FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – June 10, 2010

Contact: Sen. Tim Golden, 404-656-7580 or tim.golden@senate.ga.gov

Governor's signature finalizes VSU Health Sciences funding

By Sen. Tim Golden

ATLANTA - State Sen. Tim Golden (D-Valdosta) said Thursday that funding for the new Health Sciences Center at Valdosta State University in the fiscal year 2011 state budget cleared its final hurdle this week when Gov. Sonny Perdue signed the budget legislation into law.

"I am very pleased that the governor signed this budget, which includes a $2.8 million appropriation for designing the new Health Sciences Center at Valdosta State University," said Golden, secretary of the Senate Appropriations Committee. "This is great news for South Georgia, and we are fortunate because in this tight budget year the governor vetoed several line-item appropriations for the University System that were in the budget approved by the General Assembly."

The new center's location on North Campus will make it more convenient to South Georgia Medical Center for the potential of a closer working relationship with the hospital. The building will house a variety of health-related departments, including the College of Nursing, Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, Communication Disorders, Exercise Physiology and Sports Medicine. It will also share space with the Harley Langdale Jr. College of Business Administration.

The $17.9 billion budget for fiscal year 2011, which begins July 1, was overwhelmingly approved by the Senate and House of Representatives on the final day of the 2010 legislative session. Golden credited his colleagues in the Valdosta area delegation - Reps. Ellis Black and Amy Carter and former Rep. Jay Shaw - for their hard work in securing the VSU funding.

"This new building will provide growth space for programs to acquire more faculty members and to serve greater numbers of students," Golden said. "Officials with VSU and South Georgia Medical Center say this will be one of the best things to happen in Lowndes County and South Georgia in a long time. The north campus can become the allied health college for all of South Georgia and north Florida, bringing hundreds of students to VSU. This funding will result in good students, good jobs and good pay in our community."

Sen. Tim Golden represents District 8 (Brooks, Cook, Lowndes and Thomas counties) in the Georgia State Senate. Contact him at 121-A State Capitol, Atlanta, Ga. 30334; by phone at 404-656-7580 or by e-mail at tim.golden@senate.ga.gov.