United Faculty of Florida pens letter denouncing elimination of DEI positions at UF

The United Faculty of Florida (UFF) released a statement Tuesday in response to the University of Florida's announcement last week that it was eliminating all positions related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), effective immediately.

The decision was in response to a new Florida Board of Governors rule on prohibited expenditures. The regulation labels expenses related to DEI, which is defined as "any program, campus activity, or policy that classifies individuals on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, gender identity, or sexual orientation and promotes differential or preferential treatment of individuals on the basis of such classification," as prohibited expenditures.

The announcement: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion employees will no longer have a job at UF

UF students react: Goodbye, DEI: UF students react to elimination of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion positions

The regulation mandates that a state university "may not expend any state or federal funds to promote, support, or maintain any programs or campus activities" that violate section 1000.05 of Florida Statutes, advocate for what it defines as diversity, equity, and inclusion, or promote or engage in what it defines as political or social activism.

Florida Statute section 1000.05, known as the Florida Educational Equity Act, requires equality of access and prohibits discrimination "on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, religion, or marital status" against students and employees in the Florida K-20 public education system.

“This action by UF goes against the core principles of United Faculty of Florida at UF, which traces its very origins to resistance against UF's actions during the civil rights era," said Meera Sitharam, UFF-UF Faculty Chapter president, in a news release. "The Board of Governors has summarily failed to uphold its autonomy, either due to political and ideological alignment or due to fear of the State University System purse strings being cut by the legislature which has recently failed to demonstrate any independence from the governor's office. The UF Board of Trustees has similarly shamefully caved in. Fear is a powerful tool in the totalitarian playbook. And anticipatory obedience is its desired response.”

United Faculty of Florida (UFF) represents more than 25,000 faculty at multiple colleges and universities across the state as well as graduate assistants at four universities.

“UF voluntarily hired DEI professionals and funded DEI programs because they allowed its operations to be more successful," said Jacob Fiala, UFF-UF Graduate Assistants United Chapter co-president, in a news release. "It was not forced to invest in DEI by some “woke” authoritarian boogeyman; on the contrary, UF feebly yielded to pressures to divest from DEI by “anti-woke” authoritarians. As of last week, UF has abandoned any pretense of care for the inclusion of marginalized voices in the academy. UF administration is not interested in fighting for sensible policies or the rights of its workers, it is interested in allying with neo-fascist ideologues to censor free thought. This will be yet another massive blow to the reputation and success of UF.”

Representatives of UF's UFF chapters sent an open letter to UF President Ben Sasse, speaking out against the university's decision to eliminate DEI positions, saying it is "s the most recent blow to the integrity of our academic institution — but it isn’t the first and we know, it won’t be the last."

“The attacks on Florida’s higher education are sadly, not a surprise," said Andrew Spar, Florida Education Association president, in a news release. "Florida’s colleges and universities have branded themselves as leaders in the nation- they are award winning centers of excellence that Floridians should be proud of. But when leaders decide that some courses are simply too controversial because they don’t align with their political viewpoints, Florida suffers. We must continue to stand united and demand more from our leaders.”

UFF President Teresa Hodge shared similar sentiments, stating in a news release that "UFF will continue to work on ensuring that our faculty, graduate assistants, and students have the freedom to learn and to teach all the things.”

“Repeated attacks on DEI by Florida leaders stem not from a misunderstanding of DEI, but from a purposeful misrepresentation and fear mongering campaign," Hodge said. "Make no mistake, these attacks on DEI will continue, and they will not remain centered on our higher education systems. To the contrary, these attacks could move beyond the higher education space into spaces where citizens live, work and play. We already see this happening – look at the erasure of sociology as a core curriculum offering for Florida’s students and at the reticence of our legislators in allowing educators to teach a complete and honest history about our past. The effects of such decisions can go beyond the classroom and, perhaps as an unintended consequence, potentially produce an illiterate populous that could be easily manipulated due to their lack of knowledge or inability to think critically.  Florida’s students deserve better. Instead of using our students as pawns toward political means, Florida’s leaders should be focused on providing them with an education system that challenges them and forces them to look at the world around them critically."

The university eliminated 13 full-time positions as well as 15 administrative appointments, which are roles that faculty members accept in addition to their regular duties, UF Spokesperson Cynthia Roldan said. The Office of the Chief Diversity Officer has been closed and all DEI-focused contracts with outside vendors have been halted.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: United Faculty of Florida UF chapters write to Ben Sasse about DEI