Saying his experience is “emblematic of the abuses running rampant in the world of big-time college football,” Jaden Rashada , a former high-school star quarterback on Tuesday filed a lawsuit accusing University of Florida football coach Billy Napier, a top Gators booster and others of wrongdoing related to a $13.85 million endorsement deal gone sour.
Higher Education
How Dare These College Kids Protest for Humanity Toward Palestinians Instead of Getting Wasted?
Standing around on college lawns, protesting against genocide, calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and an end to arms shipments — what are they thinking? These students should be shopping, getting wasted at end-of-semester parties, and engaging in meaningless sex. Instead, they’re going around acting like citizens, engaging in civil disobedience, exercising their right to free speech, telling university administrations to get rid of all investments in Israel, and demanding humanitarian aid for Palestinians.
Florida Chancellor Balks at Extending In-State Tuition to Pacific Islanders
The tuition breaks, required by a new federal law, would apply to students from the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Republic of Palau. The small Pacific Island nations entered into what are known as “Compacts of Free Association” with the U.S. starting in the 1980s.
Jacksonville Rep. Angie Nixon Stands With Pro-Palestine Protesters at UNF
For months, Jacksonville Democratic Rep. Angie Nixon has advocated for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war. She has been labeled an antisemite for doing so, too. But last Tuesday she made an appearance at the pro-Palestine protest at the University of North Florida.
Reporters Without Borders Condemns Wave of Arrests and Violence Against Journalists Covering Campus Protests
Four journalists have been arrested by police and four others attacked in the course of covering university campus protests in the past week. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns this wave of arrests, criminal charges, and violence against journalists and urges law enforcement agencies and school administrators to protect and respect the rights of all journalists, including student media.
Arrests and Threats of Expulsions of Students Protesting Gaza War Increase at Florida University Campuses
Arrests of protesters on Florida university campuses increased this week, after tensions ratcheted up at the University of Florida and the University of South Florida during demonstrations about the war between Israel and Hamas. The arrests Monday of a dozen people at the two Florida universities came as pro-Palestinian campus protests draw attention across the country. The ACLU of Florida denounced the threats of expulsions, calling protest a fundamental right.
Yes, Efforts to Eliminate DEI Programs Are Rooted in Racism
In the past year, a number of states have begun to dismantle their DEI programs. Alabama, Utah, Texas and Florida have all passed and signed into law anti-DEI legislation ranging from prohibiting diversity training to terminating all positions associated with DEI efforts. Florida lawmakers have restricted the teaching of what they call racially “divisive” subject matter in public schools, colleges and universities. Legislatures in more than two dozen additional states are considering similar measures.
Richard Corcoran Gets $200,000 Bonus On Top of $700,000 Salary After Single Year as New College President
New College of Florida President Richard Corcoran will receive $200,000 in incentive pay after the school’s Board of Trustees on Thursday signed off on a performance evaluation and releasing the money. Corcoran has led New College since February 2023, initially on an interim basis amid a leadership shakeup at the school that garnered national attention. Trustees named him president on a permanent basis in October.
Lawsuit Challenges Constitutionality of Florida Law Restricting Employment for Chinese and Some Others
Two graduate students and a professor on Monday challenged the constitutionality of a 2023 state law that restricts employment of people from China and six other nations at Florida public universities and colleges. The challenge alleges, in part, that the law is unconstitutional because it is trumped by federal immigration laws.
Why Florida Is Wrong to Have Downgraded Sociology in College
The American Sociological Association’s current president and a professor of sociology and public policy at the University of Massachusetts Amherst explains why Florida’s decision to reduce the number of students enrolled in sociology courses is both disturbing and an opportunity to help the public better understand the academic discipline.
UNF Breaks Ground on New Honors Residence Hall
The University of North Florida broke ground today on a new Honors Residence Hall and living-learning community that will house more than 500 students and open in fall 2025. The four-story, 164,579-square-foot residence hall is being built on Osprey Ridge Road along the east side of the campus adjacent to Osprey Fountains. UNF’s new strategic plan, approved last month by the Florida Board of Governors, includes plans to increase enrollment to 25,000 students over five years.
