[StBernard] LRA shifts stance on private schools Infrastructure aid is sought for them

[Westley Annis]

BATON ROUGE -- In what would be a policy reversal, Louisiana's storm-damaged
private schools and colleges are slated to receive $40 million to cover the
local matches for FEMA assistance. 
 
Under a Louisiana Recovery Authority plan presented Wednesday to lawmakers,
the cash would be the private institutions' first cut of $2.3 billion in
federal money that the LRA has dedicated to infrastructure repairs. But for
Catholic schools, it also comes on the heels of millions of dollars in
private money that has been steered to south Louisiana from around the world
since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. 
 
The LRA originally did not include the private, not-for-profit schools in
its infrastructure budget. The change followed pressure from advocates,
particularly the Archdiocese of New Orleans, which now is teaching 44,000
students in 88 schools, down from 50,000 students in 107 schools before
Katrina. 
 
Getting the ball rolling 
 
Led by Director Andy Kopplin, LRA officials told the Legislature's Joint
Committee on Education that the private school share is coming from $445
million of infrastructure money not previously allocated. It will not affect
the $775 million already dedicated to Federal Emergency Management Agency
matches for local and state governments and $200 million in additional
grants for K-12 school repairs not covered by the federal government. 
 
The LRA's 33-member board of directors will consider the matter today, with
subsequent approval required by the Legislature's Joint Committee on the
Budget, which meets next week. A final endorsement must come from the U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban Development, which to date has not vetoed
any of Louisiana's proposals for spending storm-related federal money. 
 
The Rev. William Maestri, superintendent for archdiocesan schools, praised
the plan Wednesday, telling lawmakers that insurance payments fell $24
million short of school repair costs. Private donations have reduced the
shortfall to $7.8 million, he said. 

 
Of the total private school allocation, $10 million would be earmarked for
K-12 schools, with $30 million reserved for colleges and universities.
Distributions will be decided based on applications from campuses and school
systems itemizing how much FEMA assistance they have qualified for. 
 
Strings attached 
 
FEMA public assistance grants typically cover most uninsured storm-related
repairs, provided the recipient provides a 10 percent match. Pat Forbes, who
leads the LRA's infrastructure rebuilding effort, said schools and colleges
can apply for an amount up to that 10 percent figure. 
 
"This will not be a competitive process," Kopplin said. 
 
Grants would be prorated if the applicant pool combines to seek more than
$40 million, Forbes said. If less than $40 million is requested, any unused
money would return to the pot of undedicated grants. "We have millions of
dollars in (other) unfunded projects" from public entities, Forbes said. 
 
Federal rules bar use of the money for religious purposes. A chapel, for
instance, could not be rebuilt with the money. But Forbes said facilities
with split usage can be financed on a proportional basis. For example, a
classroom building used for Bible courses one-quarter of the time and
nonreligious courses the remainder of the time could seek up to 75 percent
of unreimbursed repair costs. 
 
Maestri has said previously that the New Orleans Archdiocese would ask for
$7.8 million to close its funding gap. 
 
Embracing newcomers 
 
The archdiocese has unsuccessfully sought state assistance to help with
1,500 former public school students still attending archdiocesan schools
without paying tuition. Under federal regulations, the infrastructure grant
money can not be used for tuition assistance or to cover operating costs
arising out of the increased enrollment. But Maestri said any cash flow
would help a system with strained resources, and he promised that the
archdiocese, no matter its difficulties, will never turn away the students
it inherited. 
 
"They have not been removed from school and they will never be removed,"
Maestri said. "And that is for one reason: The road to recovery runs through
schools. . . . We took them in because we love them and we believe they
should be educated." 
 
Tulane University spokesman Mike Strecker said Wednesday that the Uptown
campus has not finalized how much money it will ask for. Efforts to obtain
figures from Xavier University and Loyola University were not successful.