USF's new president faces challenges including new football stadium, artificial intelligence
New USF President Moez Limayem begins tenure
The University of South Florida officially has a new leader. FOX 13's Aaron Mesmer reports.
TAMPA, Fla. - It was a first day filled with handshakes, optimism and ambition as University of South Florida’s ninth president, Moez Limayem, officially took the helm.
"I am so excited!" Limayem said during an appearance at a State of the Region event at USF’s Student Center.
The new president spent his first hours on the job greeting business leaders, meeting with students and faculty and then getting straight to work sharing his vision for the university’s future.
Limayem said he is stepping into the role at a time of significant strength and momentum for USF.
"USF has never been stronger. Everything is here. What we're going to try to do is take it to even higher, higher levels," he said.
What we know:
Recent major announcements include the creation of a new College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Computing. Plans are also moving forward for a new on-campus football stadium.
"That’s something I already dream of," Limayem said of the stadium project’s opening game.
He said maintaining a healthy balance between academics and athletics aligns with USF’s goals as a member of the Association of American Universities, a group of more than 70 of the country’s top research institutions.
"How do we become the model AAU university where every other university in the nation and the world come here, right here, to ask and see how we are successful?" Limayem said.
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The backstory:
Limayem replaces former president Rhea Law. He previously served as dean of USF’s Muma College of Business for a decade before becoming president of the University of North Florida in 2022.
According to a December news release from USF, Limayem’s tenure at UNF included record enrollment growth, the largest incoming class in school history and the highest overall enrollment since the university’s founding in 1972. UNF also set a record for first-year student retention and led the state in the percentage of bachelor’s graduates employed in Florida.
While serving as dean at USF, Limayem and his team raised more than $126 million in private donations for the business college, including a $25 million gift from Pam and Les Muma in 2014, which at the time was the largest individual donation in university history, according to USF.
Big picture view:
Limayem returns to USF at a time of heightened political scrutiny of public higher education and a national debate over academic freedom. He said he plans to adhere to state laws while advancing the academic experience on campus.
"One of the things that I really want to be one of my legacies here is to train our students for generations to come, on civil discourse," Limayem said, "[to] learn how to disagree respectfully, how to listen to each other, so that we don't listen to attack, we don't listen to reply, but we listen truly to understand other points of view."
He also addressed the state’s potential ban on H-1B hires, a visa program that allows employers to recruit foreign workers for specialized positions. Limayem noted he was initially hired under an H-1B visa.
"We're going to have no other option but to comply with the regulations, with the law. And we will do everything possible to make USF the destination of choice," he said.
Students who met the new president on his first day said they left encouraged.
"He seems like he's going to do a lot of good things and continue on with Rhea Law's legacy," said USF student Allan Miller III.
Limayem was the sole finalist for the job and was unanimously approved by USF’s Board of Trustees last October.
What's next:
Limayem said his immediate focus will be building on USF’s research profile, strengthening partnerships with the business community and preparing students for long-term success.
He said his long-term vision is clear: to make USF a national and global model for research, innovation and student achievement.
The Source: Information for this story came from remarks by USF President Moez Limayem, interviews conducted during his first day on the job and a December 2025 news release from the University of South Florida.