Jay Hartzell didn’t set out to leave the University of Texas’ flagship campus for a smaller private college near downtown Dallas. But after SMU board members began aggressively recruiting him for their soon-to-be-vacant president job,

Hartzell leaves UT-Austin after four years of tense political battles and legislative efforts to implement a more conservative vision of public higher ed.

DALLAS – Southern Methodist University has named a new president. Jay Hartzell, currently president of the University of Texas at Austin, will assume the title effective June 1 after a unanimous decision by the university's board of trustees.

The Southern Methodist University Board of Trustees is expected to approve Jay Hartzell’s hiring Tuesday morning.

Hartzell has served as UT's president since 2020. Before then, he was the dean of the McCombs School of Business. SMU's Board of Trustees unanimously named Hartzell president, the school announced Tuesday morning.

Texas president Jay Hartzell, one of the key figures in the Longhorns’ move to the Southeastern Conference, will be the president at SMU, the schools announced Tuesday. SMU’s board of trustees unanimously voted Tuesday to name Hartzell as the successor to R.

University of Texas Austin President Jay Hartzell is leaving his position to become the next president of Southern Methodist University. He begin that position on June 1.

After spending more than two decades at The University of Texas at Austin, UT President Dr. Jay Hartzell will soon serve as the next president of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, SMU announced Tuesday.

Jay Hartzell, current UT Austin president, will become SMU's 11th president in June 2025, following a unanimous vote by the SMU Board of Trustees.

UT Austin president Jay Hartzell has accepted a new job as president of Southern Methodist University starting this summer.