New College of Florida Archives - The Florida Capital Star

Florida Students Plan ‘Alternative’ Commencement to Oppose DeSantis’ ‘Hostile Takeover’

May 16, 2023May 15, 2023 Admin

New College of Florida (NCF) students raised more than $90,000 to hold an alternative commencement ceremony to oppose the “hostile takeover” prompted by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ appointment of conservative trustees earlier this year, according to its GoFundMe page.

The alternative commencement, titled “[NEW] Commencement: On Our Terms,” is scheduled to be held on May 18 at an alternative venue to recognize graduates on the students’ “own terms, separate from the official commencement ceremony,” its GoFundMe description reads. DeSantis appointed six new members to the Board of Trustees, which led to backlash from students who disagree with the conservative members.

Professor Says He ‘Would Burn’ Down Florida College in Resignation Letter

April 11, 2023April 10, 2023 Admin

A New College of Florida (NCF) professor wrote that he would burn down campus buildings if he were not “more patriotic,” according to a letter sent to interim President Richard Corcoran.

Aaron Hillegass, NCF director of applied data science, wrote to Corcoran to inform that he would not be renewing his contract when it expires on August 22, according to the letter posted to Twitter. The notice came in opposition to turning the Florida college into “The Hillsdale of the South,” a nod to the conservative Michigan school, after Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed six conservative members to the Board of Trustees in January.

Florida College Provost Who Clashed with Conservative Trustees Steps Down

March 21, 2023March 20, 2023 Admin

The New College of Florida (NCF) announced on Monday that an official who sparred with newly appointed conservative trustees earlier this year stepped down from her position, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported.

Provost Suzanne Sherman stepped down from her position after serving in the role since 2020, according to the college website. Sherman clashed with Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis-appointed trustees Christopher Rufo and Eddie Speir when they refused to cancel a Jan. 25 town hall meeting after receiving a death threat, and Rufo told reporters before the meeting that the board would reconsider college leadership because what he saw “demonstrated here was cowardice, not leadership,” according to the Herald-Tribune.

Commentary: The Right’s Long Countermarch Through the Institutions

March 10, 2023 RealClearWire

Is the Right commencing a long countermarch through the institutions, including the very one – the academy – from which the Left’s own long march began?

Judging by the distress shown by some in the educational establishment, and like-minded corporate media, regarding higher-education reform efforts in North Carolina and Florida, one might get the impression that the countermarch is not only underway but rapidly advancing – threatening progressives’ stranglehold over schools and virtually every other American power center.

DeSantis-Backed College Trustees Eliminate Diversity Office

March 4, 2023March 3, 2023 Admin

The New College of Florida (NCF) Board of Trustees voted Tuesday to disband an office tasked with advancing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) on campus, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported.

The trustees voted to abolish the Office of Outreach and Inclusive Excellence, which prioritized diversity, community outreach and inclusivity, during Tuesday’s board meeting and will offer its four employees new jobs at the college, according to the Tribune. The board also voted to eliminate the use of diversity statements in the hiring process and to ask interim President Richard Corcoran, former state education commissioner, to issue a ban on employee diversity training.

Commentary: Success in Education Will Determine Civilizational Order vs Post-Modern Anarchy

February 24, 2023 RealClearWire

There is no subject of greater importance – and controversy – today in America than that of education. And nowhere is the clash between civilizational order and post-modern anarchy on greater display than with New College of Florida, a tiny liberal-arts college in Sarasota. The New York Times recently described the reaction of “students, parents, and faculty members” to Governor Ron DeSantis’s reforms of the college in a curious way: “a political assault on their academic freedom.”

DeSantis-Appointed College Trustee Clashes with Officials Over Prayer

January 24, 2023January 23, 2023 Admin

A New College of Florida (NCF) Board of Trustees member recently appointed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis clashed with board officials by requesting to open every meeting in prayer. DeSantis appointed six new members to the NCF board of trustees earlier this month, a decision anticipated to move the college’s mission in a more conservative direction. Eddie Speir, one of the new appointees, announced on Twitter that he requested to begin every board meeting with prayer; however the request was denied by board chair Mary Ruiz and legal counsel David Smolker.

Conservative Christopher Rufo Among the Appointees to New College of Florida’s Board of Trustees by Gov. DeSantis

January 9, 2023January 8, 2023 Just the News

Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed conservative activist Christopher Rufo and five other people to the New College of Florida Board of Trustees with the goal of restructuring the university’s curriculum to a “classical liberal arts model.”

Rufo, a Manhattan Institute senior fellow and filmmaker known for his activism against Critical Race Theory, was appointed on Friday along with Hillsdale College Professor Matthew Spalding, Claremont-McKenna College Professor Charles Kesler, former Emory University Professor Mark Bauerlein, Inspiration Academy founder Jason Speir and attorney Debra Jenks.