James Bernard Machen (; born March 26, 1944) is an American university professor and administrator. Machen is a native of Mississippi, and earned several academic degrees before becoming a university administrator and president. Machen had been the president of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah and the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. He also sits on the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute's Board of Trustees. On June 8, 2012, Machen announced he would be stepping down as president in 2013. However, Machen was asked by state and university leaders to stay on, as the school had not yet found a suitable replacement. He was finally succeeded by W. Kent Fuchs on January 1, 2015. Early life and education Machen was born in Greenwood, Mississippi in 1944, and grew up in Saint Louis, Missouri. He graduated from Vanderbilt University with his bachelor's degree in 1966, and was a member of Sigma Chi Fraternity (Alpha Psi Chapter). He also graduated from Saint Louis University with his doctor of dental surgery degree in 1968, from the University of Iowa with a Master of Science degree in pediatric dentistry in 1972 and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in educational psychology in 1974. Before Utah and Florida, Machen was employed in various capacities as professor and administrator by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of Michigan. Additionally, he served in various ways with the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the National Academy of Sciences, and the American Association of Dental Schools. While serving as the president of the University of Utah, Machen served on the board of trustees of the Salt Lake Olympic Organizing Committee for the 2002 Winter Olympics. He is a retired U.S. Army major. University of Florida president During Florida's 2004 search that resulted in the hiring of new head football coach Urban Meyer, it was speculated that Machen's relationship with Meyer might play a role in the selection. Machen was the president at Utah when Meyer was hired as head coach there. During Machen's term, in 2006, the University of Florida came to agreement with Graduate Assistants United (GAU) to begin providing fully subsidized health care to graduate assistants. GAU is a labor union that represents graduate workers, teaching or research assistants, at UF. GAU negotiated with the administration to include the new program, in their collective bargaining agreement - the culmination of