On Monday, April 28, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal stood on the steps of Georgia Southern University’s Marvin Pittman Administration Building and signed a bill funding a $9.5 million military science building for the university.

This bill was signed into law as House Bill 744 and will be included in the 2015 Fiscal Year budget.

“For you ladies and gentlemen who stand in the corps of cadets, we hope that you find those funds used very appropriately,” Gov. Deal said in a press release.

The current Military Science building on campus is located in between the Carroll and Information Technology buildings on the side closest to the parking lot.

The new building is to be approximately 30,000 square feet and will directly replace the now-10,000 square feet temporary building the department has been using for the past decade.

“We are overwhelmed with the tremendous amount of support our legislators and Gov. Deal have shown Georgia Southern over the past several years, and we are so thankful they recognize the importance of our military science program,” University President Brooks Keel, Ph.D., said.

In addition to Georgia Southern’s current spike in funding, the state seeks to provide $500 million increase in funding for various Georgia K-12 schools as well in the upcoming years. The state hopes to cut out the immense amount of furlough days teachers have fallen victim to in recent years as well as provide the Georgia school systems with the financial backing that they require.