STATE COLLEGES SEEK FUNDS FOR LYNDON/JOHNSON MERGER - TIFFANY DANITZ PACHE, VT Digger

Vermont State Colleges have requested funds to help with the cost of uniting Lyndon and Johnson into the Northern Vermont University. The governor has asked lawmakers to set aside more than half a million dollars to get them through the first year of the transition. The money was included in a budget adjustment request. The VSC expects the transition to cost a total of $2 million — with $1 million of that going toward marketing and branding the new school. Chancellor Jeb Spaulding, who heads up the state college system, said Gov. Phil Scott asked if they needed the full amount upfront. They rewrote the budget spreading the costs over three years and asked for a total of $770,000 in the first year. The majority of those funds will go toward creating a common IT platform and other technological needs. https://vtdigger.org/2017/01/13/state-colleges-seek-funds-lyndonjohnson-merger/