The University of North Florida’s next president could come from the University of North Georgia.
A search committee tapped North Georgia President Michael P. Shannon on August 25 as its pick to fill the post Interim President Angela Falconetti has held since February.
Shannon is a retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel with a PhD from Georgia Tech who has led North Georgia since 2023.
“Dr. Shannon is a strong leader with an impressive background in higher education and military service," UNF Trustee Jack Boyle, who chaired the search process, said in a release from the university. "He is passionate about student success, community engagement and the future of UNF."
The release quoted Shannon as saying that “UNF, Jacksonville and Northeast Florida
are filled with extraordinary opportunity, and I am honored to be advanced for consideration as UNF’s next president.
“… There is tremendous momentum here, and I am inspired by what UNF can become and the impact it can continue to make for its students and this region,” Shannon said.
Shannon, a first-generation college graduate whose bachelor's and one of his master's degrees were from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, was picked from 152 candidates the search committee considered, UNF said.
There are similarities but significant differences between UNF and North Georgia, both colleges that have enjoyed notable growth.
North Georgia has a larger enrollment, this year topping 20,000 for the first time, while UNF has about 18,500, an increase of about 900 from the year before.
But North Georgia’s students are spread across five campuses and have distinctive characteristics, including a 153-year role in military education that make North Georgia one of six federally designated senior military colleges in the country.
Shannon will be at UNF September 9 and 10 for campus forums, and will be interviewed the following week by trustees, who are scheduled to vote on his selection September 23.
If the trustees approve him, he’ll face a final vote by the state university system’s Board of Governors.
As the search committee’s choice was being announced, Shannon told North Georgia faculty and students by email that “the purpose I was created for is calling me to the next step in my journey.”
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: UNF eyes University of North Georgia leader as school's next president
