New USF president kicks off tenure with energy, promises — and selfies

Dressed in forest green and grinning ear to ear, Moez Limayem stepped up to the lectern Tuesday morning and surveyed the room, a catch in his breath as he took it all in with a quiet “wow.” 

Just two hours into his first day on the job, USF's new president was tasked with addressing a crowd of more than 450 community leaders, elected officials, private donors, board members, faculty and students. His team armed him with some written remarks, but Limayem’s never been good at sticking to a script, he says.

Instead, he spoke off the cuff, vowing to his predecessor USF President Emeritus Rhea Law, “I promise you I will not screw it up!” 

“You have no idea what I’m feeling right now,” he told the crowd. “It’s incredible. It’s incredible to be back home, to see all my friends. It’s an exceptional day for me and I could not have planned this better.”

Limayem, 62, admitted he hadn’t yet had time to review the findings that would be discussed during the event he was tasked with introducing — USF’s 9th annual State of the Region community luncheon — but he didn’t have to search for his words. Limayem himself helped create the economic impact event, a joint venture with the Tampa Bay Partnership, during his decade-long tenure as dean of USF’s Muma College of Business. 

That was before he left USF in 2022 to become president of the University of North Florida in Jacksonville. Becoming a university president afforded Limayem a greater understanding of the state’s higher education ecosystem, he says, and strengthened his relationship with government and economic leaders across the state, gaining a first-hand understanding of how different disciplines can work together to propel their community forward. 

“I promise we’re going to work all together to create a compelling vision for this great university to be the best resource for our faculty, staff and students and, more importantly, for our community,” Limayem told the crowd. “USF is open for business. USF is determined to work with all of you to make our community, our region, our state and our country better. So buckle up. Get ready. You’re gonna see me everywhere, I can assure you.” 

True to his word, Limayem took time Tuesday afternoon to wander around the university’s student center, shaking hands and introducing himself to the student body the USF Board of Trustees unanimously elected him to lead. He handed out USF magnets and posed for selfies, bought coffees for students and fielded requests for more parking spaces and longer pool hours. 

Connecting with students, ensuring their success and preparing them for the next steps in their careers is Limayem’s most important job as university president, he says. Growing USF’s standing in the Association of American Universities, which it joined two years ago, goes hand-in-hand with Limayem’s top priorities for USF. 

“We have reached something unbelievable — AAU status. Now, how do we move from the rookie AAU to the star AAU?,” Limayem told reporters Tuesday. “How do we become the model AAU university, where every other university in the nation and the world come here, right here, to ask us how we are so successful?”

His plans for his first week as president include visits to both branch campuses to meet with faculty, staff, students and community leaders, he says. His plan is to “hit the ground listening, see exactly what is happening with both of our campuses and understand where we are in the process,” Limayem says. 

Despite the unknowns, Limayem says his tenure is beginning at a time when USF is stronger than it has ever been. The university is bringing in record-setting investments and embarking on major capital projects that will not only expand the campus’ footprint in the university area, but also make way for an on-campus stadium for the USF Bulls’ revamped athletics departments. All the while, USF continues to break research records and rise in national rankings, Limayem says. 

“If you look at my career … I always refuse to take the pie of resources and split it up in different ways,” Limayem says. “What I always try to do is make that pie bigger. That’s what we’re going to try to do.”