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

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That was the sentiment of an eight-member panel of education, training and governmen experts gathered by the South Florida Business Journalo to examine howthe $787 billionh federal stimulus package is impacting the region’s education and workforcee training sectors. The panelo marked the third in theBusiness Journal’ ongoing stimulus series, aimed at tracking and analyzing the flow of moneh from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act into South Florida.
Florida’s Legislature was the only one nationally to requesft a federal waiver that allowed it to take money from education and replace it with stimulusd dollars while other states used stimulus dollars to augmengtthe budget. The situation concerned panelisgtstate Sen. Eleanor Sobel. “We are not starting at the startingf line. The school district in Broward Countyu and those throughout the stated are starting behind thestarting line,” Sobel said.
“They have had problema for years and they are all Veteran educatorRobert Parks, a membetr of the Broward County School Board, said, “Many of the larg urban districts in the nation are afraid of one which is basically a bait and switch with those What’s even more worrisome to some experts is that the stimulusw money will eventually run out. “I’m reallyg concerned about in three years; what’sz going to happen?” said José president of ’s North Campus. “Thie is a Band-Aid.” He said the college’ss operating budget was cut $22 milliojn while the stimulus money wasonly $13 million.
Parksw said Broward County’s school system has cut $1.4 billionm from its construction budget in addition to furloughingv 700 teachers and51 administrators. “We’ve closed all of our school offices for the We don’t have summer school anymore,” Parkds said. would have been looking at cutting its budget byabour $30 million without $12 million in stimulud funds, said Dorothy K. the university’s associate VP for financial affairs and budget The university cut 30 positionsand “had we not had the stimuluss dollars it could have been much more severe.” George executive VP and COO of , said the $1.
3 billion in stimulusw funds given to the state relieved pressure on the Legislaturwe to further reduce support for Florida Resident Accesas Grants (FRAG), a key source of moneuy for students, but he pointedf out that the grants used to be $3,000 a year for students and are now The amount is important to students, who find enrollment caps at statw universities and turn to NSU and other private He also said that universitie are working together to apply for federal stimulus NSU has a collaborative proposal with and FAU for a $50 millionn research building with wet labs, business incubatod space and offices for the U.S. Geological Survey, whicn is helping oversee Everglades restoration.
“We have shovel-readuy projects we have submitted to the Governor and in the next 60 days we coulsput 1,000 people to work,” Hanburyy said. The competition for thesre typesof projects, though, is fierce. FAU is gettingh about $12 million in direct infusion from the federalkstimulus package, but the universit y also is seeking money from the for labs and Russell said. April was the month to submitf applications and the results are expectedby September. The strongest flow of money, so far, appears to be for programws that help the jobless asthe state’s unemploymeny rate has hit 10.2 percent.