UMES Pres. testifies in support of 2024 legislative priorities

MARYLAND –  University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) President Dr. Heidi Anderson testified in Annapolis Wednesday. As part of a committee hearing, Dr. Anderson laid out the university’s 2024 legislative goals.

Near the top of the list of needs for the school, is an upgrade to the Carver Hall science building, which was not included in the state budget.

“We have safety issues with the windows, with mold coming in with other things when it rains, as we know we’ve just had. And so we’re still trying to advocate on that behalf because to train the future scientists, they need to be working in current-day laboratories,” Dr. Anderson said.

Other important university line items in the state’s budget include funding for a vet program, and a full match of federal land grant funding for the HBCU and a new Agricultural Resource Center.

Delegate Sheree Sample Hughes says the university has a history of being underfunded. She says she will be pushing to make sure they get those dollars, which she says should have been invested years ago by the University System of Maryland.

“Playing catch up is hard to do,” said Delegate Sample-Hughes. “But if we have a firm plan, and we have advocates, and the voice of the president and the alumni and all of those persons who want best for the university, then I think this is accomplishable.”

Dr. Anderson says more than 60% of UMES students are in the STEM field, and they need the facilities to help support the increasing student population, and enrollment in those programs.