FL Poly Comment 4/30/26: Accountability and the Truth

Thank you members of the Board. My name is Mike Sanderson.

First, about Gen Ed, I’m not going to have time to make a full comment, but I wanted to warn you that someone has been going around saying the Florida Legislature wants space exploration removed from the Gen Ed curriculum.

No, the Florida Legislature does not want space exploration removed from Gen Ed. The guy who wrote that has no STEM background whatsoever. Kind of a problem he has the made-up title “Chief Academic Officer.”

I traced the removal to the University of West Florida and the trustee who suggested that since has been rejected by the legislature for the second time. I invite you to read my letter to the Chair of the UWF Board of Trustees on my website, mikesand.com.

Moving to the accountability plan, my comment last year got quite a bit of attention. That was of course when I pulled the prior year accountability plans and found that for the 4-year graduation metric, you were lowering the goal for the current year for the third year in a row.

But then before the BOG met in June, you changed it back to 49%. Even though you you thought you weren’t going to make it. I know you thought that because during that BOG meeting at FAU Provost Thiessen told me.

Don’t be so hard on him, I said directly, “Brad, I know you know the min max for that graduation figure, what’s the min max.” President Stephenson saw me talking at the FL Poly staff table and came rushing over, but it was too late.

If you think the Provost shouldn’t have told me the min max for graduation because that’s some kind of state secret, i think you might want to step back and rethink your role as a public university trustee.

As an aside, too bad about the General Counsel office, I get saving money, not having in-house counsel seems like a false economy.

Anyway, returning to the Accountability Plan, the problem isn’t that you told me that, it’s that a few hours later President Stephenson didn’t tell the BOG Chair that.

In April 2024, two years ago, your former president wrote directly that Florida Poly expected to exceed 50% in 2025 (Page 7). Rather than telling the chair of the Board of Governors that you weren’t going to meet that goal and why, you just blah blah blah we have to do better.

Florida Poly’s 2024 Accountability Plan said 2021-25 Four-year Graduation Rate would be 50%

I know blaming COVID, and sounding like you’re throwing the former president under the bus for overpromising wouldn’t be well received at the BOG, but it’s the truth. Either that’s the truth or President Stephenson has really dropped the ball.

Finally, I invite you to check out last year’s Gender Studies ROI study. It was commissioned by the Chancellor but released by Anna Eskamani because it showed Gender Studies does have a good ROI. It also has a graph titled, “What you study matters more than where you study,” and it seems to show that Computer Science majors at Florida Poly make less money and are less likely to use their degree than even UWF or UNF. So that’s an important area for follow up.

Salary isn’t everything — I’m a computer programmer, I have gotten a great salary working on the iPhone app for Facebook for Dogs. That is not a joke, dogs don’t use the app but dogs have profiles, they follow other dogs, like other dogs’ photos, etc.

It’s safe to say that no one has ever been as excited for an Accountability Plan as I am for New College’s which of course has not bee released.

Good luck with all your goals. It’s too bad land acquisition isn’t a metric, amirite?

Letters March–April 2026: "Board of Governors"

Some recent letters sent to and concerning the “Board of Governors.” What the Board of Governors is, is a theme of the letters. Generally I post on a delay, because I am writing to the audience, but they are of course public records and of interest to others.

Reason the Florida Board of Governors Exists

Moez Limayem, University of South Florida, President. April 12, 2026.

Re: Reason the Florida Board of Governors Exists.

 

Suggestion Legislature intended to remove Space Program from Gen Ed.

Rebecca Matthews, University of West Florida Board of Trustees, Chair. April 6, 2026.

Re: Suggestion Legislature intended to remove Space Program from Gen Ed.

 

Misinformation about ‘Board of Governors’ and Sociology Curriculum

Kimberly Dunn, Advisory Council of Faculty Senates, Chair; Board of Governors faculty representative. March 22, 2026.

Re: Misinformation about ‘Board of Governors’ and Sociology Curriculum.

 

“Florida Educational Equity Act” and Sociology Curriculum

Anastasios “Stasi” Kamoutsas, Commission of Education; Board of Governors Department of Education representative. March 22, 2026.

Re: “Florida Educational Equity Act” and Sociology Curriculum.

Disclosure of Nonpublic Information

Ethics Complaint Filed Against Florida’s Chief Academic Officer for Substack Newsletter that Discloses Nonpublic Information to Paid Subscribers

Jason Jewell, Chief Academic Officer at the Florida Board of Governors, uses his official title and apparently profits personally from his Substack

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA, March 31 — A sworn complaint with the Florida Commission on Ethics was submitted on Tuesday against the Chief Academic Officer at the Florida Board of Governors (which oversees the State University System) over use of his title and extensive nonpublic information on his paid Substack.

