Undocumented immigrants are now blocked from attending Florida state colleges and GED programs

The Florida Board of Education approved measures that will block undocumented students from attending state colleges and taking the General Educational Development test.

The boards of trustees of the state's 28 public colleges will now be required to ensure all admitted students are citizens of the United States or lawfully present in the U.S., and undocumented immigrants will be blocked from adult general education programs in high schools and state colleges.

Adult general education programs prepare those taking the GED exam for the equivalency of a high school diploma.

All members of the board voted to approve except for Daniel Foganholi, who cast the lone nay vote. Foganholi, who was appointed to the board by Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2022, is a first-generation American.

The state originally proposed these rules in April for approval in May, but those measures were postponed and taken off of the agenda until Tuesday's meeting, which was a conference call.

Kathy Hebda, chancellor for the division of Florida colleges, said the college admissions criteria was changed to adhere to state law, but opponents and legislators have questioned why the rule needed to be amended.

Republican lawmakers have attempted several times to restrict the ability of undocumented immigrants from enrolling in higher education institutions in Florida, but have failed as recently as the 2026 legislative session.

This year, legislators filed bills to prohibit all higher education institutions from admitting any non-citizen who wasn't legally present in the country and to limit the number of enrolled students who are citizens of foreign countries and who are not permanent U.S. residents.

But measures barely moved through the process and died in committee. During public comment, Rep. Anna Eskamani, D-Orlando, disputed the rule changes as they didn't make it through the 2026 session.

Eskamani joins a group of bipartisan legislators, the Joint Administrative Procedures Committee, who sent a letter to DOE and the board questioning the rule changes. Jowanna N. Oates, a chief attorney for JAPC, wrote the statutes cited as law for the new rules "do not appear to address the provision of the documentation requested in this subparagraph as part of the admissions process."

"The attempt to restrict a child's access to higher education based on a documentation status that is no fault of their own is unAmerican, is unfaithful and constitutionally concerning," said Rep. Anna Eskamani, D-Orlando, during public comment.