Federal Judge Rules Against Palestinian Students on Florida Campuses, Saying They’ve Not Been Silenced
Students for Justice in Palestine at the University of Florida and Students for Justice in Palestine at the University of South Florida filed lawsuits in November alleging that efforts by Gov. Ron DeSantis and state university leaders to disband the groups violated their First Amendment rights.
667 Students Graduate at Embry-Riddle Fall Commencement Ceremonies
A total of 667 students from the fall 2023 graduating class walked the stage Thursday, Dec. 14, 2023, to earn their diplomas at Embry‑Riddle Aeronautical University’s commencement ceremonies, held at the Ocean Center, in Daytona Beach. Of the graduates, 524 were undergraduate degree earners, 112 were master’s earners, 13 earned doctoral degrees and 18 were Worldwide Campus students who walked in the Daytona Beach ceremony.
The Minefield of College Free Speech Codes
Private colleges and universities have speech codes that allow them to punish certain speech. But in their testimony before Congress about antisemitism on their campuses, college presidents tripped, triggered a furor over their prevarications. and one of them resigned after failing to respond clearly to a simple question.
Hearing Set in Ban of Palestinian Group at USF
A federal judge has scheduled a hearing Jan. 26 in a lawsuit filed by the group Students for Justice in Palestine at the University of Florida after state university system Chancellor Ray Rodrigues issued an order targeting such organizations.
UF Ordered to Pay $372,000 in Legal Fees in Case that Violated Professors’ 1st Amendment Rights
A federal judge has awarded more than $372,000 in legal fees to attorneys who represented professors in a high-profile lawsuit against the University of Florida over being able to serve as expert witnesses in court cases.
A Sociology Course That Deals with Gender, Sexuality and Race May be Demoted at Florida Colleges
The Principles of Sociology class, which still would be available to students, would no longer count toward fulfilling required social-science coursework. The class involves lessons on gender, sex and sexuality and race and ethnicity, according to a syllabus from one university. State Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. wants it removed from the social sciences category.
ACLU Calls Out Florida’s Suppression of Palestinian Students’ Voices
Top leaders at the American Civil Liberties Union criticized Florida in a letter Wednesday for demanding the deactivation of chapters of a pro-Palestine student organization. More than 600 college and university leaders received the letter, urging them to reject political calls to investigate and punish student groups for exercising free speech.
DeSantis’s Censorship University System Is Causing a Brain Drain
DeSantis is obsessed with remaking education according to his authoritarian tendencies, doing his damnedest to wreck K-12 with his army of book-banning harpies in “Moms for Liberty” and his Scared Karens legislation, and forbidding honest discussion of slavery and racism so as to never make white kids feel “discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress.”
Richard Corcoran Will Be Paid $1.3 Million to Remake New College in DeSantis’s Image
New College of Florida President Richard Corcoran is set to earn up to $1.3 million per year in salary and benefits under a five-year contract approved Friday. Corcoran’s time as interim president of the college was part of sweeping changes to the school spearheaded by Gov. Ron DeSantis, who appointed a slate of conservative allies to the New College trustees board in January.
Academic Freedom Greatly Bothers the GOP
The last few years have witnessed a number of disturbing and blunt challenges to academic freedom, mostly from right-wing legislators in GOP-controlled state legislatures. For a sizable segment of the Republican party, so-called “divisive concepts” represent the belief by historians that the institutions of the United States were established to maintain racial and gender hierarchies in addition to maintaining the supremacy of White Americans.
UCF May Close Three Campuses
The state university system’s Board of Governors on Wednesday will consider proposals by the University of Central Florida to close three campuses no longer in use. The proposals involve the South Orlando Campus, the UCF Leesburg campus and the UCF Palm Bay campus.
A Mixed Bag in New Rankings of Florida’s Colleges and Universities as DeSantis Polarization Dims Luster
Florida universities, which have been in the center of national polarization for months, have seen a mixed bag in U.S. News & World Report college rankings, with both positive and negative views and some changes in the methodology. Florida has been bombarded by the anti-woke rhetoric and action of Gov. Ron DeSantis and conservative politicians who are pushing higher education reforms and policies such as post-tenure reviews that have been blasted by faculty unions.
