Good work, if you’re connected in Florida | Editorial

Graduate-level hypocrisy. This week, the newly remade board that Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed to overhaul New College of Florida gave the school’s interim president a pay hike of nearly $400,000 over his predecessor. Wasn’t the whole point of this hostile takeover to repair New College’s finances? And how does hiring Richard Corcoran, the DeSantis ally, conservative firebrand and former Republican state House speaker, as interim president of the Sarasota liberal arts college jibe with DeSantis’ drive to rout so-called “indoctrination” from higher education? This whole thing looks like a bank robbery in plain sight. Floridians see what’s going on. So do students, their families and academics across the nation. At this rate, we can’t wait to see what the search for a permanent leader produces.

The comeback kids. Talk about a success story: The wood stork, which was on the brink of extinction in 1984, has recovered sufficiently in Florida and other Southern states that U.S. wildlife officials this week proposed removing the wading bird from the endangered species list. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service credited a restoration of the wood stork’s habitat, especially in south Florida, for leading to a sharp increase in breeding. The bird has also increased its range in coastal areas across the south, leading to new nesting areas and tripling the number of colonies. This recovery is a testament to the wildlife protections provided by the Endangered Species Act, and to the work by government agencies, conservation groups and private citizens who have cooperated behind the effort. If delisted, the wood stork would still remain protected by other laws, and importantly, monitoring would take place for years to ensure the population is stable. This is a great new chapter in America’s wildlife story.

Fried for Democrats? There are always second acts in politics, and for hard-hit Florida Democrats, that could be a good thing. Nikki Fried, the former Florida commissioner of agriculture who ran unsuccessfully last year for the Democratic nomination for governor, announced Monday that she’s vying to be the next chairperson of the state Democratic Party. In a news release, Fried said Florida Democrats need to “rededicate ourselves to voter registration, training, and growing our progressive coalitions” — in other words, the basics. Fried also vows to bring the progressive vision to the party that she had for the governor’s office, stressing that women’s rights, economic opportunity, housing and social inclusion would be key priorities. The job won’t be easy, as Times’ political editor Emily L. Mahoney noted; Republicans in Florida outnumber Democrats in voter registration, Democratic turnout has lagged and Democrats have a thin bench of candidates for statewide and legislative offices. Democrats are expected to vote on a new leader this month. Is it shake-up time, or more of the same?

The next generation. Never forget how much we can learn from students. This week, students at the University of South Florida celebrated Black life and culture on campus during a weeklong event dubbed “Black Out Week.” The event, hosted by the USF chapter of the NAACP, is meant to bring Black students and allies together, which organizers said was especially timely, given Gov. Ron DeSantis’ rejection of an Advanced Placement course on African American studies for Florida high school students, and his proposals to prohibit diversity, equity and inclusion programs. When asked about DeSantis, one participant, 18-year-old Shakiela Boothe Rodney, could only laugh; “Florida is barely teaching history as it is,” she said. “You can’t hinder something that’s already not being taught.” Others agreed, saying the focus of “Black Out Week” is to tune out the political noise. “We’re trying to look out for the next generation,” said Calandra Peterkin, 22. Here are young people playing long-ball, the secret to every successful social movement. Florida needs more leaders like this.

Editorials are the institutional voice of the Tampa Bay Times. The members of the Editorial Board are Editor of Editorials Graham Brink, Sherri Day, Sebastian Dortch, John Hill, Jim Verhulst and Chairman and CEO Conan Gallaty. Follow @TBTimes_Opinion on Twitter for more opinion news.