In an early November memo, the Florida Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) requested the syllabi for every undergraduate course offered at each university under the State University System, along with the names of course instructors.

This request follows Governor Ron DeSantis’s earlier efforts earlier this year to audit Florida universities and colleges and identify wasteful spending, inefficiencies and “unnecessary” programs. 

This effort began in February when DeSantis announced Florida DOGE, a state-level initiative adapting the U.S. federal agency under the same name. According to DeSantis’ executive office, Florida DOGE’s goal is to review and terminate certain curriculum and content at the state’s higher education institutions.

What does Florida DOGE want?

On Nov. 17, DOGE issued its request to the Florida Board of Governors, informing Chancellor Ray Rodrigues that institutions of the Florida State University System must submit certain faculty and course information.

“As we continue our work to identify opportunities to improve higher education in Florida, we are seeking additional information regarding the rigor and performance of programs, majors, and departments within each University,” said DOGE in its letter to the Board of Governors.

Following DOGE’s request, UNF is responsible for compiling a list of the undergraduate courses “offered in the current year or scheduled or planned to be offered in one of the next two academic years.” 

DOGE also wants to know which faculty members will be teaching these courses, plan to teach these courses or have taught these courses in the past two years. 

Following the request, Florida universities will also be expected to supply the syllabus for every section of undergraduate courses offered during the current academic year.

UNF has until Dec. 8 to send in the requested information to Florida DOGE.

A folder containing all UNF’s submissions and requests to and from Florida DOGE can be found on UNF’s SharePoint. Only those with access to UNF’s network are able to view this folder. Click here for Spinnaker’s public folder of the documents and see the state’s most recent request below.

Efficiency Study Findings

The November request is not the first that UNF has received from Florida DOGE. In April, public universities and colleges received a request from DOGE for six years’ worth of records on grant funding, research and non-instructional staff positions.

Last month, DOGE released its Florida SUS Efficiency study based on the information gathered from the April request.

According to data from the 2023 fiscal year, 73% of bachelor degree graduates at UNF were employed, earning more than $40,000 or continuing their education one year after graduation. Among all Florida public universities, the job placement and continuing education rate ranges between 65% to 81% placing UNF in the middle of the pack.

The operating expenses per UNF student is $14,523 and it roughly costs $57,602 to produce a degree at UNF, placing UNF among the top universities in terms of “efficiency,” according to the DOGE study. 

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