DeSantis makes surprise visit to FAU, launches new higher ed accreditor
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Thursday that six state public university systems, including Florida, will launch a new accrediting body called the Commission for Public Higher Education to end “woke accreditation cartels” that certify educational institutions.
DeSantis made the announcement during a press conference at Florida Atlantic University’s Boca Raton campus. In addition to Florida, the new accreditor will oversee public university systems in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas A&M.
Currently, FAU is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. Accreditation is an important topic of discussion for universities because it helps ensure that students will receive some semblance of a valuable education. Proper accreditation helps ensure that universities can participate in state and federal financial aid programs.
“It will upend the monopoly of the woke accreditation cartels, and it will provide institutions with an alternative that focuses on student achievement rather than the ideological fads that have so permeated those accrediting bodies over the years,” said DeSantis.
This new accreditor is part of DeSantis’s effort to limit the power of current accreditors, which he claims use their influence to push political agendas on universities. DeSantis made an example of the American Bar Association, which he says has become a far-left activist group.
He added that while that’s the association’s right, law schools shouldn’t have to follow their political agenda to get accreditation, especially when accreditors resist focusing on core subjects.
“I just know that the people of Florida want the universities they fund with their tax dollars to focus on education, not indoctrination,” DeSantis said, adding that the goal is to promote more “classical education.”
Florida legislators passed a law in 2022 requiring public colleges to rotate accreditors. DeSantis said he hopes this change will happen before the end of the current Trump administration, which he said would never have happened when Biden was president.
Florida University Chancellor Ray Rodrigues said he couldn’t confirm the timeline for this process but noted they are working with the U.S. Department of Education to fix this “flawed” system.
“The Commission for Public Higher Education will offer an accreditation model that prioritizes Academic Excellence and Student Success while removing ideological bias and unnecessary financial burdens,” Rodrigues said.
FAU President Adam Hasner took the podium to speak on behalf of the university: “While I may be new to this role, I join the other university presidents in recognizing that this change is long overdue for the advancement of all public universities and the students that we serve.”
Michael Cook is the Editor-in-Chief for the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email michael17cook@gmail.com.
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