Jason Jewell, who has been Chief Academic Officer at the Florida Board of Governors since January 2025, has used nonpublic information in posts accessible only to his paid subscribers, information that is not available to members of the general public and that he gained by reason of his official position.

Mike Sanderson, who swore and filed the complaint with the Florida Commission on Ethics, wrote “The assistant city manager of any podunk beach town knows: if your job gives you, ‘a front row seat to all kinds of things’—in Florida it probably does—you can’t take info you get as a public employee, put it behind a paywall and make money.”

The sworn complaint states, “Nonpublic information posted by Respondent also includes details of his official activities, official travel, site visits to universities, meetings attended, conferences attended, accounts of Board of Governors meetings, sources of policy ideas, comments on articles … specific policy ideas that could be implemented or presented to the legislature, and so on. Nonpublic activities of the Chancellor and other Board Office employees are also mentioned.”

Advisory opinion 23-5 by the Commission on Ethics addressed this scenario

The primary violation Jewell has committed is specified in Section 112.313(8), Florida Statutes, forbidding disclosure of nonpublic information learned from a public job for personal gain. This violation does not require corrupt intent.

The Florida Commission on Ethics Guide to the Code of Ethics for Public Employees lists the violations under “III. THE ETHICS LAWS. A. A. Prohibited Actions or Conduct. 6. Disclosure or Use of Certain Information.” Jewell’s use of his title may also violate “5. Abuse of Public Position.” (Numbers 5. and 6. refer to headings under III. A. in the Commission on Ethics Guide.)

Getting an online notary in in Florida was a coincidence, never mind in Lee County. I swear.

SANDERSON MENTIONED AT MARCH 26 BOARD OF GOVERNORS MEETING

Sanderson’s familiarity with the Board of Governors and vice-versa was further reinforced at the meeting on March 26, 2026. Board of Governors Chair Alan Levine expressed astonishment after being told Sanderson was not making a public comment.

“What?” Board of Governors Chair Levine said. “Let the record reflect that our friend Mike Sanderson is not speaking publicly.”

Levine's comment prompted laughter in the room.

“I assume I'll get an email or something from him,” Levine added. “He’s very good at providing input.”

Swearing the oath for the complaint to Florida Commission on Ethics

SANDERSON: JEWELL “OVERPROMOTED” “TOO NAÏVE TO HAVE CORRUPT INTENT”

At the end of 2024, Jason Jewell had been a professor of humanities at a small private college in Alabama for 20 years. His biggest responsibilities had been as chair of the humanities department and administering an online great-books program.

In January 2025, Jewell was suddenly elevated to the highest level of the State University System of Florida. His position has no public job description, and Jewell has no biography on flbog.edu.

Sanderson added, “He’s one of the most senior policymakers in the State University System, and since it’s a new position with no public information about it, I had to pay him personally to learn what Florida’s Chief Academic Officer actually does.”

“He was overpromoted,” said Sanderson. “I think he genuinely doesn’t realize that legitimately holding a job like that would make someone’s travel, meetings, opinions and perspectives extremely valuable information. He’s too naive to have corrupt intent.”

In the complaint Sanderson wrote, “corrupt intent is overwhelmed by the impression of a naif, a naif who received inadequate ethics training.”

“Chancellor Ray Rodrigues has some explaining to do why he picked a professor of humanities who’s never run anything bigger than an online great-books program for the job of Chief Academic Officer of Florida’s state universities,’” Sanderson added.

In other places on Jewell’s Substack, it is abundantly, painfully clear he lacks experience in Florida. In the same post Jewell wrote he has “a front row seat,” he also wrote: “I can only assume that things will get somewhat normal at some point.”

###

Mike Sanderson is a graduate of Miami Palmetto Senior High and New College of Florida. Sanderson is a writer and computer programmer and lives in Brooklyn, New York.

NCF BOT Comment 2/12/26: Willful and Wanton Disregard

My name Mike Sanderson. I entered New College in 1999. I’m speaking on Richard Corcoran’s bonus. My full comment and supporting documents are at Mike Sand dot com.

As some of you know, in 2025 I went to all the Board of Governors meetings. They are laughing at Corcoran at the BOG. They have the real metrics and know his failure. Fewer freshmen than in Fall 2022.

That Corcoran’s getting tens of millions more from the state makes it worse. I have the raw budget data from the BOG. There are obvious falsehoods and massive discrepancies, including in funds for the general counsel’s office.

The athletics program is illegally funded with E&G. At the Audit committee last week, Tzmouas didn’t tell you he put false information in an email copied to the BOG inspector general, which I noted immediately. Mike sand dot com links to the proof.

I am formally submitting this, and if you don’t get an independent opinion on Tzmouas, the budget and athletics spending, it’s hard to see how you avoid charges of conscious indifference, willful and wanton disregard for property. thank you.

