EDITORS' CORNER
Sociology is ‘social and political advocacy,’ chancellor says
Students at all 12 public universities in Florida will no longer be required to take an introductory sociology class to graduate beginning next semester.
The State University System’s Board of Governors approved the “sweeping, systemwide ban that reflects years of Republican criticism of the discipline” on Thursday, according to the Miami Herald.
The sociology course will be removed from the general education catalog and reclassified as an elective.
Chancellor Ray Rodrigues introduced the resolution even though it was not listed on the original meeting agenda.
“The path to preserve academic freedom and preserve compliance with Florida statutes is clear: remove Sociology 1000 and 2000 courses from all general education classifications. Leave these courses as electives, free to compete in the marketplace of ideas and leave them as the majors and the minors for the students who choose to study them,” Rodrigues said.
“Sociology as a discipline is now social and political advocacy dressed in the regalia of the academy,” he said.
Further, the largest national organization in the field, the American Sociological Association, places too much emphasis on inequality and progressive causes, the chancellor said.
The change passed despite two board members voting against it, including Kimberly Dunn, an accounting professor at Florida Atlantic University.
“The removal may be premature and broader than necessary,” Dunn said. “Sociology contributes directly to the competencies we consistently emphasize. These are skills our graduates need across every sector.”
She added that sociology courses offer “disciplined, evidence-based inquiry into critically important aspects of the human experience.”
Zach Levenson, a sociology professor at Florida International University, told the Independent Florida Alligator, “This is part of a really shocking and kind of terrifying trend.”
“Students across Florida should be really concerned,” he said.
In January, the Florida Board of Governors voted to remove “Principles of Sociology” from the general education core list for state universities, The College Fix previously reported.
At the time, Professor Alexander Riley, who teaches sociology at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania, told The Fix he supported the move, as sociology has become a “workshop for professional leftists.”
In February, the state mandated an introductory sociology textbook, shortened to remove or reduce coverage of topics such as race, gender, and sexuality.
The change stemmed from Senate Bill 266, which restricts courses from addressing systemic inequality theories and “identity politics.”
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