The board scheduled an Aug. 19 special meeting to consider terminating Alston’s employment agreement “without cause,” according to the meeting notice. The meeting was halted after Alston invoked a contract provision requiring mediation, and a judge subsequently ordered the two sides into mediation.

A Record That Requires Explanation

Broward College reports that enrollment has reached its highest level in five state reporting years, with full-time equivalent enrollment up 4.84% year over year. The college has secured state funding for a new health sciences and nursing facility and $1 million in federal funding for aviation programs. Its economic impact analysis says the college generates approximately $2.4 billion in added income and supports more than 25,000 jobs.

Those results do not erase the college’s challenges, but they complicate any claim that the institution is in broad decline.

The most serious academic concern is the associate degree nursing program, which remains on probation with the Florida Board of Nursing. State records show a cumulative 2026 NCLEX passage rate of 69.4% through the first two reported quarters, compared with a national average of 88.5%.

The nursing program remains a legitimate concern, but both the timeline and the response matter. A fair evaluation should distinguish between an inherited problem and the administration’s efforts to correct it.

The Governance Question

The central issue is not whether Alston should face scrutiny. It is whether the board is holding him accountable for results while also limiting his authority to manage the institution.

Alston says the board chair has sought to interview and approve senior leadership hires and that qualified candidates did not advance because of the chair’s opposition. If accurate, that suggests trustees may be moving beyond oversight into day-to-day administration.

The distinction is fundamental. A board should hold the president accountable for enrollment, student outcomes, finances and academic performance. The president, however, must have reasonable authority to select and manage the leadership team responsible for achieving those results.

Trustees cannot demand executive accountability while restricting executive authority without explaining how that arrangement is supposed to work.

Accountability Requires Evidence

The trustees have every right to examine Alston’s performance. Nursing outcomes, finances, graduation rates, accreditation and student achievement all warrant rigorous review.

But if the board intends to remove a president without cause less than two years after unanimously selecting him, it should identify the evidence supporting that decision. Enrollment is rising, major public and philanthropic investments are moving forward, and the nursing program is operating under a corrective plan that may be producing early improvement.

The question is whether Broward College is stronger, weaker or essentially unchanged under Alston’s leadership and whether the proposed termination reflects measurable performance concerns or an unresolved dispute over control.

Students, faculty, taxpayers and the broader Broward community deserve a clear answer.