Jeanette Nunez

Jeanette M. Nuñez
Birthplace	Miami, Florida, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	University president, politician
Title	President of Florida International University
Known for	21st Lieutenant Governor of Florida; 7th President of Florida International University
Education	Florida International University

Jeanette M. Nuñez is an American university administrator and former politician who serves as the seventh president of Florida International University (FIU), a position confirmed by the Florida Board of Governors in June 2025. Before entering higher education leadership, Nuñez held a prominent role in Florida state government as the 21st Lieutenant Governor of Florida, serving under Governor Ron DeSantis from 2019 to 2023. A two-time alumna of FIU, Nuñez's return to lead her alma mater represented a historic milestone for the university — she became the first woman and the first Hispanic woman to serve as its president. Her career has spanned the private health care sector, the Florida Legislature, the executive branch of state government, and now the leadership of one of the largest public research universities in the United States. As FIU president, Nuñez has emphasized the university's trajectory in research, healthcare education, and service to the diverse population of South Florida. Her appointment was celebrated at a formal investiture ceremony in October 2025, an event that recognized both her personal ties to the institution and her vision for its future.

Early Life

Jeanette M. Nuñez was born and raised in Miami, Florida. She is of Cuban descent, a background that has shaped much of her civic engagement and public service career in South Florida's large and politically active Cuban-American community. Growing up in Miami, Nuñez was immersed in a bilingual and bicultural environment that would later inform her policy interests in areas such as healthcare, education, and U.S.–Cuba relations.

Details regarding her parents, siblings, and childhood experiences remain largely outside the scope of available sourced material. However, her deep roots in the Miami community have been a recurring theme in her public career, particularly in her role as FIU president, where she has been described as emblematic of the university's connection to the diverse population of South Florida.

Her personal connection to FIU began as a student, and her trajectory from undergraduate to the president's office has been highlighted by the university as a reflection of the institution's mission to provide upward mobility to its students, many of whom come from immigrant families similar to Nuñez's own background.

Education

Nuñez is a two-time alumna of Florida International University. She earned both her undergraduate and graduate degrees from the institution. This distinction became a notable aspect of her appointment as FIU's president, with university communications emphasizing her unique perspective as someone who had experienced FIU as a student before returning to lead it.

Her educational background at FIU provided the foundation for a career that would span healthcare, state politics, and ultimately university administration. The specific degrees she earned and their fields of study are referenced in university materials in broad terms, with the institution frequently noting her status as a "two-time alumna" in official communications surrounding her presidency.

Career

Florida Legislature

Before her statewide political career, Nuñez served in the Florida House of Representatives, where she represented a district in the Miami-Dade County area. During her tenure in the state legislature, she focused on healthcare policy and other issues relevant to her South Florida constituency. Her legislative career established her reputation as a policy-oriented lawmaker and positioned her for higher office in Florida government.

Lieutenant Governor of Florida

Nuñez served as the 21st Lieutenant Governor of Florida from January 2019 to January 2023, having been selected as the running mate of Governor Ron DeSantis during his first gubernatorial campaign in 2018. She was the first Cuban-American woman to hold the office of lieutenant governor in Florida.

As lieutenant governor, Nuñez was involved in a range of policy areas, including healthcare, education, and issues related to Latin America and the Caribbean. Her role in the DeSantis administration placed her in a position of statewide influence during a period that included the COVID-19 pandemic and significant policy debates over education, immigration, and public health in Florida.

Her tenure as lieutenant governor also kept her connected to issues affecting the Cuban-American community and U.S.–Cuba relations, topics on which she has continued to speak publicly. As recently as February 2026, Nuñez appeared on the television program This Week in South Florida to discuss the deepening crisis in Cuba, including the island's dwindling oil supply following the end of shipments from Venezuela.

President of Florida International University

Selection and Confirmation

Following her departure from the lieutenant governor's office, Nuñez was selected as the seventh president of Florida International University. On June 18, 2025, the Florida Board of Governors formally confirmed her appointment. The confirmation came during the same meeting at which FIU was announced as the top performer among Florida's state universities for the third consecutive year, a designation that underscored the university's strong institutional trajectory at the time of Nuñez's accession to the presidency.

Nuñez's selection was historic on multiple levels. She became the first woman to serve as president of FIU, and the first Hispanic woman to lead the institution, which is itself one of the largest Hispanic-serving institutions in the United States. Given her status as a two-time FIU alumna, her appointment also represented a full-circle moment for both Nuñez and the university.

