After its first choice backed out, Clemson University has named Ben Ayers, Provost of the University of Georgia, to be its next president.gettyJust three days after Kevin Guskiewicz, Clemson University’s first pick to become it’s next president, unexpectedly backed out of the job, Clemson’s Board of Trustees has named University of Georgia Provost Benjamin Ayers to be its new leader.On May 27, Clemson had hired Guskiewicz, President of Michigan State University, to become its 16th president. But on Monday, July 7, Guskiewicz, citing personal reasons, told Clemson that he had changed his mind and would be remaining at MSU.Clemson wasted little time in turning the page, voting unanimously today to give Ayers the job. He is scheduled to begin the position on August 1 with a five-year contract. A Messy Exit and ReturnGuskiewicz’s departure from — and abrupt return to — Michigan State has been marked by controversy. In a highly unusual move, the then-outgoing president made a point of criticizing the functioning of the MSU Board of Trustees, which has had a well-publicized history of tension, infighting, and attempted micromanagement. Since 2018, Michigan State has had a total of six presidents, with three of them serving in an interim capacity. Some members of the board have also faced allegations that they’ve engaged in various forms of misconduct such as bullying colleagues and accepting personal gifts from donors.MORE FOR YOUGuskiewicz’s announced exit for Clemson came less than two weeks after Michigan State had offered him a contract extension along with a $1 million raise that would have almost doubled his current salary.This week, in a message revealing his intent to stay at MSU, Guskiewicz apologized for the uncertainty that his about-face might have caused, before adding that “the board has demonstrated a commitment to implementing a more robust governance structure, including recent improvements to the Code of Ethics and Conduct.” A day later, Guskiewicz told The Chronicle of Higher Education, “we’ve had productive conversations about how the board can operate more strategically, more effectively. That means trying to function as a board of the whole, as I like to say, and functioning as one team in a partnership that I felt was eroding to some extent over the past several months. But I think that there’s been a recommitment to this one-team approach.”Maybe, maybe not. Early indications are that mistrust continues to roil the Michigan State campus. According to Inside Higher Education, not all of MSU’s board members had seen Guskiewicz’s contract before he and Board Chair Brianna Scott signed it. Board member Mike Balow said he only learned from Scott at a Monday morning board meeting that the president wanted to stay. “It’s not clear to me why it wasn’t shared with the entire board before it was signed, or before it was shared with the outside world,” Balow said.One thing is clear — the new contract offers Guskiewicz a raise of nearly half a million dollars, plus some additional perks like 10 hours of access to a private aircraft for personal, nonbusiness travel, paid for by “philanthropic funding sources.”About Ben AyersAyers has served as the University of Georgia’s senior vice president for academic affairs and provost since June 30, 2025. Prior to that, he was dean of the UGA’s Terry College of Business for 11 years, and he served as director of the J.M. Tull School of Accounting for nine years before taking on the deanship. He held the Earl Davis Chair in Taxation in the college.Ayers earned his bachelor’s degree in accounting and master’s degree in taxation from the University of Alabama and his doctorate in accounting from the University of Texas at Austin. Prior to pursuing his doctorate, he worked for KPMG in Atlanta and Tampa and Complete Health Inc. in Birmingham.“Ben Ayers is an accomplished scholar and collaborative leader whose record reflects a deep commitment to academic excellence, student success and institutional advancement,” said Clemson Board Chair Kim Wilkerson, in a news release. “He understands the opportunities ahead for higher education and has demonstrated the ability to bring people together around a shared vision. We are confident he is the right leader to build on Clemson’s remarkable momentum and guide the University into its next chapter.”“It is a tremendous honor to be selected to serve as the next president of Clemson University,” Ayers said. “I am grateful to the Board of Trustees and the search committee for its confidence and humbled by the opportunity to join the Clemson Family. Clemson’s tradition of excellence, its commitment to students and its impact through teaching, research and service make it one of the nation’s most respected public universities. I look forward to working alongside our students, faculty, staff, alumni and supporters to build upon the strong foundation and shape an even brighter future together.” .