Richard Corcoran at the BOG: The Top 6 Humiliations


If you aren’t in the room to see the Board of Governors interact with Richard Cocoran, you might not realize the extent to which people are laughing at him — often literally. In addition to laughing, there’s gasping, grimacing, scowling, and poker face. But laughter is common, and the through line is the humiliations.

6.

October 2024, Miami: “I don’t see President Corcorcan”

Richard Corcoran scrambles in Miami

At most meetings, Corcoran prefers to spend his time out in the hall. At the October 2024 meeting in Miami, it just so happened that was when Chair Lamb wanted to chat about the struggles NCF is having.

Clip (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vMW3Ql0cMQ

5.

January 2025, JAcksonville: Athletics spending “violation of Board of Governors Rule”

In a Budget Committee athletics-funding discussion, former Budget Committee Chair Eric Silagy tells the meeting that the NCF Board of Governors documents showing $1.5 million of E&G spending on athletics must be a mistake because “that’s a violation of Board of Governors rule.” It was not a mistake.

NCF Budget Documents FY 2024-25 - $1.5 million E&G for Athletics

Original: https://thefloridachannel.org/videos/1-30-25-florida-board-of-governors-meeting/

Clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPctjUv5ep0

4.

December 2024, Zoom: “Not the opinion of the Board of Governors”

In the December 2024 Zoom meeting, Governor Jones made a comment that New College was “the best for last.” Governor Levine made a totally gratuitous crack “the best for last” was “not the opinion of the Board of Governors.”

3.

June 2025, Boca Raton: Does that mean you’re paying students $19,000 A year to attend?

In Boca Raton, Governor Dunn had a question about the negative sign in front of the cost-per-student of -$19,000. “Does that mean you’re paying students $19,000 a year to attend?” Following the gasp, what followed was a rambling, 5-minute monologue that touched on all aspects of American higher education, investment, and nonsense.

2.

June 2025, Boca Raton Part 2: “Blah blah Williams! Amherst! Startup! Liberal Arts! Incredible Growth!”

Coming several hours after Corcoran’s monologue, Mike Sanderson’s public comment mocked the nonsense of Corcoran’s comment — and dropped “my most colorful report yet.” What was the question Corcoran was asked? (The negative -$19,000 cost per student is what he had been asked about.)

1.

Nov 2025, Tampa: DOGE REPORT ‘Giving CORCORAN THE FINGER’

When the report on efficiency in the state universities was presented, the operating cost per student was so high for New College that one observer called it “giving Corcoran the finger.” From the laughter from the center the table, to grimacing around the edges, to Silagy leaning in, to the scowls from the NCF VPs in the audience, the failure of Richard Corcoran was literally 10 feet high.

New York Times 12/28/2025: The Top 7 Falsehoods

The recent New York Times article about New College is so willing to accept things as face value that I wouldn’t be surprised to hear the reporter bought a timeshare from Corcoran.

While others have noted the innumerable bias and omissions, I want to focus on the many bits that are just factually incorrect, or factually misleading.

Top 7 Falsehoods in the New York Times December 28 New College story.

1: Teaching Homer was new for Professor April Flakne because of the changes

April Flakne strides into the classroom to teach a course on “The Odyssey,” a new requirement at New College of Florida.

She has taught philosophy at the small state college for 25 years, but this class is different — seven weeks on one classic book, required of all students. Normally, her focus is on philosophers like Hannah Arendt and Simone de Beauvoir, and their theories of totalitarianism, revolution and feminism.

This class on Homer is a turnabout from all that…

Flanke teaching class on Homer is “a turnaround” because she is a professor of Modern Philosophy. Flakne previously taught Hannah Adrendt because Flakne wrote her dissertation on Hannah Adrendt.

Spending seven weeks — half a semester — on a work that is typically taught in middle and high schools is a enormous reduction in rigor for New College.

2. Example of ideological conformity

It was “a little Club Med” for people who were “all ideologically the same,” said Richard Corcoran, the school’s new president.

This was firmly refuted by The Atlantic in March 2023, which put it in the headline, “a narrative that does not withstand scrutiny”

Mike Sanderson, the author of this article, was an intern for Sarasota Congresswoman Kathrine Harris as a student in 2004, and spoke in favor of eliminating DEI in February 2023.

3. Founding date and model

“New College was founded in 1960, as a private, progressive school along the same lines as Hampshire College, an experimental school in Massachusetts that has also struggled to stay afloat.”

Hampshire was founded in 1970, ten years after New College. New College was founded by, among others, Jane Bancroft Cook of the Dow Jones Bancrofts. New College was not founded to be “progressive” and its mission never had a political component but was always educational.

4. Enrollment Pre- and Post Takevoer

“Mr. Corcoran said that his detractors have painted an unrealistically rosy portrait of New College before the shake up. Enrollment was flagging.”

