Today, the United Faculty of Florida (UFF) and the Florida Education Association (FEA), stood alongside students, educators, faculty, and community members, who called on the Florida Board of Governors (BOG) to reject proposed changes to General Admissions (Rule 6.001), which prohibits some students from enrolling at Florida’s public universities.
Despite public outcry, the BOG approved the rule unanimously with no discussion.
Florida’s top-ranked state universities have long practiced merit-based admissions, recruiting the state’s brightest students and safeguarding the future of Florida’s economy. However, the approved rule will prevent students “present in the United States unlawfully” from enrolling in any of Florida’s public universities. With as many as 8,000 undocumented students graduating from Florida high schools annually and over 50,000 undocumented students enrolled in Florida’s state university system, this move will restrict opportunities for thousands of our brightest students and stifle future economic growth in our state.
“The Board of Governors has lost sight of its responsibility to safeguard higher education for the common good,” said Robert Cassanello, President of the United Faculty of Florida. “Rather than increasing our university system’s capacity to educate Florida’s future workers and leaders, this rule stymies growth and closes doors that have helped our communities, which is especially devastating at a time when Florida faces critical shortages in healthcare, education, and skilled trades. Higher education should be a beacon of democratic practice committed to learning, critical inquiry, and inclusion, not used as a tool for surveillance and state-sponsored oppression. The United Faculty of Florida will continue to fight for a Florida where all people—regardless of immigration status—can teach, learn, and live with dignity.”
“Stripping away the opportunity for children educated in Florida’s public schools to access higher education does nothing to help families deal with the real challenges they face, like a worsening affordability crisis, lack of affordable housing, or skyrocketing healthcare insurance costs,” said Andrew Spar, President of the Florida Education Association. “Yet, any undocumented student who has grown up in our public schools and worked hard to succeed will now be denied the chance to pursue higher education here. Florida has already invested in the future of these students, many of whom were brought here as children through no fault of their own. Forfeiting that investment is not only wasteful, but it also harms our communities and Florida’s economic future. Every student deserves the opportunity to attend Florida’s top-ranked universities and colleges, and our state is better off when every child can learn and achieve their full potential.”
FEA and UFF are calling on Florida’s leaders to restore the integrity of our state college and university admissions processes by ensuring they are free from political interference, grounded in academic standards and peer review, and guided by shared governance. Florida’s future depends on a higher education system that welcomes all who are ready to learn, and anything less is a disservice to students, educators, and communities.
