On Sep. 3, at Florida Gulf Coast University, the Florida Board of Governors voted unanimously to ban undocumented students from attending 12 of the state’s public universities. The decision stated that anyone “who is present in the United States unlawfully” cannot enroll in these schools.
Florida is not the only state to pass this law; it was first done in South Carolina and Alabama. While this restriction has taken Florida by storm, South Carolina has had this ban in place since 2008. Their ban expands to scholarships, grants, and in-state tuition opportunities. Since their bill has been around for 18 years, it is more explicit in its restrictions. For example, in South Carolina, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients are eligible to enroll in public universities but without access to in-state tuition or financial aid. The status of DACA recipients remains unclear in Florida since it has not been stated how their status stands under these new restrictions. Georgia has a partial ban, only for their top institutions to prioritize legal residents in getting the academically competitive spots. In Florida, the list of schools is lengthy and includes the University of Florida, Florida State University, and the University of Central Florida.
This ban begins in the 2027-2028 school year and will not affect current students enrolled in a university. Incorporating the new ban during the next school year gives universities time to make changes to their admissions process. The choice was made following immigration-related concerns by Republican lawmakers in the state of Florida. Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins went on X after the decision was made to say that it was “common sense” and that this choice was made to prioritize Americans and the state of Florida. This was backed heavily by Governor Ron DeSantis, who believes taxpayer resources should only benefit citizens.
This ban does not stop at public universities. Back in June, the Florida Board of Education moved forward with barring undocumented immigrants from public colleges and General Education Development Programs, which allow adults who did not graduate high school to get a credential equal to a high school diploma. GED programs paved the way for people to qualify for jobs and higher education, and a lot of people who took this path belong to the immigrant community. The proposed legislation will ban undocumented adults from trade and career programs, but the decision’s status is pending and scheduled for further discussion, while many can assume what route they will ultimately decide to take.
This continues this year’s trend of legislation regarding undocumented immigrants and higher education, such as one regarding eliminating in-state tuition for this group. In 2014, Governor Rick Scott allowed undocumented immigrants to receive in-state tuition as a resource toward education, since the gap between in-state and out-of-state tuition is quite large. This decision has caused discourse over institutions and their revenue. Currently, there are around 60,000 undocumented immigrants enrolled in higher education in Florida, which shows that Florida institutions will feel this drastic change, and it may even be followed by additional backlash.
These changes sparked controversy among communities, with this one largely impacting younger generations. It likely will not end here; supporters of legislation against undocumented immigrants have expressed a desire for more education restrictions, including incorporation into K-12 public schools. These sweeping restrictions seem to come up constantly, making it difficult for people to keep up.
Higheredimmigrationportal.org is a website that aims to inform people on various policies that impact undocumented students, DACA recipients, international students, refugee students, immigrant alumni, and immigrant faculty/staff. The portal has every tool needed to understand and stay informed about both state changes and national ones. It is a simple way to get educated on this evolving topic.