Hundreds of University of Florida students held protests this week criticizing the anticipated appointment of Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., to lead the school.
Sasse has said that as university president, he would do his best to represent the views of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer students.
But for some, his candidacy has called to mind the university’s anti-LGBTQ history and the extent to which many of them feel it continues to sideline their needs and experiences, four LGBTQ students told NBC News.
The university’s LGBTQ+ Affairs office, for example, has a high staff turnover rate, he said.
He said a “silver lining” of the protests was that many LGBTQ students made their concerns more widely known.