Search UT

Michael T. “Mike” Stephenson, currently provost and senior vice president at Sam Houston State University (TX), has been named provost and vice president for academic affairs at the University of Tampa.

The provost and vice president for academic affairs serves as the University of Tampa’s chief academic officer and as the primary steward and champion of the University's academic mission. Stephenson will be expected to lead the university in elevating forward-looking academic excellence, including the AI Across the University initiative; impactful research and public scholarship; support for faculty and staff career success; student success from their first-year experience to placement into paid internships, graduation, and placement into jobs or graduate and professional programs.

Stephenson will begin his position at UTampa on June 1.

Teresa Abi-Nader Dahlberg, president of UTampa, said she was impressed by Stephenson’s focus on academic innovation and supporting student, faculty and staff success.

“Mike brings 26 years of successful experience in higher education and has an outstanding track record for magnifying the impact of a university degree on students and their communities” Dahlberg said. “His experience will be critical to leading UTampa’s academic enterprise moving forward.”

For the past four years, Stephenson has worked at Sam Houston State University, where he oversaw eight colleges, including a medical school. His many accomplishments include establishing the institution’s First-Generation Center; creating the BRIDGE program (Building Research, Innovation, Discovery, and Growing Engagement) to foster interdisciplinary collaborations; and establishing the Student Success Operations Committee, an interdivisional group of leaders from Academic Affairs, Student Affairs and Enrollment Success.

Prior to that, he served 19 years at Texas A&M University as an administrator and a faculty member. As an administrator, he served as vice provost for academic affairs and strategic initiatives, associate provost for academic affairs, associate vice provost for institutional effectiveness, associate dean of the College of Liberal Arts, and director of Communication and Training Cores in the Center for Community Health Development. As a member of the faculty, he served as an assistant, associate, and then full professor of communication.

Additionally, he previously served as an assistant professor of communication at the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Stephenson said he was attracted to UTampa given the University’s focus on innovation and excellence.

“My own values and experiences align closely with UTampa’s mission,” Stephenson said. “And I look forward to joining such a forward-thinking, innovative institution where faculty and staff provide an outstanding learning experience for students.”

Stephenson holds a doctorate in communication from the University of Kentucky, a master’s degree in speech communication from Texas A&M University, and a bachelor’s degree, summa cum laude, in communication from Eastern New Mexico University.

Stephenson replaces David Stern, who will step down from his position at the end of this academic year and will retire after a one-year sabbatical. Stern increased full-time faculty by 73%, collaborated with deans and faculty to create 32 new majors or graduate degree programs (including UTampa’s first three doctoral programs), and worked closely with faculty to create the Spartan Studies core curriculum and UTampa Online. He also led efforts to increase student retention and graduation rates.