All twelve public universities in Florida are complying with a 2023 law signed by Governor Ron DeSantis that mandates public policy offices to host debates, a College Fix analysis reveals. From immigration to election integrity, House Bill 931 is sparking robust discussions across the State University System, fulfilling its mission to promote “fearless sifting and winnowing of a wide diversity of views.”
Authored by Andrew Gondy of Grove City College, the Fix study found Florida’s campuses buzzing with debates on hot-button issues.
Signed nearly two years ago, HB 931 requires each university to establish an office fostering civil discourse on controversial topics. The results? Students at schools like Florida Polytechnic University (FPU) and New College of Florida are hearing clashing perspectives on everything from government censorship to the Israel-Palestine conflict.
“This small reform is a healthy one,” said Ilya Shapiro, a Manhattan Institute senior fellow and FPU board member, who debated academic freedom there in February.
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FPU kept the momentum Monday with a clash between an Air Force officer and a Northrop Grumman engineer on service in defense careers. Meanwhile, Florida A&M University hosted a March panel on breaking into politics, and the University of Central Florida tackled immigration’s role in the state’s economy last November with scholars and activists.
New College, revamped by DeSantis’ conservative appointees, has emerged as a debate hub. In December 2024, Professor David Ellis squared off with Mike Benz of the Foundation for Freedom Online over online censorship.
Earlier, Bill Nye and Michael Shellenberger sparred over science’s global impact—events streamed publicly. Florida Atlantic University co-hosted a November talk with Palm Beach University on the “Israel-Arab Conflict,” while the University of West Florida debated mandatory voting and AI.
The law’s backers see it as a counterweight to campus groupthink. “Universities ought to be centers of exploration,” said Chance Layton of the National Association of Scholars, which praised HB 931 and offers a Campus Intellectual Diversity Act template for other states.
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“Without intellectual diversity, universities stunt the human condition,” he told The Fix. Florida’s effort, he added, could inspire a national push.
From election security at FPU to marijuana and free speech at West Florida, the debates—detailed with links at The College Fix—signal compliance and a shift toward open inquiry. As DeSantis’ higher ed reforms take root, Florida’s campuses are proving dissent isn’t dead.
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