AUSTIN, Texas/WASHINGTON —
Students and faculty alike at universities in Florida are still unsure about the impact of a new state law restricting cooperation between the institutions and their counterparts in China and a handful of other countries six months after it went into effect.
"Some people only found out about this after seeing news reported in China, and no one knew how the law would actually be implemented," said Zhang, a graduate who told VOA the law has caused anxiety and uneasiness among Chinese students she knows.
Zhang, who earned a Ph.D. from the University of Florida two years ago, asked that VOA not reveal her full name for fear of retaliation from the Chinese government.
She said she knows two students who are still studying at the university but worry whether they can continue to work as teaching assistants for an annual income of $20,000 to $30,000.
The law, known as the Agreements of Educational Entities with Foreign Entities Act, or SB 864, bars state colleges and universities in Florida and their employees and representatives from accepting any gifts "in their official capacities from a college or university" based in any of seven "countries of concern": China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela and Syria.
Twelve state colleges and universities are also prohibited from accepting any grant from or participating in any agreement or partnership with any college or university based in any of the seven countries unless the partnership is authorized by the Florida Board of Governors or the State Board of Education, according to a May news release from the governor’s office.
"Florida is taking action to stand against the United States’ greatest geopolitical threat — the Chinese Communist Party [CCP]," Governor Ron DeSantis said in the statement, adding that the purpose of the bill is to stop CCP influence in the state’s education system from grade school to grad school.
In a letter to its faculty on December 15, the Department of Physics at the University of Florida interpreted the law as saying "that for the 2024-25 academic year, we are not able to offer ’employment’ — meaning any form of assistantship or fellowship support — to students in those countries."
"Although the law may potentially allow us to admit self-funded students, that question is not yet clearly answered. In any case, [the Department of] Physics always offers financial support to its admitted grad students. Therefore, for all practical purposes, we will not be able to offer admission to students applying from those countries."
The school may be able to offer admission and assistantship to students who originate from the seven countries but who are already living and studying in the U.S. But "these cases will have to be individually reviewed and approved by the [University of Florida] administration before any offer is made."
