A new energy at U-M

By Ann Marie Aliotta | Photos by Marc-Grégor Campredon | Art by Adam Beeman

Santa J. Ono clearly gets his energy from being around other people. Since becoming the University of Michigan’s 15th president in October, he’s regularly spotted around campus talking with students, problem-solving with faculty, and enjoying events from concerts to gymnastic meets to symposia. He works out at the IM Building and has practiced cello at the School of Music, Theatre & Dance. He even tossed a few in January’s epic snowball fight on the Diag.

In his office, he’s surrounded by images of people who inspire him—his parents on their wedding day, his daughters before their ballet recital, photos with Barack Obama, Justin Trudeau, Yo-Yo Ma, even a selfie with Emmanuel Macron. In a recent snapshot, Ono beams with delight standing against the iconic brick wall of the Big House with a crowd of students, resplendent in maize and blue, cheering behind him. 

Ono beams brightest, however, when talking about U‑M. With trademark zeal, he details the many ways the university exceeds expectations—our academic distinction, our elite student-athletes, the mastery of our artists, and our passionate philanthropic spirit. His Twitter account reads like “points of pride” for U‑M, as post after post celebrates all corners of the university with a refreshing sense of energy and joy. 

Perhaps his enthusiastic championing, grounded in a genuine respect for collaboration and community, makes Ono the exact right person at the exact right time to lead U‑M. Leaders & Best recently sat down with him to find out, and to hear more about his visioning process, his engagement with donors, and to learn why he “can’t wait to get to campus” every morning.

You’ve been on campus for a few months now and celebrated your inauguration in early March. How are things going?

Things are terrific. They’re fantastic. It’s a dream come true for me to be here at the University of Michigan. It’s a place that I’ve admired for quite some time—other universities really look up to this institution. Everything that I expected has been exceeded. The brilliance of the faculty, the energy of the students, the enthusiasm of the fans, the acoustics in Hill Auditorium—everything has exceeded my expectations.

You’re a big U‑M sports fan and equally as enthusiastic about the arts. What do you enjoy most about these activities on campus? Why do you think they’re so important to the academic experience?

There’s just so much to do every single day. I love watching all the sports, not just football and basketball. Just the other day I watched men’s and women’s gymnastics, and they’re absolutely first rate. I love listening to the seven orchestras that are on campus and the a cappella groups, the percussion band.

The academic strength of U‑M is extraordinary and well known. What’s wonderful is that we have more than 100 programs in the top 10 in the U.S., many among the top five. But at these cultural and athletic events, people come together from all of those schools in one place. It’s a unifying catalyst for realizing a sense of community. You’ll see people talking about their scholarship while they’re waiting at halftime or at the intermission of a performance.

I don’t know many institutions that have the whole suite of academic excellence and cultural strengths and a joie de vivre, if you will. It’s pretty unique.

You have recently spoken about a vision for the university that prioritizes DEI initiatives, a commitment to sustainability, academic excellence, and the arts. Tell us about the strategic visioning process that you’re embarking on and how philanthropy and your work with donors will be part of this process?

The strategic visioning process is something that I heard from all corners of the institution—from faculty, staff, students, and deans—as something that they wanted. They wanted to have a clear vision of where we’re going. And they didn’t want it to come from the top; they wanted to participate in creating that vision. I think it will be very healthy for the institution. We haven’t done it for quite some time. I’m very happy that it’s already begun and it includes, from the very inception, our supporters and donors and alumni.

The first day I was here, there was a Bold Ideas summit, which was organized by the university provost and deans to begin thinking about the next fundraising campaign. The process already has a head start. It’s not starting from scratch. Some of the campuses and schools already have strategic plans, and so that will be very easy to slot into the conversation. We want the strategic visioning process to be crisp, to be inclusive, to be thoughtful, but not to take a very long period of time. This process has already begun.

As you mentioned, you began engaging with our donor community literally on your first day in office. What are your impressions of these individuals?

I interact with our donors almost every day and I learn from them every day. They give me a context to this great institution and help me understand the history, ethos, and culture.

I see in them high expectations. They love this university. They want to give back not only in terms of generous donations, but also ideas. I was recently at an event with 300 donors and I would say about half of them said, “We are here for you. We’re here for the university that we love.” I’ve been associated with lots of institutions, and I have never seen one with that kind of passion and commitment. Decades, even half a century after they’ve graduated, they come back from all over the world for a football game on a Saturday, for a concert or cultural event. They want to come back to Ann Arbor because it makes them happy, because it was a transformative period of their life and they love it so much. I have never been at a university where you have that kind of spirit. It’s pretty remarkable. 

