Photo courtesy of the Florida Channel.
By Alisha Durosier
In January, the Board of Governors (BOG) of the State University System of Florida voted to remove sociology from a list of general education courses offered by Florida public universities.
Sociology’s removal was voted on when regulations under the recent Florida higher education law, SB 266, underwent final approval.
Introduction to Sociology, an introductory course of the foundations of the discipline, was one of six course options Florida universities offered to fulfill the social science general education core requirement.
“Introduction to Sociology is that first course that opens students’ minds to the potential biases that they may have about other cultures and other people,” USF St. Petersburg Sociology professor Frank Biafora said. “Without that awareness, there’s a vacuum, and that vacuum is filled with fear.”
Though Florida universities will still offer the course, Biafora along with many sociology professors in Florida, are disheartened by the board’s decision and fear that sociology will be overlooked in higher education if it no longer fulfills a general education requirement for students.
“What does that mean now for the next generation of students coming through, who won’t have had the benefit of taking a course like principles of sociology, that does, in my view, enlighten them,” Biafora said.
The removal of sociology was an amendment proposed in November by Florida education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. and was met with immediate backlash by Sociology professionals.
During his proposal, Diaz did not highlight any of Introduction to Sociology’s course material he thought to be problematic.
Following his proposal in December he made a statement regarding his views on the course’s teachings.
“Sociology has been hijacked by left-wing activists and no longer serves its intended purpose as a general knowledge course for students,” Diaz said on X, formally known as Twitter. “Under @GovRonDeSantis, Florida’s higher education system will focus on preparing students for high-demand, high-wage jobs, not woke ideology.”
Sociologists argue that the scientific discipline is being misunderstood as a form of indoctrination and radicalization.
USF St. Petersburg Sociology professor, Byron Miller, says he is unsure where the disconnect is.
“I would define sociology as the scientific study of people, humans, institutions, organizations, and interactions,” Miller said. “The [course] introduce students to various topics that are all very important to the human experience, things like, like culture, socialization, education, politics, economics, religion, all of those things. Maybe some people may need to be further educated and people like myself would be more than happy to do so. Sociology is very important.”
The amendment also replaced Introduction to Sociology with an American history course, Introductory Survey to 1877, a course that surveys U.S history up until 1877.
“The course in sociology is still available for students to take. But I think the statute (SB 266) is clear, that within the general education code, courses may not distort significant historical events or include curriculum that teaches identity politics or theories,” Diaz said during a Jan. 17 BOG meeting.
Madelyn Chandler, a sophomore interdisciplinary social science major concentrating in sociology and psychology, doesn’t see the replacement of Introduction to Sociology with a history course as a beneficial option and emphasizes the difference between the two subjects.
“History class is a fine thing. But I think sociology teaches you how to apply your knowledge… and how to explore your own values in a better way. And then history is just, okay, here’s what happened and you don’t do anything about it,” Chandler said.
Miller also adds that people are detached from history in a way that separates the experience of learning history from learning a subject like sociology.
“There’s a big difference between reading something in a history book versus being able to use a current event and put you in at least a mindset, if not, an actual circumstance where we could see how these things apply, and how they impact your life,” Miller said.
Much of the language being used to define the principles of sociology include words like “woke,” “radical,” and “indoctrination,” similar to words Gov. Ron DeSantis and supporters of SB 266 use to describe Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives in higher education.
“I think that there is an idea that university coursework is biased in favor of people of color, in favor of women [and] in favor of the LGBT community,” Gabriella Ortiz, interdisciplinary social studies major concentrating in history and international studies said. “And in my experience, it has been totally the opposite. I think that those viewpoints and those voices are already undervalued.”
Ortiz agrees that the course is biased, but she has noticed the presence of bias in other course subjects like history.
“Everything is biased,” Ortiz said. “I’ve learned plenty of history that is very biased in favor of the European point of view. I have learned plenty of history that does not take the role of women into account. And so, if they’re going to leave that intact, and take out sociology because it’s biased, I think that’s ridiculous.”
Both Ortiz and Miller point out that the word “woke” specifically is being appropriated.
“The way it was originally used is just like, hey, open your eyes, and see what’s going on around you, and understand these things. It’s another one of those terms that have been co-opted to mean something that it originally wasn’t meant for,” Miller said.
“I think that it is almost being used to create a straw man of a stereotypical political enemy, that certain people want to attack,” Ortiz said.
“These people who are making these policies and decisions are really trying to weaponize that word, and really try to almost make it seem like it’s a threat or like a danger to society, when in actuality it’s not,” Chandler said.
Another regulation under SB 266 that received final approval was the ban on the use of federal and state funding for DEI initiatives by Florida public universities.
Grace Prior, an interdisciplinary social science major concentrating in sociology and anthropology, is currently taking a gap year. However, with the recent policy change in Florida regarding higher education, Prior questions whether she wants to continue her education in Florida.
“I am looking at the pieces of the puzzle that are placed before me and I’m just like, Okay, it’s getting a little unsafe,” Prior said.
The University of North Florida, where Prior started her college career, closed their office of diversity and inclusion last month.
As students who study sociology, Chandler, Ortiz and Prior fear that these policy changes will not only undermine minority students but cause the 12-university Florida state university system to lose its credibility.
Biafora hopes that in light of these policy changes that USF will take action to prevent the overlooking of sociology
“I am hopeful that the University of South Florida will quickly move Introduction to Sociology into the university’s general core curriculum. So, the students will continue to take it not because of a state mandate, but because of the university mandate,” Biafora said.
