By Sabreen Dawud

The HB 999 bill went into effect on July 1, 2023, prohibiting Florida public colleges and universities from spending federal or state dollars on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs. 

Students at Florida A&M University (FAMU), Florida’s only historically Black public university, have taken action to express concerns surrounding the impact that the HB 999 bill may have on the future of their higher education. 

Eight months after the bill was passed, one student said they had noticed no major changes to their academic environment. 

“I haven’t seen any changes within the classes or like how anything’s conducted,” said Ta’lar Goodman, a senior business administration major at FAMU. 

Faculty members such as Dr. Victor Eno, an associate professor of political science at FAMU, said he has also not recognized any apparent shifts in how he conducts his classes. 

“I have not seen any implication practically. If you ask me if it affects my work, no, not in any way. It doesn’t affect what I do,” Eno said.

While neither Goodman nor Eno noticed any differences in their classroom experiences, Eno highlighted how FAMU remains mandated by the HB 999 bill.

“I know that the level of the university system, you know the Florida university system, it has certain mandates that the university has to stay in compliance with the legislation,” Eno said. “So broadly speaking, as far as FAMU being a state institution, it has to abide.”

Though these individuals have not publicly expressed any obvious changes, Goodman expressed concern for what is to come. 

With a variety of race-related courses available at the university, there are worries regarding how much longer FAMU will be able to proceed with centering race in academic settings.

“I had the pleasure of taking a class at FAMU called African-American studies, and I learned about some of the real history behind Black history like I learned about a lot of inventions and creations that you wouldn’t have known Black people made,” Goodman said.

“So I feel like for the bill to pass to not allow students to know about Black history,I feel it’s racist obviously because, like why would you try to keep the history of our people from us,” she continued. 

According to Dr. Eno, it is difficult to avoid discussing disparities between racial groups when presenting academic research to students. He used healthcare studies as an example, highlighting the various social determinants found within healthcare research. 

 “So then you talk about the population because you want to look at how different population groups are impacted by issues of access,” Eno said. “You will have to at least acknowledge that there is a difference, there is a disparity here, there is a disparity there.”

Assistant Director of the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Kean University, Erin Lester, shared ways on how students who may be prohibited from engaging in DEI programs on their campus can find other academic methods to stay involved.

The assistant director suggests that students consider education in interdisciplinary or sociological studies.

“That will be foundational in making sure they’re understanding of institutions and structures is very well versed,” Lester said. “So, I definitely think that people should, if there’s a major, declare a major in a particular subject that you’re interested in, like Africana studies or women and gender studies. If there’s no major, see if there’s a minor, see if there’s a certificate.”