Baton Rouge, La. (AP) - When it was created last year, a $40 million incentive fund to pay for college programs that fill high-demand jobs in Louisiana was hailed as critical to both higher education and the state's workforce needs.
Now, with the state grappling with deep budget problems, Gov. Bobby Jindal is proposing to strip financing from the fund that only months ago he described as among his top priorities.
At Jindal's urging, lawmakers set up the Workforce and Innovation for a Stronger Economy - or WISE - Fund to link higher education dollars directly to projected workforce demand. College leaders praised the effort.
But with Louisiana facing a $1.6 billion budget gap next year, Jindal is considering higher education cuts of $300 million to $400 million. And WISE is on the chopping block.