Interim President Starts First Day as a Spartan

Harris Pastides, the man who will helm the University of Tampa during its search for a new president, might be interim in name, but let it be clear: behind-the-scenes is not so much his nature.

Today is his first official day, but he already made a surprise appearance Friday at the unveiling of a newly commissioned sculpture in the Schoomaker ROTC and Athletics Building. And this morning, he began his first week with his wife, Patricia Moore-Pastides, at his side, greeting staff before he set about meeting with representatives from all manner of campus constituencies.

“I don’t need lots of gaps in my calendar. I like to keep going and then come home at night and collapse. That’s my style,” he said on Friday in an interview after the sculpture reveal. “I’ll be tired by the end of the week.”

Pastides, former longtime president of the University of South Carolina, came out of retirement for the interim role. A search is underway to replace President Teresa Abi-Nader Dahlberg, who resigned last month.

Pastides was president of USC’s eight-institution system from 2008 to 2019 and then served again, as interim president, from 2021 to 2022. He led academic advancement and growth, achieving national recognition for USC’s Honors College and record-breaking funding for research along with a campaign that raised more than $1 billion.

For Pastides, taking the interim role at UTampa was a simple decision. “It’s a university on the move,” he said. “I want to help keep that momentum.”

Pastides was the first in his family to graduate from college. He earned a Ph.D. in epidemiology at Yale in 1980 and has worked in higher education ever since. He taught at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and chaired its biostatistics and epidemiology department. Before he was president of USC, he was dean of its school of public health and vice president for research and health sciences — all experiences he plans to draw on at UTampa.

He leads from the middle, he says, as he plans to support faculty in their teaching and research and lean on the work of UTampa’s “tremendous staff.”

“It’s hard to lead from the rear, and people might say a leader should stand at the front all the time,” he said. “But in academia, it’s good to know that when you are leading, there are people around you who want to walk with you.”

Pastides considers himself as an ambassador for the University and is eager to immerse himself in the campus community. “I plan on attending every event that I’m invited to, if I possibly can,” he said. “I want to be present with students, faculty, staff, alumni, governmental leaders, private sector leaders, to show them my high regard for the University.”

Among his first official appearances will be a conversation with faculty and staff at Falk Theatre on Thursday, followed by a welcome reception to include students at the Jenkins breezeway.

He wants to get to know UTampa students, he said, and learn their aspirations, what they like about UTampa and how he can help them network as they start their careers.

And while he admits that students are unlikely to see him enjoying the pool or on the beach volleyball court outside his office window, they likely will see him supporting Spartan Athletics. He’s a sports fan and is the former chair of the Southeastern Conference and the NCAA Division I Board of Directors.

He wants to learn, participate in and respect the University’s traditions, history and culture. “I’m not here to change anything unilaterally,” he said. “I would love for people to say when I’m gone that even though I wasn’t here for a long time, I helped make UTampa better.”