Jeb Bush Presents Plan to Increase Black Enrollments at Florida’s State-Operated Universities

Under Jeb Bush’s One Florida plan, state-operated colleges and universities in Florida are not permitted to use race as a positive factor in the admissions process. Since 1999 the percentage of blacks in the first-year classes at Florida’s public four-year universities has dropped from 17.6 percent to 14.1 percent. This fall, six of the 11 state-operated four-year universities in Florida saw a drop in black enrollments. This academic year there are 626 fewer black freshmen enrolled at Florida’s state-operated universities than there were a year ago.

Governor Bush recently announced that in an effort to boost black enrollments state financial aid for low-income families would be increased by 38 percent to $138 million annually. But the legislature is expected to increase merit-based financial aid by a similar level. In Florida merit-based financial aid is more than double the aid set aside for low-income families.

Copyright © 2006. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. All rights reserved.