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Louisiana college sports venues could soon be forced to accept cash
Cashless concession stands at college football stadiums could soon be a thing of the past under a bill advancing in the Louisiana Legislature. The House Education Committee Tuesday advanced House Bill 5 by Rep. Charles Owen, R-Rosepine, which would require public colleges and universities to accept cash at events, including sporting events. The bill passed […]
Legislature considers giving colleges more financial independence
Louisiana’s colleges and universities could soon have more control over tuition, fees and maintenance projects under bills the Legislature will consider. The proposals seek to give higher education institutions more financial independence from the Legislature, whose members currently have final say on what they can charge students to attend and how they spend campus construction […]
GOP Louisiana lawmakers target diversity, equity, inclusion on university campuses
With supermajorities in both legislative chambers and the backing of a new governor, some conservatives in the Louisiana Legislature are taking aim at colleges and universities with legislation that could eliminate their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs. University campuses across the nation have become battlefields for high-profile political culture wars as legislators have put […]
Landry wants scholarships stripped from athletes absent during national anthem
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry has called on the state’s higher education boards to adopt policies that would strip scholarships from athletes not present for the national anthem at the start of a game. “It is time that all college boards, including Regent [sic], put a policy in place that student athletes be present for the […]
Ultra-conservative lawmakers target Louisiana libraries as culture war rages on
With veto-proof majorities in both legislative chambers and the backing of a new governor, some Louisiana Republicans are taking aim at public libraries with legislation that could criminalize librarians. Four conservative lawmakers have filed five bills that play off the library culture war currently raging across the nation, including in Louisiana. Upset with what they […]
Formerly incarcerated people in Louisiana could soon access higher education funds
A Louisiana House committee advanced a bill Wednesday to expand who can access a financial aid program for high-demand workforce education programs. The House Education Committee unanimously approved House Bill 728 by Rep. Paula Davis, R-Baton Rouge. It would allow people convicted of violent crimes to access the M.J. Foster Promise Program, a financial aid […]
LSU adopts paid parental leave policy, months after promised
LSU announced Friday it will offer paid parental leave to its employees, making good on a promise administrators made months ago. The policy will allow up to six weeks of leave for any faculty or staff member after becoming a parent, including for foster and adoptive families. The new standards mirror those the state Civil […]
Southern University names John Pierre chancellor
The Southern University Board of Supervisors has named John Pierre as chancellor of the system’s flagship campus in Baton Rouge. Pierre, currently chancellor of the Southern University Law Center, will be the first chancellor of the campus since 2015, when the position was merged with the system president due to budget constraints. Dennis Shields, Southern’s […]
LSU to drill carbon capture research well on campus
LSU’s College of Engineering will soon drill a new well on campus to research carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS). The well will be added to LSU’s Petroleum Engineering Research, Training and Testing Lab, a hands-on research facility near Alex Box Stadium made up of two industrial-scale research wells, additional storage wells and surface facilities. […]
Louisiana progressives want to boot embattled Democratic Party chair
When Louisiana Democrats go to the polls Saturday to vote for their party’s presidential nominee, they could also ultimately decide the fate of the state party’s leader. Disillusioned with the party’s ability to organize after being badly beaten in last year’s statewide elections, progressive Democrats hope to oust Katie Bernhardt as chair and install what […]
Louisiana House rejects anti-vax bill after business lobby opposes it
Louisiana lawmakers rejected a bill to open businesses and schools who require certain vaccines to civil liability after a powerful lobbying group came out against it. House Bill 87, by Rep. Mike Echols, R-Monroe, would have allowed employees and students required to receive COVID-19 or other vaccines with emergency use authorization to sue if they […]
Louisiana House committee OKs bill to expand liability for COVID-19 vaccine mandates
The Louisiana House Committee on Civil Law and Procedure advanced a bill Monday that would allow businesses and public entities that require the COVID-19 vaccine to be sued. House Bill 87, by Rep. Mike Echols, R-Monroe, would allow those required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in order to attend school or work to sue if […]