$8.5 million goes to Perry’s scholarships goal

There’s a new turn on a campaign promise from Gov. Rick Perry about college scholarships, which we rated as a Compromise in a March 5, 2012 update.

TG Corp. announced April 4, 2012, that its board approved an $8.5 million donation to a fund offering scholarships in fields related to Texas’ Science, Technology, Engineering and Math program. The gift is part of $25 million that TG, the Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation, pledged to the fund in July 2011.

Spokeswoman Kristina Tirloni told us via email that $8.5 million is the amount needed to start the program determined by the state Higher Education Coordinating Board. TG still plans to give the full $25 million, she said, although the board expanded the timeframe from two years to three years.

PolitiFact Texas wrote that Perry called for the creation of such a fund in 2009, with a goal of $100 million. He revised that to $50 million in light of the state’s revenue troubles, a spokeswoman told us. Even so, the 2011 Legislature created the fund without appropriating state money for it.

For more campaign-promise checks, visit our Perry-O-Meter.