President Barron now supports the revised SB 2442!

Colleges and Universities A-Z Florida State University
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<p>Here is a link to FSU President Barron's Facebook page: Florida</a> State University President Eric Barron | Facebook
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FSU now supports the revised SB 2442!**</p>

<p>We should support it too.</p>

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President Barron:</p>

<p>Thanks to many messages to legislators supporting The Florida State University, I am pleased to inform you that SB 2442 has been amended and improved. The term "flagship" has been removed, and all of the bill's criteria now apply to all Florida universities with the highest Carnegie classification -- Research University (Very High Research Activity) -- as designated by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, the national organization charged with classifying universities.</p>

<p>Florida State University is a Research University (Very High Research Activity), as are the University of Florida and the University of South Florida. All three would qualify for the operational flexibility and benefits contained in SB 2442. We appreciate the outpouring of support that led to this change, which expands the bill and helps encourage all of Florida's public universities to aspire to the highest research category. We have a long way to go in the legislative process, but we will be vigilant in monitoring the bill's progress and we will keep you updated as the bill progresses. Please continue to keep pressure on your legislators to keep the bill in its present form.</p>

<p>Again, thank you for your assistance.

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<p>Some people say that the Senator’s revision only made slight changes to the bill and it still supports UF above other Universities.</p>

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<p>I don’t think the amended bill really gives UF any advantages over FSU or USF. Dr. Barron’s remarks in above posted quote pretty much covers the changes in the bill: elimination of “flagship” term, elimination of 1/2 billion dollar annual research threshold and substituting with highest Carnegie classification criteria, and elimination of any “agricultural” research qualifier…that’s about it for changes.</p>

<p>What could be more troublesome with this bill is the Board of Governors being charged with “ranking” state universities and meddling in the university missions. That might be difficult for the Board of Governors when they are not quite sure what their own mission is.</p>

<p>SB 2442 may end up dead anyway, even if it is passed, and may end up being a lot of commotion over nothing.</p>