Florida Board Bans Undocumented Students From State Colleges

The Florida State Board of Education on Tuesday voted to bar undocumented students from admission to the state’s 28-college system—a policy that could cost colleges millions of dollars in revenue from tuition and fees.

The board voted at the meeting to allow only those “lawfully present” in the U.S. to enroll at state colleges. Each college’s board of trustees will now have to adopt policies that ensure applicants attest that they are a citizen of the United States or are in the country lawfully prior to admission. The student must then provide documentation of their citizenship or lawful presence in the United States prior to enrolling at the institution.

The State Board of Education also approved a separate amendment banning undocumented students from Florida’s adult education programs, which provide GED preparation and can help adult learners obtain the knowledge and skills necessary for a postsecondary education.

An estimated 8,000 undocumented students graduate from high school in Florida annually, and over 49,000 undocumented students are enrolled in Florida colleges, according to the Higher Ed Immigration Portal.

The near-unanimous vote followed 30 minutes of public comments, and many of those who spoke urged the board to reject the policy change, calling it unlawful and un-American to restrict access to higher education. The new rule does not apply to Florida’s 12 public universities, which are governed by the Florida Board of Governors. That board has taken its own steps toward blocking undocumented students from admission to the state system’s public universities, and a final vote on a similar restriction is expected in a few months.

Florida College System institutions could lose more than $15 million annually in tuition and fees under the new code, according to an analysis published by the Florida Policy Institute last month.

All but one board member voted to approve both amendments to the Florida Administrative Code. Daniel Foganholi Sr., the sole dissenter, said he voted against the rules because he doesn’t agree with the board’s attempt to enforce immigration policy.

“Our responsibility is to oversee education, and I believe we should remain focused on expanding educational opportunity while leaving immigration enforcement to the appropriate agencies,” Foganholi said in an email. “That distinction guided my vote.”

Prior to the vote to approve the amendments, over 30 individuals spoke during the public comment period of the meeting in opposition of the rules, including current college students, parents of students, professors, lawmakers, school board members and immigration advocacy group members.

Luisa Santos, a school board member in Miami-Dade County, shared with the board her own story of emigrating from Colombia at the age of 8. She said Florida’s public education system turned her from an undocumented student to a “proud job-creating entrepreneur,” previously named the Florida Young Entrepreneur of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration.

“None of that would have been possible if today’s rules that you are considering would have existed,” Santos said. “I attended Miami Dade College before transferring to Georgetown University, and, of course, before becoming a very proud U.S. citizen.”

Florida State Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith, a member of the Legislature’s joint administrative procedures committee, called the proposals “unlawful.” He said the committee sent the board a letter on June 26 demanding legal justification for the amendments.

“Florida law requires you to maintain an open-door admission policy in our state colleges, which these rules violate,” he said. “Our Constitution also requires you to provide for the education of all children within our borders, which makes what you are doing unconstitutional for those dually enrolled minors in the Florida College System classes.”

Florida’s efforts to restrict noncitizens from enrolling comes after the state tossed in-state tuition for undocumented students last year, nixing a decade-old law as part of a sweeping immigration bill signed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. A handful of states already limit undocumented students’ access to higher education: Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina.