The Brief
- Florida public universities will lose out on millions of dollars after state lawmakers skipped funding for the Preeminent State Research University Program.
- This funding cut affects the University of South Florida, which has held preeminent status since 2018.
- While USF will not receive preeminence funding this year, lawmakers still approved $25 million for its Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence and $10 million for a new USF Health research facility.
TAMPA, Fla. – A prestigious designation that has historically come with millions in state funding is no longer paying off for Florida’s top public universities.
Funding removed for Preeminent State Research University Program
By the numbers:
Florida lawmakers approved a state budget that does not fund the Preeminent State Research University Program, leaving the state’s five preeminent universities without a funding source that distributed $40 million last year.
Aubrey Jewett, a political science professor at the University of Central Florida, says universities will keep the designation even without the financial rewards.…