TU: Friday Lead Letter: FSCJ’s Budget Should Not Be Cut

Link to article: http://jacksonville.com/opinion/letters-readers/2017-05-25/friday-lead-letter-fscj-s-budget-should-not-be-cut

Times-Union

Florida State College at Jacksonville is at a critical stage with the state budget that has been presented to Gov. Rick Scott by our legislators.

This budget reduces the amount of funding our college will receive by approximately $3 million, at the expense of the 50,000 students we educate annually.

One of the attributes of FSCJ that we are most proud of is our ability to provide an affordable, high value education to students that might not have believed higher education was an option.

We have not increased our tuition in five years, and we stand behind that because our students need the value that FSCJ provides.

Effects of this level of cuts mean fewer courses will be available and less flexibility in scheduling courses with higher student-to-faculty ratios inside the classroom will be likely.

It will also mean less advising, tutoring and student development services that help students graduate on time and enter the workforce.

Developing a prepared workforce that coincides with the specific and practical needs of the community we live in has a meaningful impact on not only the livelihood of our students but also our own families and the community as a whole.

The budget cuts will make it extremely difficult to fulfill that re- sponsibility and will come at the expense of our students and our community.

We ask our legislators to make FSCJ’s budget whole again, so that we can continue to provide valuable services to our students, employers, business partners and meet the skilled workforce needs of our vibrant community.

Randle DeFoor, chair

Jimmie Mayo, vice chair, Nassau County

Thomas McGehee Jr., vice chair, Duval County

Karen Bowling

Candace Holloway