Faculty members across Florida public universities and state colleges are preparing to comply with a new regulation requiring them to publicly post their syllabuses and class materials 45 days before the semester begins.
But confusion remains over when and how the rule will be enforced.
Although the law was approved two months ago and initially set to take effect during the Spring ‘26 semester, the 45-day requirement won’t be enforced until Summer 2026, the Florida Board of Governors wrote in an email to The Alligator Jan. 8.
The board passed the policy in November 2025. It obligates all faculty within Florida universities and colleges to post their syllabuses 45 days before the semester starts and keep them publicly accessible for at least five years.
The purpose of the regulation, the board wrote, is to allow students greater transparency so they can properly evaluate their courses before registering. But critics say the rule is designed to chill academic freedom, allowing the public to police classroom content.
The regulation requires syllabuses and textbooks to be searchable by the general education status of their course. Syllabuses must include the course curriculum, required and recommended textbooks and materials, student expectations and performance evaluation methods.
State colleges are also affected by the change — though, like the university system, details of its implementation remain unclear. The Department of Education, which governs state colleges across Florida, did not respond to a request for comment on when dates of implementation are expected after multiple emails and phone calls.
Regardless, Santa Fe College plans to comply by the Fall semester, wrote Shawn Jenkins, the college’s communications manager, in a Jan. 6 email to The Alligator.
As faculty navigate the inconsistent timeline, with universities giving mixed guidance on when syllabuses must be finalized and posted, many faculty are still raising concerns about the content of the policy itself. Some say they’re unsure how much leeway they’ll have once enforcement begins.
Anna Peterson, a 62-year-old UF religion professor, was initially confused by the policy. She believes the necessary information is already accessible to students.
One of the most problematic aspects of the policy, Peterson said, is not knowing if she’ll be restricted from modifying class content to represent current events that carry relevance to her class.
She cited a past class in which she rearranged content after the Paris bombings so students could apply what they had learned in class to current events, a change she said was valuable.
“One of the things we’re told is that what we’re teaching should be relevant and should help students prepare for professions and in graduate school, etc., so that requires some flexibility,” Peterson said.
Robert Cassanello, the state president of higher education union United Faculty of Florida and an associate professor at the University of Central Florida, doesn’t think the legislation is about transparency, he said.
“Lawmakers are not trying to create a standard of open access; they’re doing this because they understand very well that professors will feel targeted,” Cassanello said. “Professors will feel intimidated, and they will be more circumspect as a result of this.”
He has no issue with putting his class materials online, he said, but he believes it will interfere with the teacher-student relationship. Conversations about course content should remain between the student and the professor, he said, and the information shouldn’t be publicly shared online.
In November, UFF and the Florida Education Association challenged the policy through a petition to determine its invalidity, arguing it represents an unjustified use of legislative authority. The FEA is now scheduling depositions, meaning it is awaiting the opportunity to move forward once its hearing takes place.
Andrew Spar, the president of the FEA, views this policy as a way to censor trained professors within higher education.
“We think this is a major overreach, and logistically, it doesn't even make sense,” he said.
Spar added the FEA believes the Board of Governors is exceeding its authority by implementing the policy. Only the state legislature, not the board, would have the power to pass a law of this scope, he said.
Graduate students are also expressing concern.
Cassandra Urbenz, a 25-year-old UF design and visual communications graduate student, works as co-president of UF Graduate Assistants United.
Urbenz said she has already noticed fear within the graduate assistant community due to the policy. Syllabuses typically contain the names of the student assistants teaching the course, as well as faculty members. Urbenz said she believes passing laws like this raises the possibility of student assistants receiving public backlash after syllabus information is posted online.
“We have some students who are extremely concerned and erring on the side of caution,” she said.
While some faculty say the lack of clarity has caused anxiety and fear, others argue the policy, despite its unclear timeline, will benefit students without threatening academic freedom.
Stan Kaye, a 68-year-old professor emeritus and former member of UF’s chapter of the UFF union, taught and ran the graduate theater program in design until retiring last year.
Kaye said he doesn’t believe the policy infringes on what a teacher can and can’t teach. He also believes this rule directly benefits students by increasing transparency within course content.
Allowing students the ability to compare the interests of faculty members and the distinction of courses this far in advance is only one of the advantages to the new policy, he said.
“I don't think it harms — I think it's great,” he said. “Transparency.”
Contact Alabama Weninegar at aweninegar@alligator.org. Follow her on X at @AlabamaW40513.
