The University of Florida on Friday closed its diversity department, fired all of its DEI staff, and canceled DEI contracts with outside vendors to comply with a Florida Board of Governor’s regulation that prohibits funding of such programs.
As a result of the policy, the college shut down the Office of the Chief Diversity Officer and eliminated DEI positions and administrative appointments.
Enacted in January in a 15-2 vote by the Florida Board of Governors, which serves as the governing body for the state’s university system, the rule bars Florida public universities from expending any state or federal funds to promote, support, or maintain any programs or campus activities that advocate DEI. A week before that measure passed, the Florida Board of Education approved regulations that restricted public funding of programs, activities, and policies towards DEI initiatives in community and state colleges.
“Under the direction of UF Human Resources, university employees whose positions were eliminated will receive UF’s standard twelve weeks of pay,” UF said in a statement. “These colleagues are allowed and encouraged to apply, between now and Friday, April 19, for expedited consideration for different positions currently posted with the university. UF HR will work to fast-track the interview process and provide an answer on all applications within the twelve-week window.”
The Office of the Chief Financial Officer will also reallocate the approximately $5 million in funds appropriated for DEI, including salaries and expenditures, into a faculty recruitment fund to be managed by the Office of the Provost.
While the diversity department has been closed, the school’s statement made no mention of the Center for Inclusion and Multicultural Engagement, which includes offices for minority groups including black and LGBT students, or the Office for Accessibility and Gender Equity, which focuses on Title IX compliance. If the Biden administration succeeds in its expansion of Title IX, which bans discrimination on the basis of sex in educational institutions that receive federal funding, to encompass gender identity, UF and other Florida public universities may be conflicted in enforcing state vs. federal dictates.
The Florida board’s policy clarifies that a state university program is considered to be advancing DEI if it advantages or disadvantages, or attempts to advantage or disadvantage, an individual or group on the basis of color, sex, national origin, gender identity, or sexual orientation, to equalize or increase outcomes, participation or representation as compared to other individuals or groups.
In May 2023, Governor DeSantis signed Senate Bill 266, which bans spending federal or state funds on DEI programs. Former Republican senator Ben Sasse now presides over UF.
“Finally, the University of Florida is – and will always be – unwavering in our commitment to universal human dignity,” the school’s statement added. “As we educate students by thoughtfully engaging a wide range of ideas and views, we will continue to foster a community of trust and respect for every member of the Gator Nation. The University of Florida is an elite institution because of our incredible faculty who are committed to teaching, discovering, and serving.”
Ben Sasse stepped down from his Senate seat in 2022 to take over as president of UF.
“I honestly think this is the most interesting university in the country right now,” Sasse told NR of his decision to take the job. “I think it’s the most important institution in the most dynamic state in the union.”