Shade voices support for local scholarship program

Greg Larry, Cumberland Times-News, Md.
·2 min read

Feb. 26—CUMBERLAND — Jake Shade, president of the Allegany County Board of Commissioners, said the county will continue to support the local opportunity scholarship program.

Established in 2013 through an agreement with the Rocky Gap Casino Resort, the Allegany County Opportunity Scholarship Program is funded by 3.75% of the total revenue accrued annually from electronic gaming at the casino.

The disbursement of the funding is administered by the 15-member Local Development Council which is chaired by County Administrator Jason Bennett. The LDC approved the use of the funds for scholarships to qualifying students at Allegany College of Maryland and Frostburg State University.

"We are going to continue to be supportive of the opportunity scholarships," said Shade at Thursday's county meeting. "Obviously, local impact grants have been impacted by Rocky Gap being closed. The casino, for three months (in 2020), had zero revenue. Administrator (Jason) Bennett and everyone on that (LDC) please make sure that the opportunity scholarship remains a priority."

In January 2020, members of the Western Maryland Delegation said a review of the funding could result in the phasing out of the scholarships. However, education administrators were pleased when the LDC subsequently decided to not reduce the funding allocated to the scholarship program.

Ron Nowaczyk, FSU president; Cynthia Bambara, ACM president, along with Kim Leonard, ACM chairman of the Board of Trustees, spoke at the meeting on the impact of the scholarships.

"Your investment has greatly enhanced the economic opportunities for our citizens and our community by supporting education, job training and career preparation," said Bambara. "We are grateful for your vision to make this happen."

ACM statistics show that for every $1.00 spent on education the taxpayers see a $1.60 return in the form of higher tax receipts and avoided costs.

"You are investing in the future and what better legacy could you leave," said Kim Leonard, chairman of the ACM Board of Trustees.

Nowaczyk presented a breakdown of the scholarship totals since inception. In the seven years the scholarships have been available, FSU has awarded a total of $1.2 million to 1,313 students.

In other news from the meeting, Shade announced that the Allegany County Office Complex would reopen to the public beginning March 8. The county offices were closed to the public last year after the outbreak of the coronavirus.

Greg Larry is a reporter at the Cumberland Times-News. To reach him, call 304-639-4951, email glarry@times-news.com and follow him on Twitter @GregLarryCTN.