At the college level, ‘diversity statements’ made by students were also made illegal by DeSantis’s legislation.
On Monday, the governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, put his signature on a law that would prevent funding for diversity, equality, and inclusion (DEI) projects at the state’s educational institutions.
DeSantis signed Senate Bill 266 on the grounds of the New College of Florida, where he has been instrumental in bringing about important improvements during the current school year. SB 266 grants university presidents more power over hiring procedures and prevents public colleges from utilizing state funding to pay for diversity and equity initiatives (DEI).
The introduction of this legislation is part of Governor DeSantis’ continuous attempt to combat what he refers to as the “woke” influence in the classroom. In recent years, he has also been successful in pushing through legislation that provides parents a larger influence over the education that their children receive from kindergarten through high school.
The strategy adopted by the Republican governor is consistent with a wider movement throughout the country toward the improvement of public schools. This movement was catapulted to the forefront of the conversation during the contest for governor of Virginia in 2021 as a direct result of the uproar from parents in that state’s public schools over a lack of transparency and an overemphasis on critical race theory.
