Students applying to Florida's public colleges will have to show proof they are U.S. citizens or legally in the country if a proposed policy goes through.
The policy will require applicants to "provide clear and convincing documentation that he or she is a citizen of the United States or lawfully present in the United States prior to being granted admission to the institution."
Another part of the rule allows state colleges to “deny admission or enrollment to an applicant because of misconduct if determined to be in the best interest of the Florida College System institution.”
The Department of Education is proposing the change after state lawmakers failed to pass similar restrictions for public universities this past legislative session.
Norín Dollard is the senior policy analyst for the Florida Policy Institute, a nonpartisan think tank. Dollard said without a law, the state could be overstepping.
ALSO READ: Florida seeks to bar undocumented immigrants from state colleges
"Rule is not intended to create policy, a rule is intended to implement policy," said Dollard.
She cited Florida law stating "an agency may adopt only rules that implement or interpret the specific powers and duties granted by the enabling statute."
If the policy goes into effect, the Florida Policy Institute estimates the Florida College System could lose about $15 million in tuition revenue.
At the same time, enrollment at public colleges is still rebounding to pre-pandemic levels.
"It seems a strange choice that we're going to turn down revenue when we are still not serving all the students that we could," said Dollard.
The state's public colleges operate with open-door admissions, meaning all applicants with a high school diploma or GED are accepted.
ALSO READ: Tuition for Florida's undocumented college students tripled last year. How are they doing now?
Dollard said the policy would undermine the accessibility to higher education state colleges are supposed to provide.
"Fundamentally, on humanitarian grounds, everyone deserves to be educated, and we as a society benefit from a well-educated, well-trained workforce," Dollard said.
A separate rule the Department of Education is considering could further restrict undocumented immigrants' access to higher education. The proposal will require the same proof of legal presence for those applying to adult general education programs.
That includes programs "designed to improve the employability of the state’s workforce through adult basic education, adult secondary education, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), applied academics for adult education instruction and instruction for adults with disabilities."
Opponents of the legislation, which include the groups Seeds of Resistance, Florida Immigrant Coalition and American Friends Service Committee, believe the change could effectively "turn educational institutions into immigration screening agencies."
The groups are urging the public to speak up at the Department of Education's meeting at Miami Dade College scheduled for May 14 at 9 a.m.