Dead White Males Return: Behind Florida GOP’s Push for Christian-Leaning Classic Learning Test Instead of SAT
The new Classic Learning Test has been pushed by conservative politicians and religious activists as an alternative to the SAT and ACT, and will now be accepted as a measure of admission in Florida colleges and universities. Of the 12 private institutions in Florida that now accept the CLT, 11 are religiously affiliated.
New College Interviews for New President Between Eliminating Gender Studies and Making Homer Mandatory
New College of Florida officials on Thursday interviewed three final candidates vying to become the school’s next permanent president, including current Interim President Richard Corcoran. The trustees also interviewed Tyler Fisher, an associate professor of modern languages and literature and a Rhodes Scholar at the University of Central Florida, and Robert Gervasi, a former interim president at the University of Mount Union in Ohio.
Why Are Florida Republicans So Scared of Higher Education?
Florida Republicans are scared of higher education. Colleges. Universities. Known hotbeds of wokery, Marxism, and foreign languages, they should instead focus on the one thing that matters to real Americans: training future cogs in the uber-capitalist machine and sports.
Brain Drain at New College? DeSantis Is ‘Good With That’
New College has been filling positions that account for nearly a third of the school’s faculty. DeSantis appointed a slate of conservative members to the school’s Board of Trustees early this year.
DeSantis ‘War on Woke’ Mirrors Whitewashing of History in Other Countries
Florida’s new law forbidding the teaching of systemic racism is the most extreme example in a series of recent U.S. state bills that critics call “educational gag orders.” The tactics that Gov. Ron DeSantis is using to censor the teaching of American history in Florida look a lot like those seen in the illiberal democracies of Israel, Turkey, Russia and Poland.
Texas University Suspends Professor Accused of Criticizing Lt. Governor in Lecture on Opioids
The professor, Joy Alonzo, an expert on the opioids crisis, was placed on paid administrative leave and investigated, raising questions about the extent of political interference in higher education, particularly in health-related matters.
End Legacy Admissions
Who will benefit from the Supreme Court’s recent ruling striking down race as a factor in college admissions? Mostly, just wealthy white people. That’s because the ruling refused to touch so-called “legacy admissions.” Colleges are free to continue giving preferential treatment to the children of alumni, donors, and other well-connected, privileged people.
Florida’s New College Board Seeks $2 Million to Counter ‘Cancel Culture’
The New College of Florida Board of Trustees on Thursday moved forward with a plan to request $2 million in funding from the state Legislature to set up a “Freedom Institute” aimed at combating “cancel culture” in higher education. The bulk of the $2 million request would go toward hiring “scholars to work and teach” on the New College campus.
Bill Prohibiting College and University Decisions Based on Diversity Criteria Heads to DeSantis
Colleges and universities could soon be prohibited from requiring “political loyalty” tests for students and employees as a condition of admission or employment, under a measure passed Tuesday by the Senate.
Vote to End Diversity Programs in Florida Colleges and Universities Set Before Senate
A measure that seeks to prevent colleges and universities from spending money on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives is ready to go before the full Senate amid strong objections from Democrats, with one Black senator calling the proposal “racist at its core.”
Tenure No Longer Tenure in Florida As University Board Rules for 5-Year Reviews
The state university system’s Board of Governors on Wednesday gave final approval to a regulation that would require faculty members to undergo post-tenure reviews every five years, amid heavy opposition from critics who argued it could lead to a “downward trend in morale” on campus.
DeSantis Is Destroying Florida Universities’ Hard-Earned Respect in the Name of White Nationalism
Florida’s public universities have been gaining national prominence and respect, with U.F. and FSU ranked Nos. 5 and 19 among public universities. DeSantis’s assault on academic freedom in the name of a white-nationalist, America-first curriculum is demolishing that hard-earned respect and making an embarrassment of the state.
DeSantis’s New College Board Targets Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Elimination
The New College of Florida board, newly stocked with Gov. Ron DeSantis’s appointees, directed Interim President Richard Corcoran to eliminate the Office of Outreach and Inclusive Excellence, as members slammed DEI initiatives.
DeSantis’s War on Academic Freedom Is Systematically Subordinating Education to Ideology
DeSantis’s edicts include stifling testimony from professors in federal court cases, creating new “evaluations” for tenured professors, surveying students and faculty on campuses to measure political leanings, investigating expenses related to Critical Race Theory, and rejecting an Advanced Placement course on African-American studies that has reached national criticism.
