New College of Florida asks state for almost half a billion dollars over next five years

New College of Florida President Richard Corcoran presented a business plan to Florida's university system Board of Governors on Wednesday that asks for almost half a billion dollars from the state over the next five years — a figure largely unseen by the small Sarasota liberal arts school.

The college said it needs a "minimum" of $400 million over that span to achieve the goal it set forward to the Florida Legislature of becoming "a world-class classical liberal arts educational institution," according to the plan. Corcoran's business plan for New College has previously been criticized for not being financially viable, according to business experts from the University of Florida.

Any funding would still need to be approved by the Florida Legislature and the governor. If realized, the funding would be far more than the small college has received in such a short period. The smallest school in terms of enrollment in the Florida university system has typically struggled to get even a fraction of that sum, given the many larger campuses with thousands of students and influential alumni in the Legislature and in university leadership positions.

New College’s campus facilities have largely been neglected by the state despite a strong academic reputation.