Dear Colleagues,
Sometimes a single event can illuminate larger forces and seemingly unrelated developments. On Friday, October 29, the University of Florida had refused routine requests from three eminent political science professors to testify in a federal lawsuit against Governor Ron DeSantis’s new law restricting voting rights in Florida, claiming, “Outside activities that may pose a conflict of interest to the executive branch of the state of Florida create a conflict for the University of Florida.” According to this logic, the main conflicts of interest are those that challenge the beliefs of the current governor and his political supporters. Academic freedom and freedom of speech be damned.
National and international condemnation was swift, intense, and virtually unanimous. Dozens of articles and editorials in both higher education and general news media critiqued UF’s decision as an unacceptable attack on academic freedom and freedom of speech. Cornered by a growing public relations disaster after UFF held a widely-covered press conference in protest of UF’s decision, UF President Fuchs abruptly reversed course, allowing the professors to testify.
But Fuchs’s weak attempt at damage control did little to quiet the growing firestorm that UF administrators had brought down upon themselves. Petitions in opposition are circulating, editorialists are mocking the university’s shameful subservience to Governor DeSantis, students on campus are protesting, and alumni’s promises to halt donations are growing. Most recently, a Congressional subcommittee announced its own investigation into the matter, as did the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, which could potentially withdraw UF’s accreditation status.
The most important dimension of this story is only beginning to be examined by journalists and others who care about the health of our public universities. When the Florida Legislature under Governor Jeb Bush abolished the Board of Regents in 2001, they created a weak state Board of Governors, mostly appointed by the governor. Likewise, each university’s Board of Trustees is generally appointed by the governor or their BOG appointees. Predictably, this has become a patronage system in which wealthy donors to the governor, or their political party, are making educational policy. At UF, one political BOT appointee is Morteza “Mori” Hosseini, a wealthy Florida developer, major Republican donor, and friend of Governor DeSantis.
Recall that a few weeks after the Florida Legislature passed the controversial HB 233, FAU BOT member Barbara Feingold spoke in support of a measure that would give trustees final say over tenure decisions, and she stated, “…I speak not just for myself but for the governor.” Recently in contract bargaining with UFF-FAU, FAU BOT representatives have insisted they must greatly expand the contractual definition of outside activity and conflict of interest. Given what is happening at UF, what could possibly go wrong at FAU?
Administrators at Florida’s public universities are currently circulating a proposal to undermine tenure, a move that echoes a recent move to weaken tenure in the entire Georgia state university system. UNC Chapel Hill recently lost the prestigious appointment of award-winning journalist Nicole Hannah-Jones (The 1619 Project) after a wealthy and powerful donor interfered in UNC’s process of awarding her tenure.
Administrators, beholden to trustees and desperate to maintain power, regularly fail to defend the central values of the university. However, your union steps forward as the voice of the faculty, constantly articulating those public values. Despite an unfavorable political climate, UFF is becoming a major force in state higher education policy. Attacks on tenure, academic freedom, and freedom of speech are extensive and growing. During these unprecedented challenges, if you aren’t already a member, now is the time to consider joining. If you’re a member, consider becoming active by contacting Deandre Poole, UFF-FAU President, at president@uff-fau.org.
Sources for this article can be found here, regularly updated. In Solidarity,
UFF-FAU Executive Committee