State: Governor says One Florida is working

TAMPA -- Gov. Jeb Bush declared his One Florida plan a success Monday after a new review of the contentious program showed a higher number of minority students taking pre-college tests and advanced classes in high school and earning merit-based scholarships for colleges.

That means there should be a rise in the number of black and Hispanic students entering the state's 11 universities this fall, according to the group that conducted the two-year review.

"We have worked very hard over the last two years," Bush said. "We are pleased, but there is still room for improvement. . . . This is a work in progress."

The commission also reported that certified minority business spending rose in 2001 to $549-million, a 108 percent increase since One Florida began. The spending increased in every race and gender category with the governor's agencies responsible for most of the increase.

Bush came to the University of South Florida Monday to publicize the study and a list of recommendations from the 13-member commission. The governor touted the conclusions as an independent review, though Bush chose some of the members when he formed the group two years ago.

"Florida's on the right track," said Bishop Frank Cummings, the commission chairman.

Specifically, the commission said more minority students enrolled in Advanced Placement courses, an increase of 13.7 percent. There was a 36 percent increase in black students and 41 percent in Hispanic students receiving Bright Future scholarships in the past two years. And minorities who took college preparatory tests rose 191 percent for PSAT, and 247 percent for the PLAN test.

Democrats were skeptical of the results and whether the study was truly independent.

"I've learned in the past that it all comes out like it's a beautiful day and the sun is shining," said state Sen. Kendrick Meek, D-Miami, who staged a sit-in at Bush's office over his One Florida plan. "Later, we find out that the numbers and percentages are not what they say they are."

State Sen. Daryl Jones, a Miami Democrat running for governor, said some statistics decreased when Bush took office, particularly with regard to minority enrollment at universities, and now are returning to where they were.

"He couldn't stop it from going back up," he said. "We have proven even One Florida couldn't stop it."

Last fall, Bush's ban on racial preferences in university admissions was followed by a gain of one-fifth of 1 percent of registered minority freshmen. But numbers dropped at the University of Florida, the state's largest.

Since Bush's order banned the the consideration of race in university admissions, the percentage of black freshmen at UF has dropped from 11.8 percent to 7.2 percent.

But Bush and UF leaders predict it will be back up to 11 percent this fall after the school made a conscious push to recruit black students. The admissions staff was increased, more students were asked to tour the campus, more letters were sent to high school students, and more scholarships were awarded to largely black high schools.

Enrollment figures for Florida universities won't be available until August.

Commission members also offered a list of recommendations to continue boosting minority education. They included not raising standards for merit-based Bright Future scholarships, providing more money for graduate students and increasing the number of teachers trained to teach AP classes.

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Lucy Morgan

From the Times state desk