Undocumented immigrants in Florida won’t be able to attend public universities if a sweeping new education bill passes the state Legislature.
The 32-page SB 1052, filed Monday by Vero Beach Republican Sen. Erin Grall, instructs public colleges and universities to exclusively admit students who are “citizen[s] of the United States” or “lawfully present therein.”
It also would prevent migrants illegally in the country from participating in state-funded adult general education programs, which include classes for GED and English as a second language that help “adult learners gain the knowledge and skills they need to enter and succeed in postsecondary education,” as defined on the Department of Education’s website.
This builds off of a provision in a Feb. 2025 law that nixed all in-state tuition for undocumented college students.
Grall’s bill comes amid a crackdown on undocumented immigration that surged in early 2025 when President Donald Trump re-took office. Trump’s administration soon imposed a deportation quota for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, increased the cost for certain work visas, and supported states like Florida that are building their own detention centers.
Florida became the first and only state to require all 67 counties to enter into 287(g) agreements, which are state- and local-level partnerships with ICE.
SB 1052, which doesn’t have a companion measure in the House yet, also would strike the requirement for a gender-equity plan in intercollegiate athletics.
Although the measure still demands universities comply with the Title IX prohibition on discrimination in athletic programs, the Florida College System would not have to draw up plans to consider equity in sports offerings, participation, availability of facilities, scholarship offerings, and funds allocated for administration, recruitment, comparable coaching, publicity and promotion, and other support costs.
This would rewrite a 2001 state law requiring these plans as extensions of Title IX protections.
Grall’s bill includes a waiver certain tuition fees for active members of the Florida State Guard.
Grall’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Gov. Ron DeSantis is directing Florida’s top higher education board to prevent state universities from hiring foreign specialty workers, he announced Wednesday.
At a Tampa press conference, DeSantis said the Board of Governors should fully “pull the plug” on the visas that allow foreigners in a specialty occupation to temporarily work in the United States, called H1-B visas. This comes a month after President Donald Trump announced a $100,000 fee for future H1-B visa applications amid his administration’s broader efforts to stop illegal immigration and roadblock non-Americans from working in the U.S.
“I’m directing today the Florida Board of Governors to pull the plug on the use of these H1-B visas in our universities,” DeSantis said, likening their usage to “indentured servitude” and deriding how “troubling” it is that Florida universities are relying on cheaper labor — especially as workers nationwide are experiencing increased layoffs due to artificial intelligence, a DOGE-style of thinking, and federal furloughs.
“We can do it with our residents in Florida or with Americans, and if we can’t do it, then man—we need to really look deeply about what is going on with this situation,” he continued.
He then rattled off a list of assistant professors, coaches, data analysts, coordinators, marketers, and more university workers on H1-B visas from areas like the United Kingdom, China, Spain, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago, Russia, Poland, Albania, Argentina, and the West Bank, appearing increasingly incredulous at how these various positions were deemed specialty occupations.
The Phoenix was unable to independently verify the list of professors and their countries of origin.
“Why aren’t we producing math and engineering folks who can do this?” DeSantis questioned, after claiming one college had a power systems researcher from Wuhan, China. “[There’s] a clinical assistant professor from supposed Palestine. Why are they—is that just social justice that they’re doing?”
As of June 30, 2025, there were more than 1,900 Florida employers sponsoring over 7,200 H1-B visa holders, according to the USCIS. There were a total of 78 employers and 677 beneficiaries in the education sphere, with the University of Florida boasting the most H1-B beneficiaries at 156, followed by the University of Miami with 90, and the University of South Florida with 72.
These schools also have the three largest medical programs in the state. Thousands of H1-B visas nationwide are used by foreign physicians, although the majority of H1-B recipients are in the tech industry.
H1-B visas have become a flashpoint in Republican circles, as party leaders like Trump and DeSantis urge less reliance on foreign labor while others insist that businesses need workers, NOTUS reported.
