DeSantis wants $10 million in recurring funding for New College transformation

Gov. Ron DeSantis blasted New College of Florida Tuesday on the cusp of a big Board of Trustees meeting, saying the school has been too focused on racial and "gender ideology" and will be reformed by a new board he put in place, which is getting big money to recruit new faculty.

DeSantis announced during an event in Bradenton that he wants $15 million "immediately" for faculty recruitment and scholarships at New College, with $10 million of that being recurring funds every year.

The announcement indicates the governor is prepared to put significant funding behind his transformation of New College, which began earlier this month when he appointed six new board members. The governor's funding plan came a few hours before New College's first Board of Trustees meeting since DeSantis reshaped the board.

“They have a board meeting today later in Sarasota which should be very, very interesting," DeSantis said.

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A new president, new board chair and new legal counsel for the board all will be up for discussion when the board meets, along with the possibility of ending faculty tenure, terminating all employee contracts and rehiring anyone who fits into the school's "new financial and business model." These are all ideas floated by new board member Eddie Speir in a recent Substack post.

Carlos Guillermo Smith, a former Democratic state representative from Orlando, linked Speir's proposal to the governor's funding announcement.

"After DeSantis-controlled board members of (New College) FIRE all faculty who fail to pledge allegiance to his agenda, the state will spend $15 MILLION to import right-wing professors to Florida to replace them," Smith wrote on Twitter.

DeSantis predicted a surge in new faculty applying to teach at New College.

"Professors are asking how am I able to come join because they want to get out of the stuffy environment that pervades so many university campuses," he said.

The governor said Tuesday that legislative leaders have agreed to give $15 million to New College immediately, saying the Legislative Budget Commission will approve the proposal in the next few weeks.

"You're going to have a situation where you're going to be able to go out, recruit people to come, say: 'Hey, here's the mission, here's what we're looking to do, is this something that appeals?" DeSantis said. "And I think you're going to be able to get a lot, a lot of good people to do it."

"The model used by New College is not working," said Sen. President Kathleen Passidomo, who said she supports the governor's funding request. "They need to get back on track, which is going to require funding."

The New College funding announcement came during a press conference at State College of Florida in Bradenton where DeSantis announced a range of higher education reform ideas, notably a plan to defund diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs at every Florida university.

DeSantis blasted Florida universities, and New College in particular, for their DEI initiatives. He also accused New College of teaching theories that have become major conservative talking points in recent years, including critical race theory (CRT) and gender theories.

“The mission has been I think more into the DEI, CRT, the gender ideology rather than what a liberal arts education should be," DeSantis said of New College.

Christopher Rufo, a conservative activist who DeSantis appointed to the New College board, joined the governor at Tuesday's press conference. Rufo has been a leading critic of DEI, CRT and transgender policies.

A protest was planned by New College supporters before the 3 p.m. meeting of the board of trustee meetings.

DeSantis said his funding plan shows he's committed to making New College a success.

"Think about it," he said. "How many times have had $15 million dollars going into the kitty so that you're going to be able to recruit faculty immediately... you're going to be able to offer for scholarships for students who are high performing? So we want the institution to succeed, if we didn't we would just... starve it of funding."