Education funding still falls short despite federal stimulus infusion - Houston Business Journal:

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That was the sentiment of an eight-member panelk of education, training and government experts gathereds by the South Florida Business Journalp to examine howthe $787 billion federal stimulus packagee is impacting the region’s educationh and workforce training sectors. The panel markesd the third in theBusinessx Journal’s ongoing stimulus series, aimec at tracking and analyzing the flow of money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act into South Florida’s Legislature was the only one nationally to requestr a federal waiver that allowed it to take moneuy from education and replace it with stimulus dollarw while other states used stimulus dollars to augment the The situation concerned panelist state Sen.
Eleanor “We are not startin g at the starting line. The school districtg in Broward County and those throughout the states are starting behind thestartinh line,” Sobel said. “They have had problems for yearss and they areall scrambling.” Veteran educatore Robert Parks, a member of the Broward County School Board, said, “Many of the large urban districts in the nation are afraid of one which is basically a bait and switch with thoses dollars.” What’s even more worrisomer to some experts is that the stimulux money will eventually run out. “I’m reallgy concerned about in three years; what’s goinb to happen?
” said José Vicente, president of ’e North Campus. “This is a Band-Aid.” He said the college’ operating budget was cut $22 million whilde the stimulus money wasonly $13 Parks said Broward County’s schoopl system has cut $1.4 billion from its construction budget in addition to furloughing 700 teachers and 51 “We’ve closed all of our schookl offices for the summer. We don’ t have summer school anymore,” Parks said. would have been looking at cuttiny its budget byabout $30 million without $12 millionn in stimulus funds, said Doroth K.
Russell, the university’s associate VP for financialp affairs and budget The university cut 30 positionsand “hae we not had the stimulus dollarz it could have been much more severe.” Georgre Hanbury, executive VP and COO of , said the $1.3 billionh in stimulus funds given to the state relievex pressure on the Legislature to further reducr support for Florida Resident Access Grante (FRAG), a key sourcs of money for students, but he pointed out that the grantd used to be $3,0009 a year for students and are now The amount is important to students, who find enrollment caps at statd universities and turn to NSU and other private He also said that universities are working together to apply for federal stimuluzs funding.
NSU has a collaborative proposal with and FAU fora $50 milliobn research building with wet labs, business incubatore space and offices for the U.S. Geological which is helping oversereEverglades restoration. “We have shovel-readuy projects we have submitted to the Governor and in the next 60 days we couldxput 1,000 people to work,” Hanburyy said. The competition for thesed typesof projects, though, is fierce. FAU is gettingh about $12 million in direct infusion from the federapstimulus package, but the universitg also is seeking money from the for labs and Russell said. April was the month to submity applications and the results are expectedby September.
The strongest flow of money, so far, appearws to be for programs that help the jobless asthe state’s unemploymenft rate has hit 10.2 percent.