The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) just graded America’s colleges — and our beloved University of Florida earned a “D” for campus free speech.
That’s right. In the free-est state in the nation, our flagship university is failing the First Amendment.
What the Report Shows
- Overall Score: 64.1 out of 100 — “D” grade
- National Rank: 45th of 257 schools (a jump from 170th last year — but still dismal)
- Administrative Support: F — students don’t trust UF leaders to defend free speech
- Self-Censorship: D- — nearly half of students admit they silence themselves regularly
- Openness & Comfort Sharing Ideas: D+
- Disruptive Conduct: C+ — 76% say it’s okay to shout down a speaker; 34% say violence can be justified
- Speech Controversies: Four in the past year — including the suspension of a law student for protected speech
FIRE notes that UF’s written policies are good (“Green Light”) and the state system has adopted the Chicago Statement on free expression. The problem? Campus culture.
Students don’t feel safe speaking. Faculty play politics. Administrators look the other way.
In Plain English
UF talks the talk but doesn’t walk the walk.
A university in Ron DeSantis’s Florida — the state that bans DEI bureaucracy and champions freedom — is tolerating a culture of censorship, fear, and conformity.
That’s unacceptable.
Where’s the Leadership?
The search committee for UF’s next president should take note:
We don’t need another bureaucrat. We need a constitutional warrior.
We need a leader who will defend every student’s right to speak — left, right, or center.
One who won’t cave to Twitter mobs or faculty politics.
One who will make UF a beacon for free thought in the “Free State of Florida.”
Message to the Gator Nation
If you love this university — if you bleed orange and blue — then don’t sit quietly.
Call, email, and write the UF administration.
Tell them you are disgusted that your alma mater earned a D in defending the very amendment that protects higher education itself.
Tell the trustees and the president’s office that this is shameful and must be corrected immediately.
Because if free speech dies in Gainesville, it won’t stop there.
Let’s Fix This
The Gator Nation should demand:
- Institutional Neutrality — UF must officially stay out of politics and protect all voices.
- Transparency — every disciplinary action involving speech should be public and reviewed.
- Education — teach students what free speech actually means — and why it’s sacred.
- Courage — administrators must defend speech even when it’s uncomfortable.
The University of Florida should be leading the nation — not limping behind it.
Let’s remind the leadership in Gainesville:
We are Gators. We chomp censorship, not free speech.
And a huge P.S. to end this article: Florida State University ranks 17 overall and is the top-ranked school in the state. It holds a “green light” rating in FIRE’s Spotlight database. So in other words — FSU kicked UF’s rump on the field of free speech.
