Rhea Law is the president of the University of South Florida. Law has deep ties within the USF community. She earned an undergraduate degree in Management from USF, putting herself through school while working as the university research project administrator for the Office of Sponsored Research. She is one of the founding members of the USF Board of Trustees, where she spent five years as vice chair and four years as the first and only female chair. She served on the Presidential Search Advisory Committee for USF’s last two presidential searches. Law currently serves as the eighth president of USF.
I am a fifth-generation Floridian and Tampa native. Greater Tampa Bay has always been my home.
I stayed in Greater Tampa Bay because there are such great opportunities here that you do not see in other locations. I could see the potential for growth — not only for our educational systems but also for the arts and recreation. All the indicators of quality of life are here in GTB. We are a big city, but we have a small-town feel. We have a great working environment and are very open to people coming into our community.
Living in GTB has given me many opportunities to get involved in the community. Because we are so welcoming, you can find people to serve as mentors and champions to help guide you through your professional life. If you are willing to participate and work in this community, you will have every opportunity to progress and succeed.
We have a world-class research university right here in GTB. The university is a very nurturing place, and it is because of the experiences that I had at USF that I was able to accomplish my goals. USF is where I started, and it gave me the confidence I needed to bet it all and go to law school. It allowed me to find a law firm that I wanted to work for and that I later led.
USF is moving fast, and we are not slowing down. We recently reached our highest-ever position in U.S. News and World Report’s annual ranking of the best colleges in America — No. 42 among all public universities and No. 97 among all universities, public or private. Our focus on student success, faculty excellence and strengthening our partnerships will ensure we continue to rise.
The sky is the limit!
– Rhea Law
By Meredith Biesinger.
