BY PAUL MITCHELL
North Country This Week

POTSDAM - Governor Kathy Hochul’s commitment to higher education in New York State, as demonstrated in her executive budget, has received an enthusiastic round of applause from SUNY Potsdam.

Expanding Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) opportunities and increasing the number of full-time faculty at both SUNY and CUNY colleges are among Hochul’s budget initiatives.

"Governor Kathy Hochul’s Executive Budget would provide vital support to both SUNY and CUNY. We are especially excited about the proposals that would make college more affordable for our students and their families; proposals that include full funding of the Tuition Assistance Program, increased support for Excelsior Scholarship recipients, and the expansion of several opportunity programs,” stated Dr. Phil Neisser, officer-in-charge at SUNY Potsdam.

“Also exciting is the proposed support for the hiring of more faculty in full-time positions rather than part-time positions. Taken together, these proposals show the Governor’s confidence in our ability to deliver on our mission, which is to make the life changing experience of college available to all New Yorkers, from all walks of life,” Neisser continued.

“That confidence, moreover, is well-placed: we offer excellent academic programs, one-on-one tutoring and advising, competitive athletic teams, horizon-expanding non-credit activities, and excellent career services that connect students with successful and fulfilling careers,” he said.

The executive budget will invest more than $300 million in SUNY and CUNY operations each year over the next five years.

Hochul will also partner over the next year with SUNY, its individual institutions, and key stakeholders to develop a plan to implement her vision to transform SUNY into the top statewide system of public higher education in the country.

The budget also includes $150 million to expand TAP which currently is largely unavailable to part-time students. TAP will cover students enrolled in six or more credit hours at SUNY, CUNY and not-for-profit independent colleges. That investment, according to the budget package, will support to 75,000 additional New York students annually.

New York State’s higher education institutions educate nearly 1.2 million students, as reported for Fall 2020 enrollment.