Author: Rick Cole

A leaked U.S. Supreme Court draft opinion that would overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion decision ignited a sense of urgency Tuesday among Florida Democrats while drawing praise from Republicans. Authored by Justice Samuel Alito, Jr. and supported by other members of the conservative…

Following through on a recommendation from Gov. Ron DeSantis, the State Board of Education on Friday appointed Sen. Manny Diaz Jr. as Florida’s next education commissioner. Diaz, a Hialeah Republican, will replace Commissioner Richard Corcoran, who is stepping down effective Sunday. Diaz will assume the…

Saying organizations that accredit colleges and universities have an “inordinate amount of power,” Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill Tuesday that will force schools to periodically change accreditors. The measure (SB 7044) also significantly changes the process of reviewing professors’ tenure, a provision that has…

Little more than a month after lawmakers left Tallahassee, they’ll be back Tuesday for a special session to pass a congressional redistricting plan. DeSantis vetoed a congressional map approved during the regular session that ended March 14, triggering the need for a special session as…

Saying that foster children in Florida “deserve an opportunity,” Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday signed a bill that will increase payments to caregivers and provide foster parents with money for child-care programs. The measure (SB 7034) was approved by lawmakers during the legislative session that…

Surveys aimed at gauging “intellectual freedom and viewpoint diversity” on college and university campuses are on track to go out to students and employees Monday, after a federal judge refused to block the state from distributing the questionnaires. Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker on…

Three days after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the measure, LGBTQ-advocacy groups, parents, students, and a teacher filed a federal lawsuit Thursday challenging a new law that includes barring instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in early school grades. The lawsuit, filed in the federal…

Gov. Ron DeSantis appears to harbor some raw feelings about school boards that defied his efforts last year to bar districts from requiring students to wear masks during the COVID-19 pandemic. DeSantis on Friday signed a bill (HB 1467) that, in part, will cap school…

TAMPA, FL. – University of South Florida trustees on Tuesday selected interim leader Rhea Law to become the school’s eighth president. Law, an attorney who has longstanding ties to the university, has been interim president since August, after former President Steven Currall stepped down two…