Hailing a new $6.5 million science building as evidence of the University of South Florida's commitment to its Sarasota-Manatee campus, USF President Rhea Law on Friday denied any new talk of a potential merger with New College of Florida.
"Since the end of the last legislative session there has been no conversations with New College about expanding our partnership. So we are here, and we are here to serve," Law said at a campus board meeting.
Law also praised the upcoming construction of a new STEM building, on a patch of land owned by USF, right across from the Sarasota-Manatee airport, and right next to New College.
"This is a statement of our long-term investment in Sarasota-Manatee and it's kind of a stake in the ground to say we are here," she said, noting that USF is the only preeminent state university and Association of American Universities member in the Sarasota-Manatee region.
Last month, New College President Richard Corcoran said he still wants more dormitory space at USF and said "everyone is on board again" with some kind of deal, though he gave no specifics.
A New College spokesman said 140 of the 200 beds at USF Sarasota-Manatee's Atala Hall dormitory are occupied by New College students.
New College is a smaller liberal arts school that is part of the Florida state university system. It was taken over in 2023 by allies of Governor Ron DeSantis, who vowed to end so-called woke education in the state.
New College's board of trustees aims to emulate the classical education style proffered by the Christian conservative private school in Michigan known as Hillsdale College.
READ MORE: A push to privatize New College?
New College said this month it has reached a record enrollment of over 900 but housing its students has been a challenge, as some of its dormitories have suffered from mold and other damage, leading the college to house hundreds of students in hotels.
Earlier this year, internal documents obtained by WUSF showed that New College planned to announce a takeover of USF's Sarasota-Manatee campus, and USF drafted legislation to hand over its Sarasota-Manatee campus in exchange for eliminating $53 million in debt incurred by building new dormitories.
USF faculty, students and alumni spoke out against the move and no legislation appeared at the end of the 2025 session.
Then, the USF Board of Trustees Finance Committee unanimously approved a plan for USF to build its new science facility, which USF Sarasota-Manatee interim chancellor Brett Kemker said was a vote of confidence in the campus.
"There was a lot of anxiety as many of you know," Kemker said at Friday's campus board meeting.
"This is a very deliberate statement that we are here to stay," he added.
The new facility will have 7,000 square feet of space, and is designed for teaching biology, chemistry and physics to 450 students per academic year.
It has a targeted opening date of fall 2027, and its being built in a modular design that can be expanded later, said Kemker.
"What comes to mind right away is a bachelor's degree in nursing. That is something we couldn't offer before," added Kemker. "Now we have the facilities to do that."