(Later)

“The college is growing. There are over 900 students this year, from under 700 in 2022, according to the college. “

False. In Fall 2022, New College had the second-largest freshmen class in history. This was a rebound from poor management in the late 2010s and during the covid-19 pandemic; that president resigned in 2020, with a new president taking office in summer 2021 — and was already posting results by Fall 2022.

There were more freshmen in Fall 2022 than there are in Fall 2025, and the larger freshmen cohort in Fall 2022 had higher average GPSs and SAT scores.

5. The dormitories designed by I.M. Pei were covered in mold.

True, because they still are — even while Corcoran has spend tens of millions on hotel leases to serve as dorms. The money he has spent on hotel leases could have given the State a refurbished dorm of great architectural significance, but instead it has been frittered away for a short-term pop in enrollment.

Citing a problem from the previous administration that Corcoran has no solution for is an odd standard.

6. Anyone would recruit athletes

“His renewal plan consists, to a large degree, of things that any turnaround agent might have done, like recruiting student athletes... ”

It is certainly not the case that “any turnaround agent” would have spent millions in Florida taxpayer funds on athletics, because spending taxpayer funds on athletics is illegal.

Corcoran is spending taxpayer funds on athletics anyway and categorizing the funding for intercollegiate athletics as “student service administration” or “general administration” instead of “intercollegiate athletics” or “Title IX women’s sports.”

This is a violation of Board of Governors rules, as directly described by the former Chair of the Board of Governors Budget committee in an open meeting on January 30, 2025.

7. Economies of scale

“New College officials defend this as largely a one-time investment, to improve infrastructure after years of deferred maintenance. As the school grows to its goal of 1,800 students, they say, there will be economies of scale.” ....

False. The largest single expense is for hotel leases, which will not scale at all. Another multi-million expense are the highly taxpayer-subsidized student scholarships, which also will not scale. There is no evidence the school could support 1,800 students.

These are just the most flagrant falsehoods, in a story full of omissions and credulousness. This is an ignomous moment for the Times, and one that people in Florida and across the country will need to come back to.

CHEA and the Alligator Accreditor Update 10/26/25: Latest letters and documents

CUNY Board of Trustees Comment 10/21/25: Accreditation

Read: Letter to CUNY Board of Trustees (referenced in public comment 10/21/25). As delivered:

My name is Mike Sanderson. Mr. Chair, my comment with citations has been submitted in writing, and is posted to my website mikesand.com.

I am speaking to unexpectedly urgent agenda items, specially, the appointments of Dr. Kevin Martin and Dr. George White at Laguardia Community College and York College, respectively.

This concerns the urgent matter of Higher Education Accreditation. Their resolutions both highlight in the first paragraph their roles handling accreditor. Higher education is under attack as part of Project 2025, and higher education accreditation has become the battleground. In 2023 Trump called accreditation my “secret weapon.”

I went to New College of Florida in Florida, I have lived in New York City since 2012 and my been upstate in Nyskyuna since the 19th century. Regarding Florida, you hopefully you aware of what has been happening in higher education in Florida from Florida’s reprehensible governor, Ron DeSantis.

You may have heard Ron DeSantis is now trying to replace higher education accreditation with a state-controlled accreditor. It will be staffed by DeSantis to continue their culture war. I’m calling it the Alligator Accreditor.

This ties directly to CUNY, because of a national organization called the Council for Higher Education Accredition, known as CHEA, that lists 5 CUNY colleges as institutional members. This organization’s mission is to defend independent higher education. However, I have evidence from a public records request in Florida that CHEA organization is secretly supporting and encoring Ron DeSantis’s state-controlled accreditator.

My question is, is CUNY funding a secret effort to destroy higher education?

To tie back to Dr. Martin and Dr. White, those institutions include LaGuardia Community College and York College, and Hostos Community College. I’m asking, are the tuition dollars of those students out on the green going to pay the salary of someone supporting and encoring project 2025?

I will add, it’s not just supporting and encouraging. A board member of CHEA has the same role in Florida, and apparently received participation for his willingness to sever on the commission.

I have the email where the president wrote this person, directly, “no good deed goes unpunished.” The punishment the president referred to was objecting to helping Ron DeSantis seize control of higher education.

The others institutions, by the way, are Baruch College and The Graduate Center. I’m not accusing anyone at CUNY of wrongdoing. This effort was secrete. But I am asking for a public, investigation of CUNY’s ties, CUNY’s funding, and to demand that CHEA provide an independent investigation.

I will add, it’s not just institutional. A CHEA board member in Florida apparently received negative feedback, and I have the email where the president said, directly, “no good deed goes unpunished.” The punishment the president referred to was objecting to helping Ron DeSantis seize control of higher education.

Adding, there is nothing to stop the Trump administration from demanding at some point that public university’s in New York submit to the Alligator Accreditor.

My comment with citations has been submitted in writing, and is posted to my website mikesand.com. Thank you .