(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . New College and the indoctrinational future of higher education according to RonD [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-01-10 I read the following story in the NYT this morning, and I am PO’d! DeSantis Allies Plot the Hostile Takeover of a Liberal College. (gift link...no paywall) New College of Florida is part of the State University System. en.wikipedia.org/… bolding mine... The school is distinguished by its unusual "contract system," in which students are given written evaluations instead of grades and agree to semester-long contracts in which a certain number of classes must be passed. For example, in a "three out of five" contract, a student who failed two classes would face no penalty, although one who failed three classes would risk losing the entire semester's credits. The system was devised to encourage academic experimentation and foster curiosity about disparate topics outside one's usual course of study. New College students are required to complete an undergraduate thesis project and baccalaureate exam, during which the student presents and defends their project to a committee of professors. Undergraduates complete a step-by-step career education plan that integrates professional development with their academic experience. Students work with their personal career coach and faculty sponsor to undertake professional internships, undergraduate research, community service, and other hands-on learning opportunities that complement their academic coursework. This is the kind of educational experience that develops “thinkers”, not just fodder for the “job market”. This is what we need, if we are to adapt into the future Because of the requirements of independent study, writing, and research at the school, many New College students are fully prepared for the demands of post-graduate education. Indeed, New College has a very high percentage of students that go on to pursue post-graduate education. Full disclosure: My younger son graduated from New College in 2018. Next week he will be defending his Master’s Degree thesis at the University of Hamburg, Germany. I know from whence I speak on the subject of New College as an educational institution. As well as my son, I have numerous friends whose children attended the school, and are very happy with the quality of education received, and their children all have gone on to be successful...not necessarily in their chosen major of study. Below is is an example of what open minded inquiry and inclusiveness in the educational experience can do for the student: Notable alum protests New College of Florida takeover Derek Black, who was heir apparent (read that link!) to lead the country's white nationalist movement until transformational experiences at New College enlightened him, bashed the move on Twitter yesterday as news of the takeover spread through the small school's students, faculty and alumni. The is the kind of independent thinking that RonD is trying to quash with his “anti-woke” agenda. www.msn.com/... Gov. Ron DeSantis began the process Friday of transforming Sarasota's New College of Florida into a more conservative institution, appointing six new board members, including conservative activist Christopher Rufo, a dean at conservative Hillsdale College and a senior fellow at The Claremont Institute, a right-wing think tank. "It is our hope that New College of Florida will become Florida's classical college, more along the lines of a Hillsdale of the south," Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz said in a statement. Turning New College into a Florida version of Hillsdale would amount to flipping it upside down, a wholesale reinvention akin to a hostile takeover, and one that many current students and faculty are likely to resist. DeSantis aides blasted the school Friday and said an overhaul is needed. "Unfortunately, like so many colleges and universities in America, this institution has been completely captured by a political ideology that puts trendy, truth-relative concepts above learning," said DeSantis Communications Director Taryn Fenske. … Rufo said in a series of Twitter posts Friday that public universities have "been corrupted by woke nihilism" and he is "ready to transform higher education from within." He said he plans to recruit new faculty to New College to "create an institution where academics can thrive, without self-censorship." “My ambition is to help the new board majority transform New College into a classical liberal arts institution. We are recapturing higher education.” Rufo said. Rufo recently applauded DeSantis on Twitter for requesting information on diversity, equity and inclusion and critical race theory at all Florida colleges and universities. "Gov. DeSantis is going to lay siege to university 'diversity, equity, and inclusion' programs," Rufo wrote. This is a dangerous top-down intrusion of the State in an attempt to remake our institutions of higher learning from institutions of inquiry, into institutions of indoctrination, a la Hillsdale College. www.msn.com/... Take Hillsdale's mission statement, for example: "The College values the merit of each unique individual, rather than succumbing to the dehumanizing, discriminatory trend of so-called 'social justice and 'multicultural diversity.'" What's wrong with social justice and multicultural diversity? And why would Hillsdale so openly flout ideas meant to create a just nation except to profit off of division between people? This statement is a gratuitous dog whistle indicating a profit motive for being an anti-liberal arts college. Hillsdale does exactly what it claims to combat: Indoctrination via teachings of a fringe, conspiracy-laden, alternative facts ecosystem susceptible to young people. RonD is no dummy. One of his first actions as governor was to task his staff with finding all of the various entities of the FL state government, over which he has absolute power, and which he can exercise without question. He has just exercised that power by essentially replacing the board of New College to mold it’s educational philosophy into his desired end. He is touting this tactic as a model for other conservative authoritarian leaning governors to emulate. He was very strategic in picking his target, as New College is the smallest college in the Florida University System...and there is not a lot the board of New College can do at this point...they’ve been ambushed. RonD’s political tactics, when imposing his controversial policies on the state, remind me of imfamous political operator Ralph Reed. www.azquotes.com/... It's like guerrilla warfare. If you reveal your location, all it does is allow your opponent to improve his artillery bearings. It's better to move quietly, with stealth, under cover of night. You've got two choices: You can wear cammies and shimmy along on your belly, or you can put on a red coat and stand up for everyone to see. It comes down to whether you want to be the British army in the Revolutionary War or the Viet Cong. History tells us which tactic was more effective. … I paint my face and travel at night. You don't know it's over until you're in a body bag. We need to fight this. College Boards need to stand up to this kind of hostile takeover. Student’s at affected colleges should make their voices heard. We’ve all heard of RonD’s other antics: the “Anti-Woke” order, the “Voter Fraud” arrests (almost all charges dismissed), the “Don’t Say Gay” pronouncement: most of them strategic PR to enhance his public “anti-woke” image. I see the takeover of the board of New College as an order of magnitude more dangerous. This is the first skirmish in a protracted political battle to unduly influence higher education. The skirmish at New College, being a small school, may be below the fold news for most folks, but is reflective of what will spread nationally should RonD achieve his political ambitions. 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