The conversation erupted as an offshoot from the larger discussion on illegal immigration and America-first businesses, two of Trump’s top priorities during his 2024 presidential campaign and the subject of many of his day one executive orders. In the immigration sphere, Trump has ordered mass deportations, increased ICE presence, and allocated federal dollars to states assisting in detention efforts of migrants illegally in the country — led by Florida under DeSantis.
This comes after Trump — in the early days of his term — stood alongside Elon Musk as they touted the new Department of Governmental Efficiency to cut down on alleged excesses in spending. This led to thousands of firings across federal agencies.
Just as Florida reflected the national model on immigration onto the state level, DeSantis also created a state-level DOGE to audit state universities and local governments to search for waste, fraud, and abuse. That torch has been taken up by Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia, who’s unofficially renamed the task force the Florida Agency for Fiscal Oversight, or FAFO.
Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Contact Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com. Follow Florida Phoenix on Facebook and Twitter.
A House Republican on Tuesday filed a proposal that would redesignate a road at each Florida state university and college to honor conservative leader Charlie Kirk, who was murdered last month in Utah.
Rep. Kevin Steele, R-Dade City, filed the bill (HB 113) for consideration during the legislative session that will start in January. The bill would specify a road at each of the state’s 12 universities and 28 colleges that would be named after Kirk.
As examples, Chieftain Way at Florida State University and Stadium Road at the University of Florida would each be redesignated as Charlie James Kirk Road, while FGCU Boulevard at Florida Gulf Coast University would be redesignated as Charlie James Kirk Boulevard.
Money would be withheld from schools that didn’t go along with the changes, under the bill.
Kirk, who helped found and lead the organization Turning Point USA, was shot Sept. 10 during an appearance at Utah Valley University.
Citing state policy on tenure, elimination of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, and the cost of living, Florida faculty laid out their frustrations in a recent survey.
In a Faculty in the South survey conducted by various conferences of the American Association of University Professors, 31% of Florida respondents said they have applied for a job outside of Florida since 2023. That number was 25% among all survey respondents in the South.
The same, 31% of Florida respondents, said they plan to seek employment in another state during the next hiring cycle.
“The governor of Florida threatens at every turn to take funding away so administration at colleges don’t stand up to him or board of education. I no longer have any motivation or creativity to make courses better,” a tenured professor at a public community college wrote.
The survey focused on policy affecting employment, including whether faculty would recommend working in their state to up-and-coming academics, and trends in applications for faculty positions. It included nearly 200 responses from Florida faculty among its nearly 4,000 responses across Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.
The survey concluded with an open-ended question asking faculty to provide examples of how “attacks on higher education are directly impacting your work.” It did not report respondents’ identities beyond basic demographics like gender, race, tenure status, years of experience, and type of institution they teach at.
‘Walking on egg shells’
“Students report any classroom discussion they don’t like directly to the Governor’s office. Everyone is afraid all the time,” one woman teaching at a public four-year school wrote. “I have stopped teaching books that might be in any way controversial. I don’t open up general discussion in class but ask only direct questions that will elicit non-controversial answers. I need health insurance so I can’t just quit.”
The state scanning course materials for disfavored viewpoints was a widespread stressor for many faculty.
“Most of the courses I’ve taught for decades now violate state and university mandates,” a man teaching at a Florida tier-one research university said.
As of earlier this year, Florida institutions’ general education courses no longer contained “indoctrinating concepts,” State University System Chancellor Ray Rodrigues proclaimed in January.
Florida universities have conducted a review, required by a 2022 law, of general education courses to ensure that they do not “distort significant historical events or include a curriculum that teaches identity politics.”
“I’m continually worried that the content of my clases [sic] will be flagged as “DEI” because I am a historian of the Caribbean, a region mostly populated by non-white people,” one professor said.
One women’s studies professor described the effect as “Constant anxiety, walking on egg shells trying to anticipate what would be used against me/us.”
More than a third, 34%, of Florida respondents said administrators have questioned syllabi or curricula choices for their courses. Among all states surveyed, half as many, 17%, indicated administrators questioned their curricula.
