The biz: Tought times hit college classrooms, St Petersburg Times

October 13, 2008

Amid the stock market rout and federal bailouts, it's not just geopolitical economics on the minds of two deans of area business schools. In interviews, both Tampa's USF College of Business dean Robert Forsythe and University of Tampa Sykes School of Business dean Frank Ghannadian both echoed two impacts here of the current financial turmoil. First, more students are struggling to pay their tuition and living expenses because of tighter credit conditions and — more painfully — the increasing likelihood that a mom or dad has lost their job recently. Forsythe mentions USF's recent "Don't Stop, Don't Drop" campaign to encourage students to talk to the university about financial pressures.

For the rest of this story, click here.

Florida economists push back recovery estimate, Forbes

October 10, 2008


The country's financial meltdown might stall Florida's economic recovery a year longer than state economists previously thought.

In July, state economists pushed their forecast for recovery back six months to the end of 2009, but on Friday said it could take even longer - possibly until the end of 2010.

To read the rest of this story, click here.

For a related story, click here.

USF now on hunt for more faculty, Tampa Tribune

By Adam Emerson
October 10, 2008

TAMPA - Students in crowded classrooms at the University of South Florida may see relief next fall now that the university has advertised dozens of jobs for new faculty members.

USF took out a full-page ad this week in the Chronicle of Higher Education seeking applicants for about 75 positions. There also are another 30 unadvertised vacant jobs in the medical school, university Provost Ralph Wilcox said Friday.

For the rest of this story, click here.

Amendment 8 holds dangers for community colleges, Herald Tribune

October 9, 2008


While attention has been given to other high-profile amendments on November's ballot, a lesser known amendment has the potential to raise local taxes and cause unintended consequences for community colleges -- Florida's point of entry to higher education for more than 800,000 students every year.

Amendment 8, known as the local option sales tax, would allow counties to increase their sales tax to supplement community college funding. (Taxpayers would have to vote for the tax.) The amendment was placed on the ballot by the Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission with what I believe were good intentions to promote the valuable contributions of community colleges. However, the commission failed to recognize the amendment's potential drawbacks for the community college system.

For the rest of this op ed, click here.

For related stories, click here, here, here, here, and here.

Bridght Futures prospects look dim, Gainesville Sun

By Nathan Crabbe
October 8, 2008


The Bright Futures scholarship program should be phased out over the course of a decade, state Sen. Steve Oelrich said Wednesday to a University of Florida community group.

Most UF students use the program despite a lack of financial need, said Oelrich, a Cross Creek Republican who chairs the Senate Higher Education committee.

Nearly 95 percent of freshmen use the scholarships to pay for tuition, while the most recent statistics show the median income of all UF students' families is around $100,000.

For the rest of this story, click here.

For other stories on this topic, click here & here, for a related editorial, click here.

Dropout Rate: Education for Florida's Economy, The Ledger (Lakeland)

October 8, 2008

Gov. Charlie Crist is desperate to show that Florida is on the road to economic recovery. The other day he summoned reporters to his office to brag about a $541 million federal grant and a $571 million bond issue that will help develop affordable housing.

If Crist wants to really do something positive for economic development in Florida, here's an idea.

Do something to reduce this state's unacceptably high dropout rate. It's not only wasting young lives, but it's hurting our economy.

Last wear a report arrived from the Alliance for Excellent Education, a Washington-basedadvocacy group, urging elected officials to make high school reform a major issue this campaign year.

For the rest of this editorial, click here.

Florida's economy is in transition, needs bold leadership, Orlando Sentinel

By Mark Wilson
October 8, 2008

We at the Florida Chamber of Commerce are often asked: "Is Florida over?"

We say, no way.

But Florida is never going back to being a low-cost state. Florida is changing -- on that we can agree. We must acknowledge that Florida's economy is in transition.As Florida's economy changes, our population growth is still on pace to add 10 million residents by the year 2030. One thing is certain: Florida needs to plan better and grow smarter during the influx of the next 10 million people than we did when the last 10 million were arriving.

For the rest of this opinion piece, click here.