SARASOTA, Fla. — The sweeping transformation of New College of Florida, championed by Governor Ron DeSantis as part of his broader education and culture-war agenda, has produced a staggering fiscal consequence: the cost to award a single degree at the small liberal-arts institution now stands at $494,715.
According to a recent audit from the Florida Department of Government Efficiency, New College’s operating expenses clock in at $83,207 per student — compared with $45,765 at University of Florida. The number of administrators per 100 students is also higher: 33.3 at New College versus 26.9 at UF.
Enrollment at the college has grown to 732 students, yet remains far from its goal of 1,200 students. A large share of the increase reflects newly added athletic programs, with more than one-third of incoming students recruited as athletes.
Governor DeSantis, who described the prior New College as “more into DEI, CRT, the gender ideology,” vowed reforms to create a “classical liberal arts college with an emphasis on truth in academics, civic education, and academic freedom.” Supporters say the reforms were necessary to rescue the institution from decline.
Critics, however, say the makeover was ideological first and operational second: “I don’t think people appreciate how obscene the levels of spending are,” said Nathan Allen, a former vice president at the college. Meanwhile, state lawmakers from the Democratic party are calling for enhanced oversight, saying the elevated spending isn’t yielding commensurate results.
The college’s ranking in U.S. News & World Report has dropped about 60 places since the overhaul began. College President Richard Corcoran wrote that the auditing “ridiculous” and “you can’t measure us until 2028.”
The New College case underscores the fiscal risks of politically driven institutional reform, especially when applied to a small honors college with a high administrative footprint and low enrollment.
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