Dear Ragin’ Cajuns,
Happy new year and welcome to the spring semester! I hope your holiday was joyful and relaxing.
Before the winter break, I joined the La Louisiane podcast to reflect on the past year and to discuss what’s ahead for the University in 2025. [You can listen to the full conversation here.]
Dear students and faculty and staff members,
Welcome to the Spring 2024 semester! I hope your winter break was restful and enjoyable.
Earlier this month, the University continued the observance of its 125th birthday with one of its oldest – and rarest – traditions. On the first day of the year, members of the University and local communities gathered on the Health Sciences Campus and planted five live oak saplings.
Dear students and faculty and staff members,
Thanksgiving is next week and, like many of you, I have been reflecting on the people and things for which I am most grateful.
Among many blessings this year, I am grateful for my family. I am grateful to have a job I love at a place that’s given so much to its community for so long. And I am grateful to be part of a campus that cares.
Dear students, faculty and staff members,
This year, the University is celebrating the 125th anniversary of its founding. And while the past century and a quarter have been monumental, I believe strongly that our best days are yet to come.
Today, we’re launching our 2023-2028 Strategic Plan – “Vision. Louisiana.” – that provides a blueprint for even greater success.
Dear students, faculty and staff members,
Welcome to the fall semester and the new academic year!
The fall semester is a special time in the life of any university. It’s when new students find their footing as they begin their academic journeys, when returning students rejoin old friends and make new ones, and when clubs and organizations and athletic teams again enjoy the camaraderie of events and competition.
Dear students and faculty and staff members,
Friday is the anniversary of one of the most consequential moments in the history of our region and the state of Louisiana.
On July 14, 1898 – 125 years ago – Gov. Murphy J. Foster signed a bill, authored by state Sen. Robert Martin, to establish Southwestern Louisiana Industrial Institute, now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.
The governor’s pen set in motion a century and a quarter of progress and growth – both for the institution itself and for the region and state it’s served since its creation.
Dear students, faculty and staff members,
More than a century ago, in the years following the First World War, wounded veterans of the conflict participated in educational training courses on our campus. As part of their recovery, the students collected acorns from live oak trees around the property and planted them in other spots on campus. Many of those oaks are still standing, and we continue to enjoy their shade and beauty today.
Dear faculty and staff members,
Wednesday marks the one-year anniversary of our designation as an R1 University by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Achieving this top-tier status – shared by just 3% of the nation’s colleges and universities – affirmed the promise we’ve made as an institution to seek excellence in research, teaching and service.
Each of you embodies this commitment and, today, I am as grateful for you and as proud of our shared success as I was a year ago.
Dear students, faculty and staff members,
Have you seen the new Louisiana.edu?
The University’s redesigned flagship website launched today. Along with a fresh and inviting look, the site has several new features that will improve the user experience for employees and current and prospective students.
Dear members of the University community,
As you may know, one of our students was injured last week during an off-campus shooting across the street from Huger Hall. He is recovering at home with family members, and they have given us permission to report that he is doing well and is looking forward to returning to campus soon. We wish him a speedy recovery.
