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MONDAY, JANUARY 12, 2026

VOLUME 120 - ISSUE 16 Not officially associated with the University of Florida

Published by Campus Communications, Inc. of Gainesville, Florida

Some UF Venezuelan students have new hopes of returning home. Others aren’t so sure. MANY WEIGH FAMILY TIES, STABILITY AND THE OPPORTUNITIES EACH COUNTRY OFFERS

By Dulce Rodriguez-Escamilla Alligator Staff Writer

A hope that once seemed impossible has now surfaced among Venezuelan students at UF: returning to their home country without fear of an authoritarian regime. That hope came after the U.S. forcefully removed the country’s president, Nicolás Maduro. The capture of Maduro, whose regime oversaw Venezuela’s collapse, prompted mixed emotions on campus. There were 107 Venezuelan international students enrolled at UF as of 2025. The university is also home to many more students whose families came from Venezuela years or decades ago and still retain ties with their home country. Some of these students now say they’re experiencing a renewed optimism they might return to Venezuela, either temporarily or permanently. Others remain skeptical, voicing concerns over present and future U.S. involvement.

Venezuelan students rethink postgraduate plans after Maduro’s capture by the U.S. military Jan. 3, 2026.

Eva Lu // Alligator Staff

Renewed optimism For years, Diego Oliver, a 19-year-old UF biomedical engineering freshman, had a clear plan: He would graduate and build his life in the U.S. Now, that plan has started to change.

SEE VENEZUELA, PAGE 4

UF’s new institutional neutrality policy is in effect. Here’s what to know. The controversial policy has spread across higher education nationwide By Alexa Ryan Alligator Staff Writer

The UF Board of Trustees unanimously passed a policy Dec. 5 limiting faculty and staff from using university communication, like email systems, to share their opinions on issues that “polarize society.” UF is only the latest school to adopt such a policy. Although “statement neutrality” was originally pioneered decades ago, it has spread throughout higher education in the aftermath of the Hamas attack on Israel Oct. 7, 2023, according to a report published by Heterodox Academy in 2025. More than 148 universities now have institutional neutrality policies nationwide. At UF, which was the first Florida university to adopt the policy — with the University of West Florida following suit shortly afterward — some faculty have already spoken against what some view as a breach of First Amendment rights.

SPORTS/SPECIAL/CUTOUT

University administration Story description finish with comma,

Syllabuses policy confuses, worries pg# faculty. Read more on pg. 2.

UF Interim President Donald Landry first mentioned the concept in October by telling the UF Faculty Senate he would maintain institutional neutrality in reference to the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk and the twoyear anniversary of the Hamas attack. He advised faculty to do the same. At a Nov. 20 meeting, he again mentioned an institutional neutrality “initiative.” “Leadership, when it makes pronouncements on things that are not essential to the university, divides the faculty — those inside versus those outside — divides the students,” Landry said. “[It] suppresses the very conversation we want to encourage.” Landry was a no-show at the Dec. 9 faculty senate meeting, during which the group was set to discuss the policy. At this meeting, many staff members expressed confusion regarding the new policy passed earlier that week, including what faculty it applied to and the extent to which the policy would affect them.

Where did institutional neutrality originate? The University of Chicago introduced the concept of institutional neutrality in its 1967 Kalven Report written at the height of Vietnam War protests and amid criticism of the university’s investments in apartheid-era South Africa. The report questions how a university should respond to social or political issues without jeopardizing student and faculty’s right to free speech. Its conclusion: A university should, in most cases, not comment on those issues. Institutional neutrality policies give students and faculty more freedom to express their opinions on important issues without fear of retribution from the university, the report argued. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression frequently praises universities for adopting institutional neutrality in line with the Kalven Report. However, in a Dec. 16 report, the organization criticized UF’s implementation

SEE NEUTRALITY, PAGE 4 City and County Commission

Crosswalk plans approved near dangerous intersection, pg. 3

The Avenue: Food

5 mocktail recipes to try this Spring, pg. 7

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