This address presents recent developments in the Florida movement toward entry and exit examinations in higher education. During the 1970s, parents, business leaders and state government leaders had expressed concern that students from Florida's schools, colleges, and universities were not demonstrating sufficient quality in job performance, graduation rates, standardized test scores and other indicators. As the state focused upon public school performance first, pressure was exerted to develop secondary school exit evaluations, the Student Assessment Test. The Florida Legislature pushed for statutory requirements on two fronts in higher education: (1) an assessment tool for the end of sophomore year, now known as College Level Academic Skills Test (CLAST); and (2) minimum standards for admission to teacher education programs at the junior year, with criteria developed for freshman admissions to the State University System. Laws have been set in place to protect institutions of higher education from loss of funding due to enrollment loss. Institutions have concentrated more energy and resources on core curriculum, strengthened advisement for entering students, and renewed existing focus on writing and math lab experiences. The biggest policy issue is the differential impact upon minority youth. For evaluative instruments to be used constructively, higher education faculty need exposure, instruction, and reinforcement in evaluation. (LMO)