The Florida Board of Governors (BOG) confirmed Adam Hasner as FAU’s eighth president on Feb. 20, despite student concerns about his ties to the private prison industry and lack of academic credentials. 

The confirmation follows the FAU Board of Trustees (BOT) unanimous vote last week to select Hasner, a former Republican state representative and current executive president for public policy at The GEO Group — a for-profit prison corporation. 

During the public comment portion of the BOG meeting, students and activists strongly opposed Hasner’s appointment. 

Teddy Salise, a student representing Solidarity — a student organization known for social justice activism at FAU — urged the board to reject Hasner’s confirmation, citing his partisan political background and his connection to The GEO Group.

“[The] GEO Group is notorious for alleged human rights violations, including the poor treatment of incarcerated detainees in their detention centers,” Salise said. “Ties to a prison company like [The] GEO Group taint the reputation of FAU as an educational institution for higher learning.”

Salise also mentioned Hasner’s previous boast about being “the most partisan Republican in Tallahassee” at a conservative public action conference in 2011. 

“How are students able to trust a hardline partisan candidate in representing the full spectrum of student life?” Salise said. “He is a career politician, not an educator.”

Among the three finalists, which included Florida State University College of Business Dean Michael Hartline and the University of Maine Administrator John Volin, Hasner was the only candidate without a doctorate degree or direct university management experience — a quality that Salise says is primordial to be a university president. 

Yordanos Molla, an organizer with Dream Defenders — a non-profit organization that advocates against prisons and police — also voiced concerns about Hasner’s qualifications during public comment. 

“Adam Hasner does not have the experience nor the credentials in academia or university management,” Molla said. “How is a person with no experience in higher education management skilled enough to become a university president?” 

Molla also quoted Hasner’s controversial statement: “We cannot allow political correctness and multiculturalism or appeasement cripple our defenses at home or abroad.” She noted that it conflicts with “FAU’s vision for a leader and reputation as Florida’s top-ranked public university for ethnic diversity.”

The decision to appoint Hasner has revealed deep divisions within the campus community. Earlier this month, FAU students organized a protest during his presidential forum, with a crowd gathering around the Boca Raton’s Student Union to voice their concerns. 

Some of the signs at the protest read, “We need a president not a politician,” “Protect Floridian Education” and “Campus, not prison camp.”

However, FAU’s Student Body President, Stefan Andjelkovic, voted in favor of appointing Hasner during the BOT meeting on Feb. 10.

“All trustees exemplified their trust and support for Adam due to his immense involvement in the Boca community and as a state representative,” he told the University Press on Feb. 11. 

Hasner’s supporters point to his long history of advocacy for the university. In 2007, he received the FAU President’s Talon Award and earned the nickname “Mr. FAU” for his support for university initiatives. 

As Majority Leader of the Florida House, he led efforts to establish the Florida Atlantic College of Medicine and also championed the university’s ocean energy initiative, securing $43 million for a new College of Engineering building. 

Manny Diaz, Florida’s Commissioner of Education, described Hasner as a “perfect fit” for FAU.

“He knows the community. The community knows him. He’s invested in the community,” Diaz said. 

When addressing the BOG, Hasner did not respond to his critics, instead focusing on his vision for the university.

“I am thrilled by the opportunity to make a meaningful impact on the lives of the tens of thousands of students we serve across all of our six campuses,” he said. “As the next president of FAU, I will be ready to collaborate with the Chancellor, Board of Governors, and with our partner institutions to help achieve our shared vision for Florida’s future. 

The confirmation concludes a presidential search process that began in 2022 following former President John Kelly’s departure. A previous search was terminated in October 2023 due to a violation of Florida law, leading to this second attempt with the help of Tennessee-based search firm Buffkin/Baker.

Hasner will succeed Stacy Volnick, who has served as interim president since 2023. 

University Press Managing Editor Michael Cook contributed to this report.  

Laurie Mermet is the News Editor for the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email lmermet2022@fau.edu or DM laurie.mmt on Instagram.