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Committee approves JABSOM faculty-position bill with amendments to support class-size expansion
Summary
The committee passed SB 1217 (faculty positions for John A. Burns School of Medicine) with amendments that blank appropriation amounts and set an amended effective date; the medical school said additional faculty would help it expand class size to 80 in three years and to 90 in five years.
Senate Bill 1217, which appropriates funds for faculty positions at the John A. Burns School of Medicine in cardiovascular biology, tropical medicine, quantitative health/biostatistics and an environmental health and safety officer, was passed by the Senate Committee on Higher Education on Feb. 6 with committee amendments.
Sam Shoemaker, dean of JABSOM, testified in strong support and indicated these faculty positions support both research and a planned medical‑school class‑size expansion. Shoemaker told the committee the school "can comfortably expand to 80 in the next 3 years, and we believe that we can get to 90 in 5 years." The committee adopted WAM-style amendments that blanked appropriation amounts and adjusted the effective date language for further budget committee review.
During questioning Shoemaker said many of the school's existing vacant positions were under recruitment and that adding the requested positions would permit planned increases in enrollment subject to infrastructure and planning.
Ending: The committee passed the bill with amendments sending the measure forward with appropriation amounts to be finalized by budget committees after receipt of detailed budget materials.
