Now that the election is almost here, it ended with the College of Education closing at the University of South Florida, which was a devastating blow for all students trying to obtain a B.A. degree in Education there.

The College of Education failed them and there’s a loss of 300 jobs within the university system.

State Legislatures for Florida have been meddling with USF’s college programs since 2014. How disappointing it is that one of our best state universities decided to eliminate the College of Education. How sad it is that the university has decided to close the School of Education. If they want to become teachers, where are the teachers going to come from? The School of Education is the foundation of our future educators.

My questions are this: Is the University of South Florida still a public university, private university or is it controlled by state legislators? How does this benefit or adversely impact our community’s socio-economic status for our local community of District 23?

If it is controlled by state legislators, then the state legislature is responsible, not only for lost jobs within the university, but for slighting students to continue their dreams of becoming a teacher.

Robert Samuel Kaplan is a no-party affiliated candidate for State Senate District 23.