Education funding still falls short despite federal stimulus infusion - The Business Journal of Milwaukee:

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That was the sentiment of an eight-membet panel of education, training and government experts gathered by the South Florida Business Journal to examine howthe $787 billiomn federal stimulus package is impacting the region’s education and workforce training sectors. The panep marked the third in theBusiness Journal’sa ongoing stimulus series, aimed at tracking and analyzing the flow of monehy from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act into South Florida’s Legislature was the only one nationallh to request a federal waivee that allowed it to take money from education and replace it with stimulus dollars while other statee used stimulus dollars to augment the budget.
The situatiohn concerned paneliststate Sen. Eleanor “We are not starting at the startintg line. The school district in Broward Countyu and those throughout the state are starting behind thestarting line,” Sobel said. “They have had problems for years and they are all Veteran educatorRobert Parks, a memberf of the Broward County School said, “Many of the large urban districts in the nation are afraid of one thing, whicuh is basically a bait and switch with those dollars.” What’x even more worrisome to some expertz is that the stimulus money will eventually run out. “I’k really concerned about in three years; what’x going to happen?
” said José Vicente, president of ’z North Campus. “This is a He said the college’s operating budget was cut $22 million while the stimulus money wasonly $13 Parks said Broward County’s school system has cut $1.4 billion from its construction budget in additiojn to furloughing 700 teachers and 51 “We’ve closed all of our school offices for the We don’t have summer school Parks said. would have been looking at cutting its budgef byabout $30 million withouf $12 million in stimulus funds, said Dorothy K. the university’s associate VP for financial affairs andbudgeg director.
The university cut 30 positionssand “had we not had the stimulus dollars it coulxd have been much more severe.” George Hanbury, executive VP and COO of , said the $1.3 billioh in stimulus funds given to the statde relieved pressure on the Legislature to furthefr reduce support for Florida Resident Access Grants (FRAG), a key sourcw of money for students, but he pointed out that the grantsa used to be $3,000 a year for studentz and are now $2,529. The amount is important to who find enrollment caps at state universities and turn to NSU and otherprivate institutions. He also said that universities are working togethefr to apply for federalstimulus funding.
NSU has a collaborative proposalk with and FAU fora $50 milliobn research building with wet business incubator space and offices for the U.S. Geological which is helping overseeEvergladess restoration. “We have shovel-ready projects we have submitted to the Governod and in the next 60 days we couldput 1,00o people to work,” Hanbury said. The competitionb for these typesof though, is fierce. FAU is getting aboutr $12 million in direct infusion from the federalstimulus package, but the universithy also is seeking money from the for labs and Russell said.
April was the month to submit application and the results are expected by The strongest flowof money, so far, appears to be for programs that help the joblesas as the state’s unemployment rate has hit 10.2