Moving Forward

On Aug. 9, the Arizona Board of Regents voted unanimously to appoint Suresh Garimella as the 23rd president of the University of Arizona. Since 2019, Garimella has served as 27th president of the University of Vermont, which, like the University of Arizona, is a land- grant university. He begins Oct. 1.

“I certainty understand the responsibility — the awesome responsibility — of leading a land-grant university,” he said. “To me, the primary thing that means is that we have to provide access to a world-class education to our students and make it as affordable and as accessible as possible.”

As UVM president, Garimella prioritized access and affordability for students. The university froze tuition rates for all students during his five years, while attracting record numbers of undergraduate applications and enrolling the most diverse and talented students in the university’s history.

“Throughout my career, I think you’ll see I’ve had one mission as my primary driving force, and that is to serve our students,” Garimella said, adding that his focus on student success will be broadly visible.

A professor of mechanical engineering, Garimella continued to focus on teaching and mentoring students during his UVM presidency, annually leading an undergraduate seminar class in civil discourse and continuing to supervise doctoral students. In his career, he has mentored over 90 graduate students and 50 postdoctoral scholars, 29 of whom went on to accept prestigious faculty positions around the world.  

The power of research 

Garimella said that he is a deep believer in the “power and promise of research” and recognizes the U of A’s position as a global research leader.

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“We excel in research because of the shared efforts of our faculty, our staff and our graduate students, our postdocs and undergraduates, and so all are critical parts of this vibrant campus endeavor,” he said. “I look forward to building strong relationships and partnerships across campus and around Arizona, because nothing that we work on together is beyond our reach.”

During his time at UVM, Garimella doubled the university’s research enterprise, achieving record funding levels in each of his five years.  

Garimella himself is a highly cited researcher who has made significant contributions to the field of electronics thermal management and energy efficiency at micro- and nanoscales, and in sustainable energy systems technology and policy. He has co-authored more than 625 research publications in peer-reviewed journals and has been issued 16 patents. He is a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

Garimella has a doctorate from the University of California, Berkeley, a master’s degree from The Ohio State University and a bachelor’s degree from the Indian Institute of Technology Madras.

Prior to his time at UVM, Garimella was executive vice president for research and partnerships and a distinguished professor at Indiana’s land-grant university, Purdue University, where he oversaw Purdue’s Discovery Park, a set of facilities and institutes focused on global challenges related to health and life sciences, sustainability, food, energy, and defense and security. 

Bringing people together

Garimella said his conversations with members of the U of A Presidential Search Advisory Committee sent a clear message: “It showed me there is great interest in moving forward and achieving big things, and it is hard not to get excited when the group has such big ambition. I thrive on institutional ambition, and so I truly thank everyone who brought us to this position.”

He also said he hopes to bring a period of stability to the university, and he plans to build a team that works closely together, while seeking input from faculty, staff and student governance groups, as well as alumni, donors and the regents.

Garimella will succeed President Robert C. Robbins, who has led the university since 2017.

Robbins drove significant improvement in student retention and success, oversaw an increase in annual research expenditures to $955 million and spearheaded the most successful fundraising campaign in the history of the U of A at nearly $2.3 billion.

‘We excel in research because of the shared efforts of our faculty, our staff and our graduate students, our postdocs and undergraduates, and so all are critical parts of this vibrant campus endeavor. I look forward to building strong relationships and partnerships across campus and around Arizona, because nothing that we work on together is beyond our reach.’