• The Jacksonville City Council has approved a $50 million grant over the next three years to support the development of a new graduate campus proposed by the University of Florida (UF).
• The grant will be disbursed on an annual basis and awarded to the UF Board of Trustees. The project is estimated to have an aggregate cost of $100 million.
• The satellite campus plans to focus on Master’s and Doctoral programs in medicine, engineering, and business and is expected to have a strong economic impact on Jacksonville.

The Jacksonville City Council on Tuesday night approved a motion to allocate $50 million across the next three years to support the development of a new graduate campus proposed by the University of Florida (UF).

With a 16 to 1 vote, the measure received near-unanimous support from the council, authorizing the allocation of $20 million in the current fiscal year towards future expenditures including planning, design, and other ancillary costs. City Council documents show that the remaining $30 million will require approval from its legislative body before being dispersed to UF in 2024 and 2025.

The project is estimated to have an aggregate cost of $100 million over a three-year period and the grant will be disbursed on an annual basis to the UF Board of Trustees. The establishment of the satellite campus is expected to have a strong economic impact on Jacksonville through the creation of high-paying jobs and the development of a graduate education pool.

The City of Jacksonville will contribute no more than 50 percent of the establishment costs up to $50,000,000 over three years, with city funds being contributed on a pro-rata basis with other university-identified funds. JEA, the largest community-owned utility company in Florida, pledged $10 million in financial contributions to the new campus last week.

UF and the City of Jacksonville announced a partnership last month to “explore the creation of a new graduate campus in the city” after plans to construct a satellite location in West Palm Beach fell through. While details have been sparse, the Jacksonville campus plans to focus on Master’s and Doctoral programs in medicine, engineering, and business.

“We are excited about the possibility of hosting this University of Florida expansion to foster opportunity, a talent pipeline, and further grow our region’s industry,” said Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry.

As developments progress, city and university officials plan to coordinate with industry leaders in Jacksonville to determine which educational subject areas would best satisfy the critical needs of the local workforce.

UF Health in Jacksonville, the university’s current satellite facility in the city, offers specialized and subspecialty graduate medical education programs. The new graduate campus would be designed to complement these programs and provide additional resources for students and professionals seeking advanced degrees in medicine, engineering, and business.

An inquiry made to the University of Florida by The Capitolist was not immediately answered.