On Monday, the University of South Florida’s BOT chair, Will Weatherford, announced in a university-wide email that the Florida House of Representatives officially proposed a bill to transfer the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus to New College of Florida, including all its assets, facilities and debts.
Photo by Kendall Bulkiewicz | The Crow’s Nest
By Jasmin Parrado
Last week, the Florida House of Representatives officially proposed a bill that, if approved by the House and Senate, could transfer the University of South Florida’s Sarasota-Manatee campus to New College of Florida.
The proposal was announced in a university-wide email on Feb. 16 from Will Weatherford, chair of USF Board of Trustees.
The bill’s approval would mean the campus’ facilities — and debts — would become New College property. This includes its first residence hall — known as Atala Hall, which opened in August 2024 — as well as the $53 million debt the university incurred from financing the hall’s construction.
The conversation of the campus’ transfer isn’t new. Talks of the proposal recently reignited after state legislators shelved the matter last Fall and Gov. Ron DeSantis’ 2026-27 proposed fiscal budget made headway in the university community’s discourse this year about the state’s agenda regarding postsecondary education.
But as far back as May of last year, internal email communications between USF leaders were disclosed and circulated, revealing a draft for a bill that would transfer the campus to New College.
According to Weatherford’s statement, USF and New College leadership facilitated discussions about the transfer for an extensive period of time.
“It is clear from those conversations that New College’s growth and finding space for New College’s expansion are priorities for the state,” Weatherford said in the email.
The proposal sparked community concerns about DeSantis’ underlying agenda to expand on a sociopolitical transition to a conservative reimagining of New College, which is the smallest postsecondary institution in the state.
In December of last year, DeSantis appointed sportscaster and former Ohio State football head coach Urban Meyer, who is known to have associations with conservative public officials at the state and national level, to New College’s Board of Trustees.
DeSantis also reappointed Debra Jenks, board chair and attorney who has publicly endorsed the appointment of other officials supported by DeSantis, and Mark Bauerlein, editor for Conservative Catholic magazine First Things.
During the USF Board of Trustees meeting on Dec. 11 last year which addressed the proposal, Weatherford stated that the discussion is a matter of policy that the board cannot “dictate or control.”
“What we do control as a university is how we treat and protect our students, our faculty and our staff,” Weatherford said during the meeting. “Regardless of what happens, I want everyone to know — and I want it to be heard loud and clear — that for our students, whatever commitments we made to them we will fulfill.”