One professor said that since the state and federal government have made illegal “a wide range of Constitutionally protected components of speech and expression,” “I must break the law in order to tell the truth. Because I’m hired to tell the truth, and because I’m much more committed to the truth than to the law, I break the law. This means I am expecting to be arrested in front of a classroom any day, for actions that are illegal only as a result of the right-wing fad of the most recent decade.”
Nearly three in four, 71%, of faculty in Florida who were surveyed said they would not encourage a graduate student to seek employment in Florida.
“I am going to take early retirement despite a great job and salary. The threats are real and I am exhausted, between fighting this and fighting AI and poorly prepared, lazy, unethical students,” a tenured professor at a four-year public university wrote.
Higher education funding cuts have been the subject of nationwide political debate, including Florida State University reporting that it lost $100 million in federal grants, although $83 million of that has since been reinstated, the school’s president said last week.
About one-in-10, 11%, said they have had a federal contract ended by the Trump administration.
“The loss of vital federal grants has removed opportunities from me and my colleagues,” one professor wrote. “Attacks on LGBTQ students, immigrants, and diversity have also made it difficult to recruit promising graduate students or to guarantee their health and safety. Florida colleges being forced to remove diversity languages has destroyed years of valuable work, overturned an incredible general education curriculum, taken power and governance away from faculty, and wasted a lot of valuable time.”
Tenure troubles
Since 2023, professors in Florida with tenure have been subject to post-tenure review, graded on standards crafted by university trustees relating to research performance, teaching, service, and compliance with state laws and university policies.
Of the nearly-one-third who recently applied for an out-of-state job, tenure and DEI issues, academic freedom, the political climate, and cost of living were among the most common concerns.
Respondents said the number of applications for coworkers’ positions, as well as the quality of applicants, have decreased.
“Our department is trying to improve, but we have had several failed searches in recent years because candidates don’t want to move to Florida because of the broad political climate and the fact that tenure protections functionally no longer exist here,” a tenured public university professor said.
Some faculty said they have not experienced problems with “attacks on higher education,” one stating, “I haven’t felt any — Florida is great!.” Another said, “They’re not, and freedom in the classroom still persists, and I am at a public university in… wait for it… FLORIDA…”
“I find that I’m having to spend more time explaining to students why they need to use evidence to support their views and why clear arguments are important,” a professor at a private institution wrote.
One professor complained that “our board of trustees stacked with heritage foundation members, our president was forced out and replaced by a republican politician.” Course materials face heightened scrutiny, this professor added.
“The climate of persecution, retaliation, and ideological imposition makes it impossible to teach my discipline accurately or well without opening oneself to disciplinary measures,” that professor said. “While New College got a lot of headlines, similar invasions of public universities are happening with no national press, leaving those of us who work here isolated and vulnerable to attack.”
Gov. Ron DeSantis orchestrated a shake-up of the University of West Florida Board of Trustees in a more conservative light earlier this year and that institution is now led by a former GOP lawmaker.
Results for the survey were collected throughout August and more than 60% of respondents said they are tenured. Last year’s iteration of the survey featured responses from about 350 Florida professors.
“There is a lower threshold of critical thinking because everyone is fearful about what is ‘allowed’ vs. ‘banned’ by law. The fear and the self-censorship is widespread. Our administration, now saddled with a governor-imposed, unqualified hire as a President, is understandably more cautious rather than vocal about protecting academic freedom,” one professor wrote.
An unidentified University of Florida campus police officer watches over about 50 pro-Palestinian protesters who demonstrated on campus Thursday, April 25, 2024, for a second consecutive day. There was no violence or police response – a contrast to what was happening at some other college campuses around the U.S.
The University of Florida threatened pro-Palestinian student demonstrators with suspension and banishment from campus for three years if they violate a host of rules of behavior over protests that continued for a second day late Thursday.
The university said employees or professors caught breaking its rules would be fired.
