College football Hall of Famer Urban Meyer has been appointed to the board of trustees at New College in Sarasota, Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Tuesday, The Associated Press reported.
Meyer’s appointment is subject to confirmation by the state Senate, the AP said. DeSantis also announced the reappointment of two other New College trustees.
Meyer is currently a college football analyst for FOX Sports. The AP said he previously coached at the University of Florida and Ohio State, where he led teams to national championships in 2006 and 2008 with the Gators and in 2014 with Ohio State. The AP also said Meyer was head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2021, his only season leading an NFL team.
AP reported that the governor’s allies took control of New College’s board about two years ago by packing it with DeSantis supporters and conservative figures. The AP said those allies then fired the college president and replaced her with a Republican politician, describing it as the first of several administrators who lost their jobs.
The AP reported that the changes included dismantling the office of diversity and equity. The AP said the governor and his allies targeted the small public liberal arts school as part of a campaign against what DeSantis calls “woke” ideology.
According to the AP, the governor’s allies believed New College—described by the AP as a progressive school with a prominent LGBTQ+ community—had been “indoctrinating” students with leftist teachings and should be revamped into a more conservative institution.
After the board takeover, AP reported that students compared the changes to “a hostile takeover,” saying DeSantis was dismantling what had been a safe place for many LGBTQ+ students who felt marginalized at other schools.