During graduate school, that idea was supported by the books and academic studies I scoured. Today, a glance at headlines from all kinds of sources makes the claim obvious. Across the nation, university presidents are navigating a variety of cultural issues, budget realignments, shifting enrollment demographics, and unprecedented public distrust. Executive turnover is high because the role requires a near-impossible balance of strategy, fundraising, politics, finances, shared governance, and resilience amidst change.

Here in Utah, seen through leadership turnover, legislative reform, and systemwide integration, our systems of higher education are at a critical juncture. Naturally, this invites intense public debate, especially around executive turnover. Recent commentary surrounding high-profile appointments across higher education and the judiciary rightly pointed out that representation, diversity, and background in public leadership matter. That is a fair and essential conversation for our state to have. Ensuring our governing and educational bodies inspire and represent the growing communities they serve is a vital public interest.

That said, when critique becomes cynical and paints incoming university presidents as a monolithic group of carbon-copy bureaucrats, it overlooks their individual stories and the specific capabilities each leader brings to their institutions. Discounting a new cohort of leaders through a broad demographic lens risks missing the unique strengths they bring to Utah’s students.

Serving as Weber State University’s director of government relations, I have had the unique vantage point of working alongside three university leaders in just three years: President Brad Mortensen, Interim President Leslie Durham, and now our incoming 14th president, Chris Mallett. Rather than sitting in ivory towers, these leaders have grit and work every day to confront hard, practical realities such as keeping tuition affordable, aligning academic programs with regional workforce needs, navigating legislative priorities, and ensuring students leave with valuable credentials rather than debt.

When leadership changes, institutional momentum can easily stall. Instead, leaders like Interim President Leslie Durham stepped up with steady, smart, and encouraging strength to keep Weber State focused on student success, while Brad Mortensen brought a relentless commitment to affordability, value, and access that he now carries to Utah State.

My experiences with Leslie and Brad make me eager to welcome Chris Mallett to Weber State. As an alumnus with extensive national experience in higher education innovation, experiential learning, technology, and industry partnerships, President Mallett represents exactly the type of innovative leader we need to keep pushing Weber State to become ever great, great, greater.

Weber State isn’t the only campus entering a new era. We are witnessing a renewal of executive leadership across the entire Utah System of Higher Education, encompassing both degree-granting universities and our vital technical colleges.

Legislative foresight prepared Utah to welcome what I believe is a wave of great new talent. By establishing a confidential search protocol and new framework, state leaders created a system that could attract high-caliber, tested, national and local talent. In an era where executive searches can easily devolve into public political spectacles, protecting candidate confidentiality ensures that top-tier leaders can step forward and be evaluated on merit, vision, and fit.

Additionally, these new leaders are stepping into a system that is shifting toward greater integration. USHE’s work on a seamless systemwide approach to help institutions work better together requires presidents who view themselves as collaborative partners in a unified state strategy. Technical college presidents and university presidents must work hand-in-hand to build educational pathways that make sense. Whether a student begins with a certificate at a technical college, pursues a bachelor’s degree at a regional public university, or conducts breakthrough research at an R1, our institutions must work together to maximize return on investment for students and taxpayers alike.

New leadership brings what higher education so urgently needs right now: A fresh willingness to ask tough questions, reexamine legacy models, and align our campuses with the evolving needs of Utah. They set the tone for campus culture, ensure fiscal accountability, and build the community partnerships that keep Utah’s economy thriving. Leading a university or technical college is extraordinarily hard work, but when we get the leadership right, the benefits compound across our state for generations. Weber State’s Davis Campus is a great example of this, but a story for a different day.

As someone who advocates for public higher education and studies its policy landscape, I know that institutions do not innovate on their own — people lead them. I am eager to see how this new slate of presidents will deliver for their campuses, our students, and the state of Utah.

Kade Crittenden is Director of Government Relations and Special Projects at Weber State University, where he advocates for and studies public institutions of higher education and how they are impacted by state level politics. The views expressed by the author do not necessarily represent the institutional values or positions of the university.