![\"\u201cSociology](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Florida_Legislation_Session_MJO_118.JPG\" "\\"\u201cSociology")
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\u201cSociology as a discipline is now social and political advocacy dressed in the regalia of the academy,\u201d Ray Rodrigues, chancellor of the State University System\u2019s Board of Governors, said Thursday.<\/p>\n
Photo by Matias J. Ocner<\/p>\n
mocner@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n
Tallahassee<\/p>\n
Florida\u2019s public universities will no longer allow a standalone introductory sociology course to count toward general-education requirements after state leaders on Thursday approved a sweeping, systemwide ban that reflects years of Republican criticism of the discipline.<\/p>\n
The move \u2014 which was not originally on the agenda for the State University System\u2019s Board of Governors \u2014 will effectively relegate introductory sociology to an elective starting this fall, removing it from the core curriculum taken by most undergraduates.<\/p>\n
It also marks an escalation in Florida leaders\u2019 efforts to reshape college instruction, particularly on topics such as race, gender and inequality, which conservative officials have increasingly targeted as \u201cwoke.\u201d<\/p>\n
For years, Republican lawmakers and education leaders have argued that sociology \u2014 especially high-enrollment introductory courses \u2014 has been overtaken by progressive ideology and strayed from empirical scholarship. Thursday\u2019s vote is among the most far-reaching actions yet in that campaign.<\/p>\n
The decision bars introductory sociology from the state\u2019s general-education catalog \u2014 the set of foundational courses all students must complete, regardless of major, across subjects such as math, science, humanities and social sciences.<\/p>\n
The surprise change came at the recommendation of State University System Chancellor Ray Rodrigues, who cited faculty resistance to a newly approved, state-designed sociology curriculum and textbook.<\/p>\n
Rodrigues pointed to professors who have called the materials an \u201caffront to academic freedom\u201d and \u201csubpar\u201d for limiting how courses address race, gender and sexuality. He also referenced reports that some faculty planned to comply with state rules on paper while continuing to teach restricted topics \u2014 comments he said undermined confidence in keeping the course in general education.<\/p>\n
In pushing for its removal, Rodrigues argued the discipline has become \u201cideologically captured.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSociology as a discipline is now social and political advocacy dressed in the regalia of the academy,\u201d he said during the board\u2019s meeting in Pensacola. He also criticized the American Sociological Association, the discipline\u2019s largest national organization, citing its focus on inequality and social change as evidence the field has shifted away from objective scholarship.<\/p>\n
In a text message to the Herald\/Times, Rodrigues said the board\u2019s action amounts to a firm prohibition: universities will not be allowed to reintroduce an introductory sociology course into general education, even if redesigned to comply with state law.<\/p>\n
The decision was not unanimous. Two board members voted against the change, including faculty representative Kimberly Dunn, an accounting professor at Florida Atlantic University, who warned it was too broad.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe removal may be premature and broader than necessary,\u201d Dunn said. \u201cSociology contributes directly to the competencies we consistently emphasize. These are skills our graduates need across every sector.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said keeping sociology in general education preserves \u201cdisciplined, evidence-based inquiry into critically important aspects of the human experience.\u201d<\/p>\n
Faculty across the state have similarly warned that restrictions on the revised course \u2014 including limits on teaching that presents systemic racism, sexism or oppression as primary drivers of inequality \u2014 would strip the discipline of core concepts and distort the field.<\/a><\/p>\n Thursday\u2019s vote is the latest step in a broader effort to remake general education across Florida\u2019s 12 public universities.<\/p>\n That push began in 2023, when the Republican-controlled Legislature, with backing from Gov. Ron DeSantis, passed a higher-education law<\/a> requiring a review of courses<\/a> and restricting instruction tied to diversity, equity and inclusion. The law directs universities to emphasize \u201cfoundational\u201d knowledge and bars instruction rooted in what state officials describe as \u201cidentity politics,\u201d including theories that frame systemic racism and inequality as embedded in American institutions.<\/p>\n Sociology quickly became a focal point. In 2024, the Board of Governors removed \u201cPrinciples of Sociology\u201d from the list of approved core courses required for graduation, replacing it with a history class. State officials then worked with a small group of faculty and administrators to develop a revised framework and textbook aligned with the law, which was distributed to campuses earlier this year.<\/p>\n