For Immediate Release — Monday, June 19th, 2017                                                                      
Contact:    
Lee Conner @ 919-260-6165 | President, GSF
Melissa Matton @ 919-264-6876 | Vice President, GSF

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Today, as the 55th session of the NC Governor’s School opens, the NC General Assembly’s joint House-Senate Conference Committee released a final budget proposal that preserves funding for the NC Governor’s School. The General Assembly’s decision to abandon the NC Senate’s initial proposal to defund Governor’s School comes after a statewide campaign organized by the NC Governor’s School Foundation to encourage legislators to save the state’s premier summer enrichment program.

“Reaffirming North Carolina’s commitment to funding Governor’s School represents a renewal of an investment that has returned incredible dividends to our State and some of its most gifted students,” said Lee Conner, President of the NC Governor’s School Foundation. “We have been amazed by the overwhelming number of voices that spoke out in support of Governor’s School in such a short amount of time. Thanks to the incredible support of alumni, family, and friends of Governor’s School, and the elected leaders who listened to their stories about how it changed their lives, Governor’s School will continue on as a cherished North Carolina tradition.”

The General Assembly’s final version of the state budget is a compromise between the original House and Senate budget proposals. The initial Senate budget included an amendment to eliminate funding for Governor’s School, while the House budget maintained Governor’s School’s state funding at its existing level ($800,000). (Students are also charged $500 to attend Governor’s School, which generates an additional $335,000 of funding.) The final version of the budget, released today and expected to be approved by both chambers later this week, follows the House version and allocates $800,000 to Governor’s School for the fiscal years 2017-18 and 2018-19.

To help commemorate this historic day, the NC Governor’s School Foundation has begun encouraging the Governor’s School community to show their appreciation to their elected leaders through letters to the editor of local newspapers, handwritten thank you notes, and social media. Supporters who want to make a monetary contribution in honor of this exciting news can visit the Foundation’s website (www.ncgsfoundation.org/donate) Contributions will help provide scholarships for low-income students who can’t afford the aforementioned $500 tuition and additional funding to enhance existing programming through things such as additional speakers and field trips.

“Preserving Governor’s School is exciting, not only for the generations of alumni who have benefitted from the first fifty-five sessions of Governor’s School, but for generations of future North Carolina leaders who will continue to be transformed by the program,” said NC Governor’s School Foundation Vice President, Melissa Matton. “The NC Governor’s School Foundation is proud to be part of preserving and protecting an institution that has had such an incredibly positive impact on the lives of over 35,000 North Carolinians.”

The North Carolina Governor’s School Foundation was incorporated in 1990 as a non-profit whose purpose is to support and preserve North Carolina's premier summer enrichment program.
Learn more about the Campaign to Save Governor’s School at www.savegovernorsschool.com or on Twitter by using #SaveGovSchool.

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