Stacy A. Volnick, Ph.D., was unanimously approved by the FAU Board of Trustees as interim president on Sept. 19, 2022, and confirmed by the Florida Board of Governors on Nov. 9, 2022. She began her appointment on Jan. 3, 2023.
A three-time Owl and a proud first-generation college graduate, Dr. Volnick received her bachelor’s degree in communication, and her master’s and doctoral degrees in educational leadership, from Florida Atlantic. She became a member of the University’s administrative staff in 1991 and has more than 30 years of experience in higher education administration.
At the start of President Volnick’s term, Florida Atlantic opened the doors to the FAU Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute at the John D. MacArthur Campus in Jupiter. The opening of the multimillion-dollar, 58,000-square-foot facility marked a new era in neuroscience research, education and community engagement for the University and community.
Furthering the University’s efforts to address brain health, Boca Raton philanthropists Ann and John Wood of the FairfaxWood Scholarship Foundation donated $11.5 million to the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine for amyloidosis research — a life-threatening disease that often leads to Alzheimer’s, dementia and strokes . The monumental gift established the FairfaxWood Health & Innovation Technology Initiative at Florida Atlantic, which focuses on discovering the root causes of amyloidosis and ultimately developing a cure.
The Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters also received a transformative gift worth more than $5 million to enhance its music programs and establish a legacy for the Palm Beach Pops and its founder and music director, Bob Lappin. The gift was donated by the Legacy Foundation of Palm Beach County, an extension of the Palm Beach Pops. In addition to an extensive music library of more than 1,600 titles and scores, the gift supported scholarships, graduate fellowships and financial assistance for students to purchase specialized instruments.
Florida Atlantic was recognized with several significant rankings in 2023 for excellence and student success. On the U.S. News & World Report list of “Top Public Schools,” FAU ranked No. 112 nationally and marked the largest rise of all public universities in Florida for the second consecutive year. The University also ranked No. 26 for “Social Mobility” among both public and private national universities. In the Washington Monthly College Guide, Florida Atlantic ranked No. 46 overall among the nation’s best public and private universities, and No. 13 in the “Best Bang for the Buck Rankings: Southeast” category.
2023 was a monumental year for FAU Athletics. The “Sandy Owls” beach volleyball team won its second consecutive conference championship, the FAU cheer team won the National Cheerleading Association championship, and the men’s basketball team had a historic season, earning multiple accolades. Head Coach Dusty May led the men’s basketball team to earn the best record in the nation with 35 wins, highlighted by a 20-game win streak and a perfect 17-0 record at home. The Owls also ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 for the first time in University history and remained there for most of the season. After winning the Conference USA regular season title and the tournament championship, the Owls received a bid to the NCAA Tournament and made it all the way to the Final Four.
Florida Atlantic officially moved to the American Athletic Conference in summer 2023. That fall, t he football team played its first game under the leadership of new Hagerty Family Head Football Coach Tom Herman. Coach Herman is a proven leader with a history of coaching winning teams, including at the University of Texas (2017-2020) and the University of Houston (2015-2016). He led these teams to six bowl games in six years and was undefeated in the postseason.
Florida Atlantic continued its upward trajectory in 2024 by receiving the ACE/Fidelity Investments Award for Institutional Transformation from the American Council on Education. The award honors institutions that respond to higher education challenges in innovative ways, achieving dramatic results in a brief period. Florida Atlantic was recognized for its novel team-based analytics approach to remove barriers to student success and improve degree completion. At the time of receiving the ACE/Fidelity Investments Award, Florida Atlantic more than doubled its four-year graduation rate within five years, increasing the number of degrees awarded by 950 annually.
Additionally, Florida Atlantic’s First Year Connections Mentoring Program received the Excellence Award from NASPA, the national organization for Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education.
The men’s basketball team had a strong first season in the American Athletic Conference, playing in front of sold-out crowds at every home game. The Owls were ranked in the AP Top 25 for many weeks, won the ESPN Events Invitational and played in the three most-watched games by an AAC team. In total, more than five million viewers watched the Owls’ televised games during the 2023-24 regular season. The team’s season ended in their second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.
On March 29, 2024, Florida Atlantic welcomed John Jakus as the new head men’s basketball coach. Coach Jakus came from Baylor University, where he served as the associate head coach since 2022. He spent the last 12 seasons on staff at Baylor (2012-2014 and 2017-2024) and Gonzaga University (2014-2017), and helped lead Baylor to six NCAA Tournament appearances, two Sweet 16 appearances, and the 2021 National Championship title.
Florida Atlantic’s softball team also had a stellar season, under second-year head coach Jordan Clark. The team earned it first national ranking since 2016 and finished the regular season as conference co-champions — earning the University’s first-ever AAC title. The team won every conference series during the regular season, four of which were sweeps. The Owls’ season ended with the team’s first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2016.
In the summer of 2024, the College of Engineering and Computer Science partnered with Florida Power & Light Company to open the FPL Center for Intelligent Energy Technologies (InETech) on the Boca Raton campus. The innovative center and public-private partnership — enabled by a $1M gift by FPL’s charitable arm, NextEra Energy Foundation — was created to advance cutting-edge energy research, improve workforce development and engage students at all levels in groundbreaking industry projects.
The Fall 2024 semester — which marked 60 years since the University opened its doors to upper-division and graduate students in 1964, and 40 years since admitting its first freshmen and sophomores in 1984 — Florida Atlantic welcomed one of its largest incoming classes in history. From a record 47,000 applicants, more than 4,200 impressive students were selected to join the Class of 2028. The average high school GPA of students who joined the University in the fall was 3.92 and the average ACT score was 24.
Ascending further in the national rankings, Florida Atlantic moved up to No. 103 in the U.S. News & World Report “Top Public Schools” ranking and up to No. 189 for “Top National Schools.” Florida Atlantic also ranked No. 146 in the “Best Value” category, and No. 32 for “Top Performers on Social Mobility” among both public and private institutions. In the Washington Monthly College Guide, Florida Atlantic ranked No. 41 overall among the nation’s best public and private universities, and No. 6 in the “Best Bang for the Buck Rankings: Southeast” category.
“Florida Atlantic’s rise in these rankings is a testament to our commitment to offer an accessible, high-quality education,” said FAU President Stacy Volnick. “We are proud of the efforts of everyone involved in the success of our students and honored to be recognized by U.S. News & World Report and Washington Monthly for these achievements.”
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