Florida Atlantic University hasn鈥檛 yet ironed out the job description for the next president of the university. But Gov. Ron DeSantis鈥� office has reportedly already approached for the job, despite him not having experience as an academic or administrator in higher education.
Some professors at the university say they see this as political influence that could jeopardize the integrity of the search.
鈥淚 don't know how possible it is to be able to fight back against this,鈥� said Robert Lubarsky, a math instructor at FAU. 鈥淏ut this is the thing that I would want to see the most 鈥� to have a president who's committed to the university and the university community 鈥� [and] if need be, in opposition to and in defiance of the governor and the politicians.鈥�
Fine is a member of the House , a self-described 鈥渃onservative firebrand鈥�, and a cosponsor of the Parental Rights In Education , dubbed by critics as the 鈥淒on鈥檛 Say Gay鈥� law. He鈥檚 pledged to fight on behalf of and to attack 鈥渨okeism鈥� 鈥� an used to criticize a broad range of liberal policies, including teachings about the legacy of racial injustice in the U.S.
According to Florida Today, Fine has also called a local school board member a and was investigated by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for allegations of cyberintimidation and stalking, though . According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, Fine once floated the idea of a of the University of Central Florida.
Fine鈥檚 office declined a request for comment on this story.
Reelected in 2022 by a nearly , DeSantis has made restructuring education a major focus. His former education commissioner Richard Corcoran was recently named Interim President of New College of Florida, in what students and faculty have called a .
According to the the , Corcoran is now paid a base salary of $699,000 鈥� more than double what his predecessor made. for other presidents in Florida's state university system range from $400,000 to $1 million.
In response to a request for comment on this story, the governor鈥檚 office provided a statement from Communications Director Taryn Fenske, who said "Rep. Fine has been a leader on education issues and we think he'd be a good candidate for the role.鈥�
Search consultant would consider resigning if politics overpowers process
With its flagship campus in and a of more than 30,000, FAU prides itself on being one of the universities in the nation, for being a place where Hispanic, Black, first generation and Pell-eligible can succeed and catapult into the middle class.
The school recently gained national recognition when its men鈥檚 basketball team advanced to the for the first time in the program鈥檚 history.
Professors and alumni say they want a leader who can leverage the strides the school has made and take it to the next level.
鈥淭he next chapter has to be thinking in those terms about how we continue that trajectory,鈥� said Karen Leader, an FAU art history professor.
鈥淚nstead we are being forced to attend to some short-term and frankly craven political aims,鈥� Leader added, 鈥渟een clearly in the floating of a name of someone who is clearly unsuited for the job. And clearly ideological players who want to take hold of something that is very exciting for all of us and turn it in another direction that will negatively affect alumni, parents, current students, potential students, the Florida economy.鈥�
"We are being forced to attend to some short-term and frankly craven political aims, seen clearly in the floating of a name of someone who is clearly unsuited for the job."Karen Leader, FAU art history professor
In a series of public meetings this week, some faculty members questioned how the integrity and independence of the search will be maintained, when the governor鈥檚 administration has already made its preference known even before the search has formally started.
鈥淵ou understand our anxiety,鈥� said one FAU professor who asked not to be named because they fear retaliation, 鈥渨hen all this information that we are receiving [is] that we are very likely to get a South Florida politician as our next president.鈥�
A spokesperson for FAU did not respond to a request for comment for this story.
Sally Mason of the firm AGB Search has been hired to help guide the process, along with other consultants. Mason 鈥� a former president of the University of Iowa 鈥� acknowledged what she called the 鈥渋nteresting politics鈥� in Florida, but said she鈥檚 hopeful the news about Fine won鈥檛 dissuade other qualified candidates from applying.
鈥淲hether you believe it or not, there are lots of people out there who are interested in presidencies and interested in taking on grand challenges,鈥� Mason said. 鈥淢aybe this is a grand challenge. It likely will be.鈥�
When asked by a faculty member if she would resign if she thought the process was overtaken by political pressure, Mason said she would consider it.
鈥淯nless I'm convinced that they don't care at all about those issues and only care about the politics of the state, I'm committed to trying to do the best that we all can for your institution,鈥� Mason said. 鈥淲e want to be able to present to them a wide open roster. If we thought at any point in time that we wouldn't be able to do that, we would indeed step back from the search.鈥�
What comes next
贵础鲍鈥檚 will work with the firm AGB Search to recruit applicants for the position, vet them and recommend a slate of candidates to 贵础鲍鈥檚 , under a . The is largely made up of gubernatorial appointees and members appointed by the state鈥檚 , which is itself largely appointed by the governor.
Ultimately, the BOT will select a group of finalists who will be invited for on-campus forums and interviews. The trustees鈥� chosen nominee is subject to confirmation by the BOG.
Under a passed in 2022, much of the process will happen behind closed doors. Only the identities of finalists are able to be publicly released; the identities of all other applicants will be kept confidential and exempt from public records.
In recent searches at the and Florida International University, only one finalist emerged; it鈥檚 not publicly known who else applied for those top jobs.
Despite some faculty members鈥� concerns about the potential for political pressure, Mason told them not to 鈥渢hrow in the towel鈥� on the search.
鈥淲e're going to maintain integrity. If what happens beyond us, beyond the search committee, beyond the search firm, is not that 鈥� you can at least stand up proudly and say we did our best. We did everything we could,鈥� Mason said. 鈥淚f the governor wants to ignore that, if the Board of Governors wants to ignore that, if the Board of Trustees wants to ignore that, there's not much we can do.鈥�
贵础鲍鈥檚 presidential search firm is scheduled to hold a Tuesday April 11 to review the presidential profile 鈥� the formal job description. That document must then be approved by the Board of Trustees.