Investiture

On October 24, 2025, FIU held a formal presidential investiture ceremony for Nuñez. The event, described by the university as a historic milestone, celebrated what FIU characterized as "all the passion, promise and possibility she brings to" the institution. The investiture was attended by university leadership, faculty, students, and community members, and served as both a ceremonial installation and a public articulation of the university's direction under Nuñez's leadership.

Coverage by the student newspaper PantherNOW highlighted the investiture as a moment that marked FIU's future trajectory in research and healthcare, two areas that Nuñez has identified as priorities for the university. The ceremony underscored the significance of Nuñez's appointment not only for FIU but for the broader South Florida community, given the university's role as a major employer, research institution, and educational provider in the region.

Priorities and Early Tenure

In her early tenure as president, Nuñez has emphasized FIU's role as a leading research university and its contributions to healthcare education. In an August 2025 interview with NBC 6 South Florida, she discussed her vision for the institution and its position within the state university system.

The Board of Governors' concurrent announcement that FIU had achieved top-performer status among Florida's state universities for a third consecutive year provided a strong institutional foundation for Nuñez's presidency. This performance designation, which is based on metrics established by the state, reflects the university's standing in areas such as graduation rates, student success, and research output.

Nuñez has also engaged with FIU's athletics programs, participating in a December 2025 episode of the FIU Athletics "Paw'dCast," a video series produced by the university's athletic department. Her appearance on the program signaled her engagement with the full spectrum of university life beyond academics.

In December 2025, Nuñez made a public appearance congratulating longtime CBS News Miami anchor Eliott Rodriguez on his career, calling him "a proud" member of the community. The appearance illustrated Nuñez's role as a public-facing representative of FIU within the broader South Florida media and civic landscape.

By February 2026, Nuñez continued to maintain a public profile that bridged her roles as university president and former state officeholder. Her February 2026 appearance on This Week in South Florida addressed both her work at FIU and international affairs, specifically the crisis in Cuba.

Personal Life

Nuñez is a resident of Miami, Florida, and has maintained close ties to the South Florida community throughout her career in government and higher education. She is of Cuban American heritage, and matters related to Cuba and the Cuban diaspora have been a consistent part of her public engagement. Her family background as part of Miami's Cuban-American community has been referenced in numerous public settings, including her investiture as FIU president.

Specific details about Nuñez's immediate family, including any spouse or children, are not documented in the available sourced material and are therefore not included here.

Recognition

FIU Top Performer Designation

While not a personal award, the Florida Board of Governors' designation of FIU as the number one top performer among state universities for the third consecutive year was announced concurrently with the confirmation of Nuñez's presidency in June 2025. The timing of this announcement highlighted the institutional strength that Nuñez was inheriting and was widely reported alongside news of her confirmation.

Historic Firsts

Nuñez's appointment as FIU president was noted for several historic firsts. She became the first woman and the first Hispanic woman to lead the university, and her status as a two-time alumna returning to lead her alma mater added an additional dimension to the significance of her selection. These milestones were prominently featured in FIU's official communications and in local media coverage of her appointment and investiture.

Media Appearances

As FIU president, Nuñez has been a frequent presence in South Florida media. Her appearances have included a sit-down interview on NBC 6's Impact program in August 2025, the FIU Athletics Paw'dCast in December 2025, a congratulatory appearance on CBS News Miami in December 2025, and a February 2026 discussion on WPLG Local 10's This Week in South Florida.

Legacy

As of early 2026, Nuñez's presidency at FIU is in its early stages, and a full assessment of her legacy in higher education remains to be determined. However, her career trajectory — from FIU student to Florida state legislator to lieutenant governor and ultimately to the presidency of her alma mater — has been characterized as a reflection of the university's own mission of providing opportunity and upward mobility to the people of South Florida.

Her appointment as the first woman and first Hispanic woman to serve as FIU's president has been documented as a milestone in the history of the institution, which is one of the 25 largest universities in the United States and one of the nation's leading Hispanic-serving institutions. The investiture ceremony in October 2025 served as a public affirmation of the historic nature of her appointment and the expectations placed upon her leadership.

Nuñez's continued engagement with issues beyond the campus — including her public commentary on the crisis in Cuba — suggests that her presidency may be defined in part by FIU's role as a civic institution with deep connections to international affairs, particularly those affecting Latin America and the Caribbean. Her unique combination of experience in state government and higher education positions her at the intersection of policy and academic leadership in Florida.

The Board of Governors' recognition of FIU as a top-performing institution at the time of Nuñez's confirmation provides a benchmark against which her tenure will be measured. Whether the university maintains or improves upon that standing under her leadership will be a key metric in evaluating her impact as president.