With U‑M being such a large and decentralized university, how do you encourage and facilitate collaboration and help people work toward a shared vision?

U‑M is very large. It is very decentralized. I think that’s part of the reason that we have so many programs that are excellent. Each of the units, each of the deans have the latitude and freedom to grow and strengthen their area, their discipline, or their school. That’s something I don’t want to change. But I also know from talking to all the deans and talking to department heads and to students and staff that they also want us, as we move forward as part of this vision, to capitalize on that disciplinary strength—it’s the foundation for interdisciplinary strength—and really come together to solve some of the most difficult questions and problems that we will face moving forward.

The strategic visioning process and thinking about a campus master plan, which we haven’t had since 2015, are opportunities for us to come together as a community to think very thoughtfully and intentionally about things like how to use the hiring process, how to think about the built environment in such a way that we incentivize and create spaces for people to come together from different schools and different fields in a way that will be required for us to solve those difficult problems.

How will these strengths around our interdisciplinary nature and collaboration impact our fundraising efforts?

I was very, very glad to see that even before I arrived that the next campaign is already being structured with collaborative initiatives as a major component. And that was led by the provost and the deans of the institution. This will actually drive the interdisciplinary approach that is very evident that the community wants. There’s already alignment in how this campaign is being approached with the vision, which is emerging to build upon disciplinary strength.

U‑M is fortunate to have a tremendous range of donors, from loyal annual donors who consistently support the university with more modest gifts to larger, transformational gifts. Can you speak to the importance of giving at all levels and why you appreciate each of our supporters?

Every gift, no matter what the amount, helps us in our work of supporting student learning, pioneering research, and so much more. I am so grateful for each person’s valuable and important commitment to the university. 

Engagement with all our donors is really, really important. And it’s not just about the gift, it’s about our responsibility to share with those donors what we’re doing with their hard-earned dollars. When they give and we report back to them what we’ve done with their donation or their contribution, we hope that excites them and that they will inform us with their dreams and their visions for the university. A university really needs to interact with all supporters, from the most recent graduate giving at a level that’s right for them to somebody who comes from a multi-generational family that has given millions of dollars to the institution. They’re all important.

You have described your leadership style as being a servant leader, and you said your first job is to listen. In the listening that you’ve done so far, what are some of the key things that you’ve learned?

If you think about our unofficial credo of providing an uncommon education for the common person, or you think about leaders and best that are actually embodied within songs that we sing and we love, they illustrate very well the values of the University of Michigan. It was founded as an institution that would be excellent, but for the common person, not just for the privileged individual. It’s clear from my listening, that is something this community is very passionate about—and I’m personally passionate about. The “leaders and best” motto, if you will, is something that permeates the entire institution. As U‑M’s legendary softball coach Carol Hutchins told me recently, when she was recruiting players or getting ready for a game, she would say, “It’s about being the leaders and best. That ‘M’ on your uniform is a privilege.”

We’re part of an institution that’s admired around the world, that has created new knowledge. We have a graduate, as you probably know, who was involved in this transformational fusion success announced last October that’s going to change the world. Leaders and best. And so whether you’re talking about discoveries in physics or medicine, or the fact that when you go to a gymnastics meet and see students performing at an Olympic level, or you go to a concert of non-music majors, like the Glee Club, and they sing like music majors elsewhere. It’s that expectation within this institution to strive to the very best of your ability and to become a leader and the best you can be. That’s a big part of the University of Michigan, and I’m proud of that.

Do you see yourself being involved in the philanthropic process during your tenure here?

Philanthropy means love of humanity. The most amazing thing about having the honor of serving as a president of the university is that universities, in my view, I believe to my core, are the best institutions for you to love humankind. You’re talking about health and welfare, you’re talking about policy making, having the difficult conversations about what’s wrong and broken about this world. If you’re at a university like Michigan and you support the tremendous activity of the faculty and students and staff, then you’re part of the solution to those problems. And there’s no better way to love humankind than to support the brilliance of our faculty and students who will be future leaders.

You’ve made it a priority to connect with so many people on campus. I’ve heard it said that you “see all people.” Why is this so important to you? 

Well, first of all, just the magnificence of the people here—it gets me up every morning. I can’t wait to get to campus because it’s an extraordinary community of people. 

It’s important for me to see all people because every individual has different expectations, and they have different dreams. And I make decisions that impact whether those dreams come true—whether we support a student, a ballet dancer or engineer, or a social scientist. If I’m here in the office alone, I don’t understand what the opportunities are, and I don’t understand what the barriers are to individuals achieving their dreams. And so that’s why it’s important for me to spend time with individuals, because my job, I think, is to do everything I can so that their dreams come true.