Florida University’s Course Cuts Aim to Align with GOP-Backed Law Against Bias
TL/DR –
The University of Florida has drastically reduced its general education offerings after a review by state officials and administrators, which was driven by a GOP-backed law targeting perceived left-wing bias in education. The review led to a reduction from over 1,200 courses to under 300, with over three-fourths of the cut courses coming from humanities and social sciences. The law that triggered the revisions prevents courses from distorting historical events and teaching identity politics, and mandates that humanities courses include selections from the Western Canon.
Anna Peterson’s syllabi at the University of Florida (UF) came under intense scrutiny from administrators and state officials last spring, in an effort to ensure the courses complied with a Republican-backed law aimed at curbing perceived left-wing bias in higher education. This review was driven by the state university system’s Board of Governors, most of whom are appointees of Gov. Ron DeSantis.
The Board’s review concluded in January, with a decision to reduce UF’s general education offerings from over 1,200 courses to just under 300. More than 75% of the courses cut were from humanities and social sciences. The decision also means that starting next academic year, UF students won’t have general education options for any foreign language, with the language department losing over 40 courses in various languages.
Women’s studies and African-American studies courses – often criticized by the Republican-dominated legislature — are among the programs that will lose all their general education courses. These subjects, along with the university’s environmental engineering courses, will instead be offered as electives.
The 2023 state law that triggered these revisions states that general education catalogs of state universities “may not distort significant historical events or include a curriculum that teaches identity politics.” It also demands that humanities courses include selections from the Western Canon in their curriculum.
Despite the cuts being praised by conservative academics and Florida Republicans as a remedy for progressive bias, many UF professors and administrators have expressed frustration about the overhaul due to lack of transparency and tight deadlines. Peterson described the process as an “administrative nightmare”.
According to the final list of the Board of Governors, three-quarters of UF’s general education courses will switch to electives in the next academic year. Despite the shakeup, faculty members like David Canton, director of UF’s African American studies, are encouraging colleagues not to give up and are working on developing courses that meet the new state standards.
To contact Zoey Thomas and Garrett Shanley, email zthomas@alligator.org and gshanley@alligator.org
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