Some of the rules were specific, such as prohibiting protesters from using bullhorns or speakers to amplify their voices, possessing weapons or protesting inside buildings on campus. Other rules were far more vague, such as one that said “no disruption,” or another that said signs must be carried in hands at all times.
Campus police circulated the list of prohibited activities late Thursday as about 50 protesters gathered for a second day of demonstrations. A university spokeswoman early Friday confirmed the authenticity of the document. It said permitted activities included “speech,” “expressing viewpoints” and “holding signs in hands.” It wasn’t clear whether temporarily dropping a sign during hours-long protests would end in an arrest or trespass order.
Other prohibited activities included littering; camping or use of tents, sleeping bags or pillows; blocking anyone’s path. They also included “no sleeping” on a campus where students often doze in the sun between classes.
The letter was not signed or dated but indicated it was sent from the university’s Division of Student Life. The university is a public institution and its campus is generally not restricted.
The protesters late Thursday urged the university administration to end investments with publicly traded companies that sell weapons or military technology to Israel. A significant number of campus police officers watched nearby but did not immediately intervene. A large sign erected on two tall poles that read, “It’s not a war, it’s a genocide,” had been removed late Thursday.
Campus police did not conduct any arrests Thursday or early Friday, according to county jail records. A police spokesman, Capt. Latrell Simmons, said the demonstrators were cooperating with law enforcement.
The scene at UF, home to the largest percentage of Jewish college students in America, was so far a peaceful contrast to demonstrations at some U.S. universities this week, where police arrested demonstrators, put some in zip ties and used an electrical device to stun at least one at Emory University in Atlanta.
UF is home to about 55,000 students, including about 6,500 Jewish students. There were no classes Thursday or Friday this week, so that students can prepare for final exams starting next week.
The two days of relatively mild protests at UF also have occurred in a different political environment than at other schools. Staunch allies of Israel, Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, and UF’s new university president, Ben Sasse, have openly warned they would not tolerate violent pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses.
Last year, DeSantis tried unsuccessfully to ban two pro-Palestinian student groups at UF and the University of South Florida in Tampa, Students for Justice in Palestine, after accusing them of providing material support to Hamas. Citing First Amendment protections, the universities have allowed the groups to continue operating on their campuses.
DeSantis this week said pro-Palestinian student protesters should be expelled from their universities, and that those who are international students should have their visas canceled. Sasse, the former Republican senator from Nebraska, has said, “we will absolutely be ready to act if anyone dares to escalate beyond peaceful protest.”
The protesters this week demanded that the university prohibit speakers affiliated with Israel’s military and promise not to suspend or arrest students engaged in peaceful protests. The former demand is a hot-button among conservatives who control Florida’s Legislature, who have imposed new rules requiring that colleges and universities host guest speakers with a range of political viewpoints.
The protesters also said a student oversight committee should approve future investments by the university. UF’s endowment is worth more than $2.5 billion. The university said the money supports faculty and students, including professorships and financial aid for undergraduates, graduate fellowships, and student life and activities.
A similar protest on the campus on Wednesday drew some Jewish counter protesters. Campus police kept the groups apart. There was no counterprotest Thursday.
Carlos Alemany, 21, a political science major from Windemere near Orlando, said he hoped the protest would educate others about the brutality of what was happening in Gaza, where Israel has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians since Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel last October.
Alemany compared the killings in Gaza to a holocaust, a destruction or slaughter on a mass scale. The term has a particular meaning among Jews, who suffered the murder of 6 million people by Nazis during the Holocaust of World War II.
“There is a technical term for the word holocaust,” Alemany said. “And this is exactly what it is.”
Kenise Jackson, 20, a marketing sophomore, attended the demonstrations in solidarity with hundreds of college students who have recently been arrested at Pro-Palestinian rallies across the U.S and call for a ceasefire to the Israel-Gaza conflict.
“That’s ultimately what I want – for people to stop dying,” she said. ___
This story was produced by Fresh Take Florida, a news service of the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications. The reporters can be reached at [email protected] and [email protected]. You can donate to support our students here.
