Feb. 10, 2025

A Message from the Chairman

To the Florida Atlantic community,

It is my pleasure to notify you that earlier today the Florida Atlantic University Board of Trustees voted unanimously to select Adam Hasner as our institution’s eighth president. His start date is pending confirmation by the State University System’s Board of Governors.

President Hasner comes to Florida Atlantic with more than 30 years of experience in public service, business strategy and policy advocacy.

He served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2002 to 2010, including two terms as House Majority Leader, where he championed initiatives in health care, education and economic development. His legislative accomplishments include working with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush to establish Florida’s life sciences industry with significant funding for biomedical research, while leading the efforts to secure funding to establish the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine.

President Hasner also championed Florida Atlantic’s ocean energy initiative, sponsoring key legislation in 2006 and 2008 that laid the foundation for creating the Office of the Ocean Economy at Florida Atlantic. He also played a pivotal role in securing $43 million for the current College of Engineering building, the first state-funded higher education facility to achieve LEED Platinum certification.

Beyond his career, President Hasner is active in community service, serving on the board of trustees for Boca Raton Regional Hospital; on the dean’s advisory board for the Florida Atlantic University College of Business; the board of directors at People’s Trust Insurance Company; and on the board of advisors for Gogig Jobs, Inc.

A native of Palm Beach County, President Hasner is a product of the local public school system and the son of two educators. He earned a juris doctor from Florida State University and a bachelor’s degree in government and politics from the University of Maryland. He resides in Boca Raton with his wife, Jillian, who is the chief executive officer of the nonprofit organization Take Stock in Children.

I look forward to working with President Hasner to continue Florida Atlantic’s amazing trajectory.

In addition, I would like to thank the entire search committee, and especially chair Sherry Murphy, for running an organized, transparent and efficient search process. They worked tirelessly to consider numerous highly qualified candidates, bringing us an excellent group of finalists to interview. I am proud of all the work they have done. The committee worked with the executive firm Buffkin Baker.

I would also like to thank the other two final candidates, Michael Hartline, Ph.D., and John Volin, Ph.D., for their interest in our presidency. They were both incredibly impressive throughout the search process.

It's an exciting time to be at Florida Atlantic University!

Go Owls!

Piero Bussani
Chair, Board of Trustees

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