Florida Gov. Rick Scott signed controversial legislation that will create the state’s 12th public university out of a branch campus of the University of South Florida, The Chronicle of Higher Education reported.
The new university, which will be known as Florida Polytechnic University, will operate out of Lakeland. Critics of the bill, including the university system’s board of governors, wanted to wait to create the new institution until it had a minimum enrollment and was prepared to meet the requirements of its accreditor.