At least five people in the United States have applied to Florida universities through Gov. Ron DeSantis’ emergency order to encourage transfer students across the country who feel they experienced religious persecution on campus after the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks.
The governor’s order announced last month waives application fees and, in some instances, grants in-state tuition to transfer applicants.
Of the 12 public universities in the state, at least two students applied to the University of Florida, two applied to Florida Atlantic University and one applied to Florida State, the schools confirmed. Representatives of the University of South Florida, Florida A&M University and New College of Florida did not respond to repeated emails and phone calls over the past two weeks.
DeSantis announced the order during his State of the State address, when he compared Florida’s response to the Israel-Hamas war to reports of antisemitism on other college campuses. He promised Jewish students around the country that Florida will “welcome them with open arms.”
“Over the coming months, they will have a tough decision to make – pack up and leave or stay and endure continued hatred,” he said in the address.
DeSantis mentioned only Jewish students in his speech and the emergency order cites only statistics about antisemitism, but any student can apply if they have experienced religious discrimination or harassment at their current university. Florida universities may require statements, photographs or official records from students to confirm they have a “well-founded fear of persecution on the basis of religion,” according to the order.
The day after issuing the order, DeSantis clarified during a Republican presidential primary debate with Nikki Haley – just before he dropped out of the race – that non-Jews could also apply, saying the order was “…not just for Jewish students — [but for] anyone who’s being persecuted or being marginalized because of their faith in any college around the country.”
It is unclear whether the students who applied through the order are Jewish. The privacy of university applicants is protected under federal law and schools must have written consent from students before releasing an applicant’s name and other personal information.
“I think what Gov. DeSantis is doing is more political than actually intentional,” Rep. Anna Eskamani, D-Orlando, said. “In a state where we have Nazis parading around I-4 and policies that demonize LGBTQ+ students, a lot of students are looking for new places to go because they don’t feel like they can be themselves in Florida.”
The order was DeSantis’ latest attempt at influencing how Florida schools respond to the war. In October, his administration through the State University System unsuccessfully ordered pro-Palestinian groups at the University of Florida and the University of South Florida to be shut down.
Several public universities in Florida are among the schools with the largest Jewish student populations in the nation. The University of Florida, with 6,500 Jewish students, has the most.
Amanda Press, a 21-year-old business management senior at Florida State University, said Florida universities are safer for Jewish students but, even at FSU, she has experienced antisemitism.
“As much as the state can say that people making antisemitic statements are not welcome at our university,” she said, “if there’s a kid walking down the sidewalk and they yell an antisemitic slur, which has happened to me, there’s really nothing that you can do about that.”
At UF, a pro-Israel flag and the Jewish student center have been vandalized.
Shabbos “Alexander” Kestenbaum, a 25-year-old graduate student at Harvard, who is one of six students suing the university there over antisemitism, said most Jewish students he has heard from are looking to transfer to schools in Israel.
“I can’t point to a specific university or college [in Florida] where students have said, ‘That’s where I want to go,’ but I appreciate the governor’s focus on the issue and standing up for a clear case of injustice,” he said.
Across the country, student protests on college campuses have induced debates on university leaders’ responses to the war. Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania and MIT, in particular, received backlash after a congressional hearing on campus antisemitism with the schools’ presidents in December became heated.
“For whatever reason, this has all turned into a political thing,” Press said. “Some communities are not as quick to say, ‘I don’t care what your political views are — being antisemitic is not okay.’ A lot of schools just aren’t saying that.”
Though Press said she appreciates DeSantis’ order, she believes the reason few students have submitted an application may be a lack of awareness.
“I had vaguely heard about it,” she said, “but I go to school here and I’m in student government. If I didn’t hear about it, I could assume not that many people know.”
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This story was produced by Fresh Take Florida, a news service of the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications. The reporter can be reached at [email protected]. You can donate to support our students here.
