House-speaker-to-be questions bringing UF into Poly process

Posted Nov 23, 2011 by Lindsay Peterson

Updated Nov 29, 2011 at 12:31 PM

Florida’s future speaker of the House of Representatives is dubious about state Sen. JD Alexander’s latest move in the USF Polytechnic independence quest.

The state Board of Governors tasked USF with helping its Polytechnic campus break away as an independent university, but Alexander says he doesn’t trust USF and wants the University of Florida to do it.

UF President Bernie Machen said this week he’s willing to help.

The Legislature would have to approve it.

But state Rep. Will Weatherford said that might not be such a good idea. The Wesley Chapel Republican has been a leader on higher education issues and is the next in line to become House speaker.

“I’m not sure it’s necessary to transfer” USF Polytechnic to UF, Weatherford said today, careful to clarify that he hasn’t talked to Machen or USF President Judy Genshaft.

“Polytechnic has been under USF’s umbrella for a long time now. This isn’t something you rush into.”

Weatherford didn’t, however, rule it out.

“I’m going to keep an open mind about it.”

By the time any proposal gets to the Legislature, which meets starting in January, USF will be a ways down the road in its work with the Lakeland campus.

Last week, USF set up a website to track its progress with Poly on the nine benchmarks the board established.

Yesterday, the board announced setting up a three-member committee to monitor the process. It includes Dick Beard of Tampa, Morteza “Mori” Hosseini of Daytona Beach and Norm Tripp of Fort Lauderdale.

USF Poly is already expected to provide twice-a-year reports to the board. This group, to be led by Hosseini, will look at issues that spring up in the interim periods.

The quarterly reports don’t begin, however, until March, after the start of the Legislature’s 2012 session.