After its predecessor, the Florida Board of Regents, was abolished by an act of the Florida Legislature that was signed into law by Governor Jeb Bush in July 2001, United States senator Bob Graham, who objected to the abolition of the statewide higher education body (Board of Regents), responded by leading a ballot initiative to restore it.

The Board of Governors was established in 2003 after the successful passage of the constitutional amendment heralded by Graham in 2002.

The campaign's focus is a strong connection between the system's universities and Florida's businesses, with an emphasis on collaboration in the areas of talent, research and partnerships.

[4][5] The Board of Governors unveiled a performance-based funding model in 2014 to incentivize universities to improve on key metrics, from graduation rates to post-graduation success.

The model has four guiding principles: Key components of the model: In 2010, the Florida Legislature created the Preeminent State Research University program and set 12 benchmarks to define these schools, which are awarded more state funding for research.