JOHN LOMBARDI

Historian, teacher, administrator, and author, Dr. John Lombardi became the ninth president of the University of Florida in March of 1990.

Born in Los Angeles in 1942, Lombardi comes from a family with a passion for education. His mother worked as a college librarian and his father, a pioneer in the California community college movement, was president of Los Angeles City College.

Dr. Lombardi earned his bachelor’s degree from Pomona College and his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Columbia University.

Dr. Lombardi came to the University of Florida from Johns Hopkins University, where he had been provost and vice president for academic affairs since 1987. From 1967 until 1987, he taught in the history department at Indiana University. Dr. Lombardi held various administrative posts at Indiana University as well, including director of Latin American Studies, dean of International Programs, and dean of Arts and Sciences.

A specialist in Latin American history, Dr. Lombardi is the author of seven books focused primarily on Venezuela. In addition to history, he has taught and written on international business, computer literacy and software evaluation. For about two years, Dr. Lombardi’s enthusiasm for automobiles led him and a friend to operate Farmer’s Garage, a specialty shop for older model cars.