President Moez Limayem sent out communication to guide and inform the university’s community during expected Sarasota-Manatee Campus transfer to New College.
Photo courtesy of University of South Florida
By: Cole Maines
On Tuesday, May 26, University of South Florida President Moez Limayem sent an email to update students and faculty on the unfolding state budget negotiations.
This message provided updates on all elements of the new funding bill, including the transfer of the USF Sarasota-Manatee Campus to New College, expected to be approved by the State Legislature and sent up to the Governor.
This is the latest evolution of a process dating back to 2023, when DeSantis installed a new conservative leadership regime at New College. The leadership at both schools, the Governor’s office, and the State Legislature have been collaborating on this potential transfer since September 2024.
This new agreement between Florida’s House and Senate sets the stage for the complete transfer of property, leases, equipment and facilities from Sarasota-Manatee to New College. Any debt acquired before July 1 will also be inherited by New College.
During the transition, any USF student enrolled at USFSM before July 1 will have priority for facilities. South Florida will retain $22 million to continue campus operations which allows the university to keep faculty and staff during a “teach-out process”, according to President Limayem’s letter.
He claims that there will be no disruption for current students. Limayem also stated that he will visit the Sarasota Manatee Campus to work with Interim Regional Chancellor Brett Kemker.
“Our students, faculty and staff will remain at the center of every decision we make,” wrote Limayem. “My commitment is that USF will still be a strong partner for the Sarasota-Manatee community. USF’s strength is not a collection of buildings and land; our real strength has been, and always will be, our people.”
The letter also provided a link to an information page for the university’s community, which can be accessed here.
The updated budget legislation includes provisions for $11.5 million for university operations for research initiatives and most notably for the Darryl E. Rouson Center for Substance Abuse and Mental Health Research and the Florida Institute for Parkinson’s Disease at USF Health.
$43 million will be dedicated to USF Facilities, including $25 million contributed to the construction of the new Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, and Computing. This supplements a $40 million gift for the school from Arnie and Lauren Bellini.
Another part of the facilities budget is $10 million allocated for “phase one” of USF Health Transitional Research Institute, a new research facility that will grow the USF Research Portfolio as university leaders seek to accumulate $1 billion in annual research funding, according to Limayem.
The remaining $8 million is reserved for campus life facility projects that arise.
There is also $3 million on the way to USF for this year to “grow South Florida’s initiatives that bolster national and critical infrastructure security,” and another $200,000 for the Center of Neuromusculoskeletal Research at USF Health.
President Limayem also announced, “that the Legislature authorized the use of debt to pay for the construction and development of the USF Fletcher District, which will be a vibrant, transformational mixed-use project.” This project is planned to open Fall 2028.
These results lead to President Limayem’s conclusion that the University of South Florida “fared well with funding.” This plan does not yet account for the repair process at the Marine Science Laboratory after the building caught on fire the night of May 2.
The university remains in contact with Pinellas County officials while continuing to assess damages and undergoing the insurance process.
Limayem concluded his letter by thanking “students, faculty, staff, alumni, community partners and friends of the university for everything you do to embody the impact that Bulls everywhere are making and to show our state leaders that USF delivers the strongest possible return on their investment. Together, we will continue USF’s incredible trajectory and accelerate our momentum.”
Previous Crow’s Nest coverage on the subject detailed how the process was unfolding on the USF side, including communication from the chair of the Board of Trustees, Will Weatherford, that this was not within the university’s 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.”’
This is South Florida’s response to the DeSantis administration’s desire to make a southern university similar to Hillsdale College, a private, Christian-influenced college in Michigan known for a conservative intellectual culture.
According to a report cited in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, New College outspends other public Florida Institutions, outcomes for its graduates rank worst in the state, while they spend three times more than the next closest state university to produce a student with a degree and seven times what USF spends.
Karen Holbrook, USF Sarasota-Manatee’s former regional chancellor, shares her hang-ups on the proposal in the Tampa Bay Times.
“It’s just plain painful,” she said. “It’s so much disappointment.”
Holbrook continued to express worry about the status of programs at USF Sarasota-Manatee and the allegiances of current students.
“What we have to do is move forward for our students so they get their degrees,” she said
