TAMPA - UF may have found another way to jump-start stalled construction projects after some members of the Board of Governors expressed support Thursday for giving universities greater flexibility in using state money.
However, not every board member supports the plan, which would allow Florida's 11 public universities to ask for the board's permission to use Public Education Capital Outlay, or PECO, funds to finance projects that have been delayed by cuts to the Courtelis state matching funds program.
As a compromise, the board, which met for almost seven hours at the University of South Florida, asked a UF-led group to develop a proposal that would allow this new procedure for only a year.
The board plans to vote on the proposal in November.
If the board passes the proposal, the state Legislature would need to approve it before the universities could use this new process. That decision will be final at the end of the session in May.
In November, the board also plans to vote on whether to remove the freeze on freshman enrollment, which has been in place since July 2007.
"I'm saying, 'Stick with the freshman cap,'" said Mark Rosenberg, outgoing chancellor of the board.
Rosenberg announced earlier this week that he would resign in February and return to the Florida International University faculty.
At Thursday's meeting, board chairwoman Sheila McDevitt said she would form a search committee for Rosenberg's replacement in the next few weeks.
McDevitt said she is open to finding an interim chancellor if the committee cannot complete its search by the time Rosenberg resigns. However, she added that there is no need to speculate until then.
"I don't want them to rush," she said. "I want them to do what is necessary to get the best option."
Machen Supports Proposal
UF President Bernie Machen said he supports redistributing PECO funds to Courtelis projects.
"We have a perfect storm right now where we have a huge backlog of Courtelis money that's sitting in the bank of our institutions and can't be accessed, yet at the same time, we have PECO funds," Machen said at the meeting.
Specifically, UF hopes to reallocate $20 million in PECO funds to match existing donations for a planned expansion of the Harn Museum of Art and construction of William R. Hough Hall, which will house the graduate business school, he said.
UF already has $10 million for each project, he said, but that money cannot be used because the Legislature has not matched the funds through the Courtelis program.
According to Alligator archives, UF asked the Legislature for $28 million in Courtelis funds and received only $160,000.
In an interview, Machen said he doesn't expect the Courtelis program to be fully restored for a year or two, which is why he wants to use PECO funds - a more stable money source based on utilities taxes - to match the existing $20 million from donors.
However, other board members, including Rosenberg, expressed concern that using PECO money in this way could suggest to the Legislature that universities don't need the Courtelis program anymore.
"If we're going to do this, I would like to see it done for only one year," Rosenberg said after the meeting.
Machen said he's confident the Legislature would continue funding both programs.
However, because the Legislature won't make the final decision until May, UF will continue with plans for a $20 million loan to fund the Harn Museum and Hough Hall projects, Machen wrote in an e-mail Thursday evening.
Machen announced the plans for a loan at the Board of Trustees meeting earlier this month.
Access Versus Quality
Board of Governors members found themselves again in disagreement Thursday when they discussed whether to continue the cap on freshman enrollment.
Those who support the enrollment freeze, such as Rosenberg, said the State University System's first priority is to ensure the quality of education that undergraduates receive.
"We can get students in, but we're having trouble getting them out," Rosenberg said, referring to how hard it is for undergraduates to take all the courses they need to graduate on time.
However, the board members who want to remove the enrollment cap said the system's first priority is to provide greater access to a college education.
Ava Parker, the board's vice chairwoman, made the original motion in July 2007 to implement the enrollment cap, but she said she now wants to repeal the measure to increase access for Florida students.
"I just think that, based on the current economic conditions, I'd rather have my students in a crowded class than not have one at all," Parker said.
The board asked Florida State University Provost Larry Abele and Florida Education Commissioner Eric Smith to lead a group that will recommend whether to continue the enrollment cap.
The group will present its findings for a vote at the November meeting.
Abele said on Thursday that he doesn't think access is a problem.
"They may not get into the university (in) Florida where they want," he said, "but there has always been a spot for students."
