Leadership Transition at the Florida Museum of Natural History

Published: February 26th, 2025

Category: Memos

Joe Glover, Interim Provost & Sr. Vice President for Academic Affairs

Dr. Douglas Jones has indicated his desire to step down after 28 years as director of the Florida Museum of Natural History, effective June 30, 2025.

Dr. David L. Reed, associate provost for strategic initiatives in the Office of the Provost, will assume the role of interim director on July 1, 2025.

Dr. Jones became the museum director in 1997 and has led the museum with distinction for nearly three decades.  Highlights of his tenure include:

  • Overseeing the completion of Powell Hall (exhibits & public programs) in 1998, addition of McGuire Hall (butterfly & moth collections & research) in 2004, and construction of the Special Collections Building in 2022.
  • Raising over $230 million for the museum while ensuring that it is consistently recognized among the top-3 university natural history museums in the nation.
  • Growing the museum’s collections to more than 40 million specimens and objects, ranking #1 among university museums in the U.S.
  • Serving as board president for the Florida Association of Museums (FAM), the Association of Science Museum Directors (ASMD), and the American Alliance of Museums (AAM).

Additionally, Dr. Jones last year received the Distinguished Service Award from the AAM, considered the museum field’s highest honor.

Dr. David Reed began his faculty career at UF in 2004 as the museum’s assistant curator of mammals. After serving as a department chair and associate director for research & collections, Dr. Reed joined the Provost’s Office as associate provost in 2018.

Beginning in 2020, Dr. Reed helped lead UF’s adoption of AI through the AI Across the Curriculum initiative which today consists of over 200 courses in AI and involves over 12,000 students annually. In 2022 he established the Artificial Intelligence Academic Initiative (AI2) Center to support faculty and students in teaching and learning AI tools. With his museum background and administrative experience in the Provost Office and with AI, he is uniquely positioned to lead the museum during this period of transition.

UF is grateful for Dr. Jones’ outstanding leadership over this period. Please join me in extending him your congratulations and best wishes.

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