encouraged him to apply for the job in the first place. Under an agreement approved on Monday, Jessell鈥檚 initial contract will last for three years and he鈥檒l earn a base salary of $650,000, with his overall compensation package totalling $996,081 a year.
One trustee argued for increasing Jessell鈥檚 compensation to just over $1 million, a suggestion which was shot down by Vice Chair Roger Tovar, who said it鈥檚 important to send a message to the campus to acknowledge that many staffers have gone without pay increases in recent years.
Under the contract, Jessell would be granted a one-year paid research leave after his time as president comes to an end. He would also be able to return to the school鈥檚 faculty after finishing the research leave.
A first generation college student and a product of academia
Jessell says as a first generation college graduate, he knows the transformational impact of higher education 鈥� and as a career academic, he values the fundamental principles of shared governance and academic freedom.
He says he鈥檚 ready to go to bat for the school in Tallahassee, at a time when state lawmakers increasingly hold sway over university funding and education policy 鈥� even dictating how educators can address issues like race and discrimination in the classroom.
鈥淚've had these conversations with our faculty here and what I have told them is that we are going to continue to do the outstanding teaching and the outstanding research that we always do,鈥� Jessell told reporters. 鈥淎s long as we're doing that, I am not going to be worried by any of the noise. I have tremendous faith, tremendous confidence in our faculty.鈥�
Jessell鈥檚 leadership comes at a pivotal time for the university. This year, FIU marked its 50th anniversary and is celebrating its success in making higher ed more accessible for thousands of Latino and Black students and those from low income backgrounds.
FIU is touting itself as the , based on annual rankings from U.S. News & World Report, which named the school as one of the top five in the country for .
鈥淚 am confident that Dr. Jessell will maintain our current momentum and continue to advance FIU鈥檚 excellence in research, scholarship and teaching,鈥� said Dean Colson, chair of the Board of Trustees. 鈥淚 could not be prouder to have you as the sixth president of Florida International University.鈥�
, president of FIU鈥檚 Student Government Association and a member of the Board of Trustees, says he sees Jessell as an engaging and accessible leader 鈥� who wasn鈥檛 afraid to bust out some dance moves at a recent homecoming event.
鈥淗e鈥檚 super outgoing. Super charismatic. Super approachable,鈥� Lugo said. He described Jessell as 鈥渟tudent-centric鈥� and 鈥渟omeone who is able to understand the student issues.鈥�
鈥淏eing a student in the 21st Century is really hard. Post-covid things really have changed. So somebody who is able鈥ot to stay with the status quo but somebody who鈥檚 able to change and modernize with our new era that we鈥檙e going through,鈥� Lugo said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 definitely the guy to do that.鈥�
Jessell plans to return to teaching after his time as president
Jessell has been with FIU for 13 years, previously serving as the school鈥檚 Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration and Chief Financial Officer, and a professor of finance in the College of Business Administration.
Before coming to South Florida鈥檚 largest university, he spent 26 years at Florida Atlantic University, starting as an assistant professor before working his way up through the administrative ranks as an associate dean, interim provost and Senior Vice President for Financial Affairs. According to his resume, he holds a B.S., and M.B.A and a Ph.D. from Florida State University.
Jessell stepped in after former president Mark Rosenberg resigned after . Jessell says that history won鈥檛 have a bearing on his own tenure.
He was the only finalist to lead FIU, after other top contenders dropped out of consideration because they didn鈥檛 want to go forward if they weren鈥檛 the sole finalist, according to Tovar.
The search process happened mostly behind closed doors, after the Florida Legislature passed a new state law largely exempting university presidential searches from the state鈥檚 public records and meeting meetings laws.
Jessell鈥檚 candidacy is subject to final approval by the , which is scheduled to meet on Nov. 9.
