LA HIGHER EDUCATION – While colleges and universities are working towards reopening in the fall, there is considerable concern over what the after-effect of the coronavirus pandemic will have on higher education and in particular enrollment and funding. This past Wednesday, higher education officials met in Baton Rouge to discuss money with Louisiana House Appropriations committee members. LSU Interim President Tom Galligan explained what impact the pandemic had on the university’s accounting ledger.
"If you add that up, that's 34.5 million in losses and costs between the middle of March and the end of April," said Galligan.
While the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as CARES Act - has given the state’s four public university systems $113 million to help offset the Coronavirus losses, the proposed state federal fund shows higher ed getting less money than this past fiscal year which ends June 30th. And other concerns are residual costs from the Coronavirus pandemic as Jim Henderson, President of the University of Louisiana system explained to the appropriations committee.
"It doesn't reflect the Covid-19 expenses that have ocurred since that time," Henderson said. "And what we know are the Covid-19 that will happen going forward."
When Louisiana’s colleges and universities reopen in the fall they will be facing a different reality – classrooms will be reconfigured for more space between students and larger classes will likely be held online. And there’s the question of enrollment , will it increase or decline? As for higher ed funding -- The Louisiana legislature has the rest of June to figure that out.