Del. higher education institutions get $107 million for pandemic-related projects

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Gov. John Carney and Lt. Gov.  Bethany Hall-Long announced $107 million for Delaware colleges and universities to support pandemic-related projects funded by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).

The funding announced on Tuesday will provide:

  • $41 million for the University of Delaware.
  • $33 million for Delaware State University.
  • $33 million for Delaware Technical Community College.

The act  Rescue Act was championed in Congress by Delaware’s congressional delegation members — Sens. Tom Carper and Chris Coons, and Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester — and signed into law by President Joe Biden on March 11.

“Delaware’s institutions of higher education are helping us rebuild from the pandemic and will put this funding to good use,” said  Carney. “This support will help train new nurses, public health professionals, and child care workers, facilitate a state-of-the-art laboratory at the University of Delaware, establish a center to study health disparities at Delaware State University, and strengthen child care and health care programs at Delaware Technical Community College. Thank you to members of our federal delegation and President Joe Biden for fighting for these important resources.”

The University of Delaware will use $41 million in ARPA funding to help build a facility for education and research in understanding, treating, and preventing diseases in Newark.

It will train the next generation of Delaware public health professionals, including mental health professionals, and help meet demand in the state’s health care workforce. The facility is expected to be completed in mid-2024, at a projected cost of approximately $165 million, with the balance of funds to be provided from university sources.

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Graduates from the university’s clinical programs currently work at ChristianaCare, Nemours, the Wilmington VA Medical Center, and the Delaware Department of Services for Children, Youth, and Their Families, and others.

Delaware State University plans to use ARPA support to fund a series of projects, including:

  • $7 million to establish a comprehensive clinical facility to combat health disparities, housed at the DSU Center for Health Disparities’ Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory in Dover.
  • $10.6 million for the new DSU Early Care and Innovation Center, first announced in November.
  • $7.4 million for technology upgrades in classrooms.
  • $2.5 million to improve existing facilities to meet pandemic operational needs.

Delaware Technical Community College also will fund a series of projects with ARPA support, including:

  • $15 million for the Allied Health Center of Excellence, which will be located at the George Campus in Wilmington. Allied Health graduates from DTCC, including respiratory therapists and emergency medical technicians, work in Delaware hospitals, primary care, and other health care facilities. DTCC will expand access to its paramedic instructional program and surgical technology program at the site to meet the growing workforce demand.
  • $6.5 million to build a childcare center on the Stanton campus to serve infants to school-age children. The center will expand child care education in New Castle County and provide area workers with additional child care options.
  • $1.5 million for a culinary workforce development grant

Delaware State University and DTCC also will use the ARPA funding to make air-conditioning and heating system upgrades.

 

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