DeSantis’ cronyism has undermined Florida’s universities. Is FIU next? | Opinion

The integrity of Florida’s public universities is under siege, and at the center of it all is Gov. Ron DeSantis’ blatant cronyism.

His latest apparent maneuver — the Miami Herald reported Thursday he seems to be positioning Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez of Miami as the front-runner for the presidency of Florida International University — offers yet another example of prioritizing of political loyalty over academic excellence.

This potential move, likely leaked to the media as a test balloon, follows a disturbing pattern of DeSantis’ direct interference in Florida’s higher education system, with qualified candidates sidelined in favor of political allies, a trend that threatens to erode the credibility of the state’s institutions of learning. Now FIU, South Florida’s largest, public, four-year university, is in danger of being used by a governor to reward a loyalist.

And DeSantis appears to be in a university president-naming frenzy. On Friday, Torey Alston, a former Broward County school board member named to that post by DeSantis, was picked to head Broward College. And at Florida Atlantic University in Palm Beach County, former state legislator and private prison executive Adam Hasner, is viewed as the DeSantis favorite for the top job.

Nuñez’s potential appointment — the news broke this week as FIU was floated as a possible location for a Donald Trump presidential library — is problematic on multiple levels. While she is an FIU alumna and has high-level political experience, her qualifications to lead a major public university are glaringly insufficient.

As a former healthcare lobbyist and longtime state legislator, Nuñez lacks the extensive academic leadership background necessary to oversee a complex institution like FIU, which serves over 56,000 students and has recently been recognized among the nation’s top 100 universities. Founded in 1965 at its main campus in Southwest Miami-Dade, FIU’s Modesto Maidique campus has become a small city and a deep part of the community. FIU is a research university, too, with medical and law schools.

The $1-million-a-year FIU presidency isn’t a ceremonial post. It requires expertise in academic governance, attracting research entities, high-level fund raising, faculty relations and student affairs. Nuñez, a somewhat low-key lieutenant governor, has no such experience.

Unfortunately, Nuñez’s case is not an anomaly in Florida. A law passed in 2022 law (SB 520), championed by DeSantis, made university presidential searches secret until finalists are named. That has allowed an environment where political maneuvering can thrive, and top candidates seem to appear out of thin air.

This lack of transparency has already given Florida partisan presidential appointments at the University of Florida, New College, South Florida State College and State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota. In each case, no other candidates were named, or the top candidate was a DeSantis favorite and a foregone conclusion. In other words, DeSantis picked the presidents, and now, it seems, they are reshaping Florida’s higher education landscape to his liking.

And that’s what appears to be the aim of Nuñez’s rumored appointment.

The consequences of this political meddling extend beyond mere optics. By installing unqualified political figures at the helm of Florida’s universities, DeSantis is rewarding friends, but weakening these institutions and the ability to attract top-tier faculty and researchers. That could leave Florida’s public universities lagging behind national competitors.

DeSantis’ political stronghold over Florida’s universities goes beyond the presidencies. His administration has waged war against tenure protections, and defunded diversity, equity and inclusion programs. No doubt, Nuñez would come with that agenda in hand.

Ultimately, the result is an increasingly hostile environment for scholars and students who seek an institution free from ideological interference. Higher education should be a marketplace of ideas, not a breeding ground for political patronage.

The sudden emergence of the governor’s lieutenant governor as a possible top candidate for the FIU presidency — when it hasn’t even been confirmed that the current president, Kenneth Jessell, is leaving — will only feed public distrust of the process. And this is a public university.

If DeSantis successfully installs Nuñez at FIU, it will be a signal to every aspiring academic leader in Florida: your politics are more important than credentials and experience.

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This story was originally published January 31, 2025 at 3:36 PM.