Late Sunday night, the results came down: the Florida state senate voted to approve the transfer of the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee to New College of Florida, pending approval of the state budget on Friday, May 29.

Gov. Ron DeSantis first proposed shutting down USF Sarasota-Manatee in Dec. 2025, and the announcement was met with overwhelming opposition from the public, including Rep. Will Robinson, Rep. Vern Buchanan and incoming Florida Senate president Jim Boyd, who on Friday said that a transfer "would unravel all the good work our community has done to create opportunity for high school students, veterans, nurses, teachers, technology engineers and insurance professionals.”

“Our local businesses rely on this pipeline of talent to grow and thrive," he said. 

Earlier this year, more than 350 people attended a town hall to discuss the impact closing the campus would have on the region. Business groups, including the Manatee Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce, the Venice Area Chamber of Commerce and Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance, representing 4,100 businesses and tens of thousands of employees, wrote letters to lawmakers urging them to shut down the campus and its programs. USF Sarasota-Manatee is a “talent pipeline,” chamber presidents wrote, and not enough thought has gone into the impact of closing it nor have legislators asked for input from local business leaders.

New College is a pet project of Gov. Ron DeSantis, and New College of Florida president Richard Corcoran is a powerful, well-connected player in Florida politics. He has stated that the takeover of USF “means we get $200 million worth of facilities move-in ready,’” Dr. Laurey Stryker, former president of USF Sarasota-Manatee, told us earlier this month. 

The decision transfers ownership, leases, fixed capital facilities, equipment and furnishing at USF-SM to New College of Florida; requires New College to assume full liability for debt existing as of July 1, 2026, by Dec. 31, 2026; requires New College to remit monthly debt-service payments to USF; ensures priority classroom  access for students enrolled at USF-SM before July 1, 2026; and requires New College to honor existing temporary housing leases through Aug. 16, 2027, unless a student voluntarily vacates earlier.

"The larger question is what Sarasota and Manatee counties do now to replace the loss of  USF branch campus programs and services," Stryker wrote in a letter to USF Sarasota-Manatee supporters this morning. "We need to advocate for a transparent process that includes our key community stakeholders. We need to claim the funding that the Legislature and donors have allocated for serving Sarasota and Manatee counties.  This will take good faith collaboration with USF, the incoming governor and our legislative leaders.  

"This decision is deeply disappointing. But the fight for accessible, high-quality public higher education in our region is not over," she continued. "Now is the time to organize, plan, and build the next chapter for a growing and dynamic community.  Who cares about doing this hard work[—]do you?"