UF is reaping the benefits of Florida’s largest budget in history, which pays for new study spaces, renovations and the university’s preeminence campaign.
Gov. Rick Scott signed Florida’s 2014-2015 budget on Monday, allocating almost $100 million to UF.
“There were a few pretty tiny vetoes, but for the most part we received a lot of what we had requested,” said UF spokeswoman Janine Sikes.
This includes $10 million to renovate Newell Hall into a study space for students, a longtime project for UF Student Government.
“After a long haul of advocating for funding for direly needed study space on campus, Scott and the Florida Legislature have finally signed off on this project,” said Student Body President Cory Yeffet during Tuesday night’s Student Senate.
“It’s truly amazing to see what effect we can have on the state level,” he said.
The project, which would turn Newell Hall into a bookless, 24/7 study hall, would cost about $13 million, according to Alligator archives.
“There are talks about pairing that money with private funding,” Yeffet said, but no plans are set in stone.
Another key project is the renovation of the chemistry building. This year, $20 million was allocated to the project, on top of the $22 million the Legislation has approved in the past.
“This completes the total building cost,” Sikes said.
Other wins for the university include an extra $5 million per year in preeminence funding. As the state’s designated preeminence university, UF already receives $15 million annually.
“Increased funding for our plan to become one of the nation’s top 10 public research universities will support the pursuit of scientific breakthroughs and the economic development that comes with innovation,” UF President Bernie Machen said in a statement.
Machen also noted that the $16 to $18 million going to UF’s Health Cancer Center “will reinforce our efforts to save lives in a state with 117,000 newly diagnosed cases each year.”
With this funding, UF’s cancer center will be able to pursue National Cancer Institute designation, a measure encouraged by Scott.
“We are extremely grateful to the Legislature and Scott for the level of funding allocated to the University of Florida for the upcoming fiscal year,” Machen said.
“We are pleased that this budget gives us the resources to do more for our students and the state of Florida.”
[A version of this story ran on page 1 - 4 on 6/5/2014 under the headline "UF strikes it big from Florida’s budget"]
