USF Welcomes a New President

In a unanimous vote by the USF Board of Trustees today, Aceves, who was born and raised in San Francisco, was chosen to lead the university. He takes office in August.

“To return to USF in a leadership role is not just a professional opportunity — it is a calling,” said incoming President Aceves. “USF has always been a place where academic excellence, faith, and social responsibility are interwoven. It is an honor to give back to the university that gave me so much, and to help shape its future guided by the same values that shaped me.”

Incoming President Aceves is the son of immigrants and is a first-generation college graduate. He attended USF and earned a BS in accounting from the School of Management and an EdD from the School of Education. He also holds a master’s degree in taxation from Golden Gate University. His career in Jesuit higher education also began at USF: He was an associate professor of accounting in the School of Management and the School of Law, and then served as vice provost and chief planning and budget officer.

Most recently, incoming President Aceves has served since 2023 as president of Regis University in Denver, and as its senior vice president and chief financial officer from 2014–22. Before that, he was the associate vice president for academic, financial planning, and analysis at Fordham University, while also teaching as an associate professor at Fordham’s Gabelli School of Business. Earlier in his career, he worked at Price Waterhouse and Citicorps.

“This is a historic moment for USF,” said USF Board of Trustees Chair Jack Boland ’78. “Salvador is deeply committed to USF’s Jesuit Catholic mission, the Ignatian vision of service to the world, and Jesuit higher education as a whole.”

It is an honor to give back to the university that gave me so much," said incoming President Salvador D. Aceves

Incoming President Aceves said he is devoted to fostering an environment in which “we — students, faculty, leadership, staff, and the USF community at large — journey together.”

Asked what he would tell a prospective student about USF, he said, “I’d say that here we prepare you not just for a career, but for a vocation — one that calls you to lead with empathy, serve with purpose, and live with integrity.”

Provost Eileen Fung was enthusiastic about both the appointment and USF’s future. “We have found a mission-driven, academically centered, and fiscally-minded leader in Salvador Aceves, who also cares deeply for all people in the university community. As provost, I look forward to working with him, especially in supporting his vision and strengthening our academic enterprise.”

Presidential Search Committee Co-Chair John F. Nicolai ’71 added, “I have known Salvador for over 30 years. He is the right person at this opportune moment to lead USF forward while focusing on academic excellence and financial sustainability.”

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Incoming President Aceves and Carol Aceves MA ’11, his wife of 40 years and a fellow USF graduate, are looking forward to returning to San Francisco. The couple met in their fifth-grade classroom at St. John Catholic School in San Francisco, and he describes their relationship as “a lifelong blessing.” 

“What excites me most about stepping into this position at USF is the opportunity to journey alongside an extraordinary community of faculty, staff, and students who are deeply committed to building a more just and humane world,” said incoming President Aceves. “We have the opportunity to form leaders by nurturing the mind, heart, and hands — and in doing so, shape a university that models the very justice and compassion we hope to see in the world.”