President Biden signed the Fiscal Year 2022 omnibus federal appropriations package, which includes Congressionally Directed Spending, earlier this month. The Vermont State Colleges has three projects that were funded:
- Northern Vermont University at Lyndon will receive $250,000 to support student persistence and retention of first-generation, low-income students, and students with disabilities. This was a priority funding request of Congressman Welch.
- Community College of Vermont will receive $4.5 million to support educational opportunities for incarcerated Vermonters and for corrections officers. This was a priority funding request of Senator Sanders.
- The Vermont State Colleges system will receive $3.7 million to support system transformation, specifically in the areas of unified libraries, institutional research, and workforce development. This was a priority funding request of Senator Leahy.
We are incredibly grateful to the many individuals across the VSC who worked on these proposals and with our Congressional Delegation to see them to fruition. We appreciate the thoughtfulness, prioritization, and support provided by our delegation.
In Vermont, the Budget Adjustment Act for Fiscal Year 2022 was signed into law earlier this month. The bill contains an additional $7.35 million in scholarship funding for VSC students for the 2022-2023 academic year. Many VSC students will benefit from these funds and we are thrilled by this support from the state. Announcements about these scholarships will be made soon.
Finally, the Fiscal Year 2023 budget work is underway. The House has completed its work on the bill and has committed to a $10 million dollar increase to the annual base appropriation for the VSC. This is remarkable achievement for the VSC and puts us just $2.5 million shy of the $48 million annual appropriation recommended by the Select Committee on the Future of Public Higher Education in Vermont. Several VSC faculty, staff, students, community partners, and trustees provided public comment during the January public hearings on the budget, and I want to thank everyone who has shown up and voiced the importance of supporting the VSC. While this bill still needs to make it through the Senate and Governor, if it crosses the finish line, this will be the largest single-year base appropriation the VSC has ever seen. As the legislature and the Governor continue their work in the coming months, we will be continuing ours to ensure the VSC has the resources needed for success.