DeSantis’ Attack on New College Is Latest Poisoning of Public Education
The governor has just appointed six new ultra-conservative trustees to the board of New College of Florida in Sarasota. They want to trash its tradition of intellectual freedom and transform it into an institution DeSantis’ base would love, a Bob Jones-style religious school funded with taxpayer money.
Florida Is Accused of Violating Federal Court Order and Restricting Race Education Anyway
Plaintiffs challenging a state law restricting how race-related concepts can be taught in higher education accused Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration Wednesday of violating a federal judge’s order that blocked parts of the law from being enforced.
Surveillance Recordings of Faculty Called ‘Poison’ In Challenge to Florida’s Restrictive Education Law
Under the controversial law, recordings can be made for students’ “own personal educational use, in connection with a complaint to the public institution of higher education where the recording was made, or as evidence in, or in preparation for, a criminal or civil proceeding.”
Major DeSantis Donor and Board of Governors Member Kent Stermon, Under Investigation, Takes His Own Life
Kent Stermon, a Jacksonville-area businessman and member of the state university system’s Board of Governors, was found dead in an apparent suicide. Stermon was president and chief operating officer of Total Military Management.
Federal Judge Clears UCF Prof Robert Cassanello to Sue Over DeSantis’s ‘Stop Woke Act’
Cassanello, a history professor at UCF, and other plaintiffs, including public-school teachers and a student, filed the lawsuit in April after DeSantis signed the law (HB 7), arguing that it violated First Amendment rights and was unconstitutionally vague.
UNF Presents 2022 MedNexus Innovation Challenge for Palm Coast Area High School Students
The University of North Florida, in partnership with the City of Palm Coast and Flagler Schools, has opened applications for the 2022 MedNexus Innovation Challenge. The challenge is a team-based entrepreneurship competition that will showcase regional high school students selected to pitch their solutions to address sleep deprivation in teenagers.
In 4th Legal Challenge Against DeSantis’s ‘Stop Woke Act,’ USF Professor and Student File Suit
In a 91-page complaint, lawyers for USF associate professor of history Adriana Novoa, student Samuel Rechek and the First Amendment Forum at University of South Florida raised a series of arguments that the law violates speech rights.
Who Will Rescue Our Tender Youth from Deviant Professors and their Noisome Notions?
Give it up, wokester profs: Ron DeSantis will no longer tolerate your anti-American spin on our history, your critical race theorizing, your LGBTQ weirdo agenda, and your communist indoctrination of our kids in Florida’s great state universities.
Students Use Drones To Map Ancient American Cities and Capture First-Ever Imagery of Rock Carvings
A group of 14 Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University students took a service-learning trip to New Mexico and Arizona this summer to work with archeologists in mapping ancient cities. The unique advantages of drone technology allowed the team to document historic petroglyphs — or rock carvings — discovered on private land north of Tularosa, New Mexico.
Almost No Florida University Students Responded to New ‘Intellectual Freedom’ Survey
Florida’s public university students seemed reluctant to fill out a controversial survey on so-called “intellectual freedom and viewpoint diversity” that was prompted by the Legislature, as about 8,800 of some 368,000 students bothered to submit responses.
Embry-Riddle Re-Invigorates Its Study Abroad Slate
Study abroad programs at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University suspended during Covid are now back at full strength, hosting more than 200 students this summer to travel the world. Several of those students earned the opportunity thanks to rare scholarship funding.
In a First, Mary McLeod Bethune’s Statue Is Unveiled at U.S. Capitol Wednesday in Place of Confederate General
The likeness of Bethune will replace a statue of Confederate Gen. Edmund Kirby Smith, which stood in the Capitol for nearly a century. Bethune, who died in 1955, will be the first Black person to represent a state in the collection.
$200,000 Goal in Day of Giving for Bethune-Cookman University on June 17
Bethune-Cookman University (B-CU) is celebrating a Day of Giving from 9 a.m. – 9 p.m. on Friday, June 17. The university is asking alumni, stakeholders and those who love and support B-CU to help reach its goal of raising $200,000.