Ray Rodrigues downplays rankings downgrade for Florida universities

Florida State University (FSU), the University of Florida (UF) and the University of South Florida (USF) all showed downgrades in this year’s much-vaunted rankings via U.S. News & World Report, but the State University System’s leader downplayed their significance.

Chancellor Ray Rodrigues acknowledged the headlines that have run counter to the consistently advancing, standout rankings from the publication for Florida’s higher education institutions over the years. Rodrigues, however, characterized them as “fluctuations within the subcategories” at a meeting of the Board of Governors.

For example, the state’s flagship institution, UF, lost its “Top 5” ranking among public universities. It’s now No. 6 in that category, but UF moved up one spot to No. 28 among all universities, public and private, according to U.S. News & World Report.

“Let’s keep our eyes on what’s important, which is that we are producing the outcomes for our students that enable them to be successful,” Rodrigues said.

But opponents of controversial legislation that stripped out the university system’s programs for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) last Session say their warnings are coming to fruition.

“The Democratic Caucus stressed several times that Florida has some of the best-ranked universities in the country and that attacks on academic freedom and the politicization of higher education will hurt us long term,” said Democratic Rep. Anna Eskamani of Orlando, who is a graduate of the University of Central Florida.

“Those concerns are now coming to life. The BOG should be alarmed about these rankings and reject conservative talking points trying to downplay the situation.”

Among the other notable shifts:

— FSU fell from No. 19 to No. 23 among public universities but moved up two spots to No. 53 among all universities, public and private.

— USF fell three spots from last year to No. 45 but moved eight in the overall university rankings to No. 89.

— New College of Florida, where a controversial takeover orchestrated by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Office, fell from the 76th-top-rated national liberal arts college to No. 100.

But Rodrigues emphasized the positive, urging them to look at the system as a whole.

Also, Florida International University received its highest ranking ever from the publication — No. 64 among public universities — and the University of Central Florida improved by 13 spots to be No. 124 in the overall rankings for public and private universities.

Rodrigues’ urging received an endorsement from BOG Chair Brian Lamb.

“We’re better together, and together we’re No. 1,” he said.

Rodrigues also noted changes in the U.S. News & World Report metric used to calculate this year’s ratings. The amount of debt students have when they leave school, for example, was eliminated, Rodrigues said.

“That was a great metric for our system because 77% of our students are leaving debt-free,” he said.