By LLOYD DUNKELBERGER
THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA
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THE CAPITAL, TALLAHASSEE, March 1, 2017……… Although he has three degrees, including a law degree from Emory University and a master’s from Harvard, Senate President Joe Negron went back to college last spring.
It was a unique journey for an incoming legislative leader that took Negron on a tour of Florida’s 12 public universities, from the University of West Florida at the western edge of the Panhandle to Florida International University in the urban center of Miami-Dade County.
Negron’s trip, which included talking with students, professors and administrators, helped him form the basis of an ambitious plan for the 2017 legislative session to elevate Florida’s higher-education system.
His legislative thesis is straight-forward: He believes Florida, as the nation’s third-largest state, should have some of the best public universities in the country, on par with institutions like the University of Michigan and the University of Virginia.
