Mark Naufel

Mark Naufel
President of the University of Silicon Valley
Incumbent
Assumed office October 2025
Personal details
Born	(1991-11-26) November 26, 1991 (age 34) Tempe, Arizona, U.S.
Education	Arizona State University (BS, MS, PhD)
Alma mater	Arizona State University

Mark Naufel (born November 26, 1991) is an American university president and entrepreneur. He has been President of the University of Silicon Valley since October 2025. ^{[1] [2]}

Education

Naufel received his undergraduate and graduate education at Arizona State University. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Finance, two master's degrees in Business Analytics and Systems Engineering, and a Ph.D. in Human Systems Engineering in 2020. ^{[3] [4]}

Career

Arizona State University

As an undergraduate, Naufel served as Student Body President at Arizona State University's Tempe campus. ^[5] In 2014, he was appointed by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer to serve as Student Regent on the Arizona Board of Regents, a position he held until 2016. ^{[5] [6]}

Following his graduate work, Naufel joined Arizona State University's faculty as a Professor of Practice. ^[7] He established the Luminosity Lab, a research program involving students from multiple academic disciplines. ^[8]

In 2020, a student team from the Luminosity Lab won the XPRIZE Next-Gen Mask Challenge. ^[9]

Axio

Naufel founded an educational technology company called Primer, which was later renamed Axio. ^[10] The company develops learning management software. ^[11]

University of Silicon Valley

In October 2025, Naufel was appointed President of the University of Silicon Valley. ^{[12] [13]}

Publications

Naufel has published research on educational innovation models. His work includes:

• Naufel, M. (2020). "The Luminosity Lab—An Interdisciplinary Model of Discovery and Innovation for the 21st Century." Technology and Innovation, 21(2), 115-121. ^[14]

References

1. "University of Silicon Valley Appoints Dr. Mark Naufel as President". CBS42. October 7, 2025.
2. Pender, Geoff (October 15, 2025). "San Jose college taps startup founder as president". Silicon Valley Business Journal.
3. "Mark Naufel - ASU Search". Arizona State University. Retrieved October 26, 2025.
4. "Mark Naufel - Google Scholar". Google Scholar. Retrieved October 26, 2025.
5. Laskey, Chastity (April 8, 2016). "Naufel's regency: 'It's been absolutely phenomenal'". The Daily Wildcat.
6. Romanov, Andrew (March 3, 2014). "New Student Regent Not A Current Student". KJZZ.
7. "Mark Naufel - Arizona Board of Regents". Arizona Board of Regents. Retrieved October 26, 2025.
8. "Executive & Leadership Team - Mark Naufel". University of Silicon Valley. Retrieved October 26, 2025.
9. Seckel, Scott (December 22, 2020). "ASU student team's fog-free mask design wins $1 million international competition". ASU News.
10. "Primer Rebrands to Axio". Axio. July 8, 2024.
11. "About Axio". Axio. Retrieved October 26, 2025.
12. "University of Silicon Valley Appoints Dr. Mark Naufel as President". CBS42. October 7, 2025.
13. Pender, Geoff (October 15, 2025). "San Jose college taps startup founder as president". Silicon Valley Business Journal.
14. Naufel, Mark (2020). "The Luminosity Lab—An Interdisciplinary Model of Discovery and Innovation for the 21st Century". Technology and Innovation. 21 (2): 115–121. doi:10.21300/21.2.2020.115.