Office of the President

Dr. Ronald L. Vaughn has served as president of The University of Tampa since January 1995. Under his leadership, the University has grown and expanded unlike any period in its previous history. During his tenure, University enrollments have nearly tripled, new enrollment records have been set in each of the last 15 years and academic programs have been expanded to more than 140 areas of study, including nine graduate programs with 11 concentrations in the fields of business, nursing, education and writing.

Since 1995, the University’s annual budget has increased from $28 million to $178 million for the 2011 academic year. The record growth has fueled dynamic improvements in both the academic and student life areas. Almost 300 faculty, academic support and staff positions have been added during the past decade. Since 1997, more than $280 million of construction has been completed or is underway. President Vaughn also helped UT successfully complete its first comprehensive capital campaign by raising $84 million.

President Vaughn came to the University of Tampa in August 1984 as the coordinator of the marketing department and holder of the Max H. Hollingsworth Endowed Chair of American Enterprise. He also served as director of the MBA program, dean of the College of Business and Graduate Studies and co-chief academic officer.

President Vaughn has a bachelor’s degree in marketing and an MBA from Indiana State University, and a doctorate in marketing from the University of Georgia. He also owned his own multi-office marketing research/consulting company where he worked on several hundred projects for a broad clientele before beginning his academic career at Bradley University as a faculty member and chairman of the marketing department.

President Vaughn enjoys fishing, pheasant hunting, tennis, basketball and traveling. His daughter, Susan, is a University of Tampa graduate and recently graduated with her veterinary medicine doctorate from the University of Florida.

His wife, Renée, is active in the Tampa Bay community as chair-elect of Leadership Tampa Alumni, vice president of the Red Cross Angels and current past-president of the HB Plant Museum. She is a former president of the UT Board of Fellows and is current chair of its membership committee. She is also on the boards of Rotary Club of Tampa and Leadership Tampa Bay. She is a member of the Chiselers, Athena Society, the Tampa General Hospital Women’s Leadership Council, the CLW Board of Advisors and a mentor in the Greater Tampa Chamber Mentor/Protegé Program. She owns the Williams Consulting Group, a public relations firm located in Tampa.

Contact Information

The Office of the President is located in Plant Hall, Room 100. To contact the president's office, email president@ut.edu or call (813) 253-6201. Please send mail to:

Office of the President
The University of Tampa
401 W. Kennedy Blvd., Box A
Tampa, FL 33606-1490