By Kevin Derby
Last week, U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., who sits on the U.S. House Appropriations Committee, announced more than $700 million in federal funds for college and universities in South Florida.
The funds come from the “American Rescue Plan,” the $1.9 trillion stimulus package that Congress passed on a party-line vote and which President Joe Biden signed into law back in March. Congress included $36 billion in the stimulus package for almost 3,500 higher ed institutions.
“At least half of the funding each institution receives will be distributed in the form of emergency cash assistance grants to students who are facing hunger, homelessness, and other hardship,” Wasserman Schultz’s office noted.
“This deadly pandemic hit our students and colleges particularly hard, and both are absolutely vital to our community and economy,” said Wasserman Schultz. “The American Rescue Plan invests more than $700 million dollars in emergency funds into South Florida higher education classrooms and students to ensure a continuity of education that benefits our entire region. I’m proud that we were able to deliver this lifeline to thousands of South Florida scholars across numerous colleges and universities and I applaud the Biden-Harris administration for allocating it so quickly.”
Wasserman Schultz showcased the following schools in South Florida which will be getting federal funds:
Broward College: $102,138,704
Florida Atlantic University: $69,493,600
Florida International University: $120,768,382
Miami Dade College: $175,596,703
Nova Southeastern University: $21,276,551
Palm Beach State College: $71,199,106
Saint Thomas University: $4,682,531
Barry University: $13,842,233
Florida Memorial University: $5,815,082
Lynn University: $5,241,671
University of Miami: $21,291,392
