University Executive Budget Cuts

[CajunRed]

Good question.

1) Grant money multiplies in the community, it brings in more grad students, and engages more local services.

2) Better universities bring in more and better students: that is an enormous windfall right there. Every student who lives here 4 years contributes about $80K to the local economy.

3) One of the strongest determinants of where college graduates locate, is where they went to school. Big multiplier.

Remember, 50 years ago Lafayette was smaller than Lake Charles. 100 years ago, it was smaller than New Iberia, Opelousas, Crowley, St. Martinville, and Abbeville.

UL isn't the only reason Lafayette grew, but it is biggest reason. Without a college here, we don't get the oil patch, the medical sector, the retail and entertainment sector, and the tourism.

It all started with SLII.

Just because there isn't a clear drive train between higher education and prosperity, doesn't mean the two aren't strongly linked.

Great post... as usual.

[CajunNation]

Good question.

1) Grant money multiplies in the community, it brings in more grad students, and engages more local services.

2) Better universities bring in more and better students: that is an enormous windfall right there. Every student who lives here 4 years contributes about $80K to the local economy.

3) One of the strongest determinants of where college graduates locate, is where they went to school. Big multiplier.

Remember, 50 years ago Lafayette was smaller than Lake Charles. 100 years ago, it was smaller than New Iberia, Opelousas, Crowley, St. Martinville, and Abbeville.

UL isn't the only reason Lafayette grew, but it is biggest reason. Without a college here, we don't get the oil patch, the medical sector, the retail and entertainment sector, and the tourism.

It all started with SLII.

Just because there isn't a clear drive train between higher education and prosperity, doesn't mean the two aren't strongly linked.

The only thing you posted directly tied to R1 status is grant money. Everything else can and has been done by many other universities that are not R1.

Would we even have a chance to be R1 without the primate center?


Then, there's this......

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/04/24/gen-...to-trades.html

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/pol...ees-rcna243672

https://fortune.com/2025/11/05/palan...ts-fellowship/


The world is changing Doc. I am learning coding in my free time. Companies are hiring kids right out of high school. We either need to rethink the way college is structured, or it will quickly fade away.

[CajunVic]

Great post... as usual.

thanks but wait for those who fail to accept reality to come WHEW

[ULGrad@HOU]

Growth in Lafayette in the 70's was completely centered on the oil industry. It's speculation, at this point to think R1 will impact the community or the University. So far, there has been none. Yes, it may take time, and it can potentially have a positive effect. Right now, this University needs to expand it's enrollment, and part of this solution is to have a brand that a mass amount of students (not just the smart ones) want to go to. This is done through a strong athletic program, and specifically Football on a national level. We were gaining momentum under Napier, but that is gone. We are back to being one of the weakest programs in the country.

[CajunVic]

Growth in Lafayette in the 70's was completely centered on the oil industry. It's speculation, at this point to think R1 will impact the community or the University. So far, there has been none. Yes, it may take time, and it can potentially have a positive effect. Right now, this University needs to expand it's enrollment, and part of this solution is to have a brand that a mass amount of students (not just the smart ones) want to go to. This is done through a strong athletic program, and specifically Football on a national level. We were gaining momentum under Napier, but that is gone. We are back to being one of the weakest programs in the country.

If this is not a hop, skip and jump right over everything that is reality then there is no such thing as reality

[CajunFun]

Growth in Lafayette in the 70's was completely centered on the oil industry. It's speculation, at this point to think R1 will impact the community or the University. So far, there has been none. Yes, it may take time, and it can potentially have a positive effect. Right now, this University needs to expand it's enrollment, and part of this solution is to have a brand that a mass amount of students (not just the smart ones) want to go to. This is done through a strong athletic program, and specifically Football on a national level. We were gaining momentum under Napier, but that is gone. We are back to being one of the weakest programs in the country.

Actually, that's a common misconception.

The Oil Boom decade showed smaller growth than some other decades in our history, and those numbers are confusing because it's also the decade that I-10 opened... so it's hard to assign credit to either one.

And we continued to grow at a nice clip during the Oil Bust. I'll see if I can find the data in my notes.

[CajunFun]

Growth in Lafayette in the 70's was completely centered on the oil industry. It's speculation, at this point to think R1 will impact the community or the University. So far, there has been none. Yes, it may take time, and it can potentially have a positive effect. Right now, this University needs to expand it's enrollment, and part of this solution is to have a brand that a mass amount of students (not just the smart ones) want to go to. This is done through a strong athletic program, and specifically Football on a national level. We were gaining momentum under Napier, but that is gone. We are back to being one of the weakest programs in the country.

Here you go, I found it on my blog. Notice that there wasn't much difference in parish growth between the Oil Boom and the Bust:
Lafayette Growth

[CajunFun]

The only thing you posted directly tied to R1 status is grant money. Everything else can and has been done by many other universities that are not R1.

Would we even have a chance to be R1 without the primate center?


Then, there's this......

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/04/24/gen-...to-trades.html

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/pol...ees-rcna243672

https://fortune.com/2025/11/05/palan...ts-fellowship/


The world is changing Doc. I am learning coding in my free time. Companies are hiring kids right out of high school. We either need to rethink the way college is structured, or it will quickly fade away.

The R1 designation boosts us in many ways, even athletics; the reason Boise State was never considered for the Pac 12 was because they had little in the way of academics, and almost no R&D funding. BSU is all athletics.

R1 will slowly, but continually, boost us in all academic rankings, including USN&WR, probably the most influential. And when it finally gets out that we are the state's research leader, there are parents and students-- particularly the kind of students we want to attract here-- who pay attention to those things.

Think about it. Too many people around the country think a 'good' university is one that wins in sports. People have admired LSU & Tech for those reasons.

But then, they haven't had any better criteria for making comparisons. UL is giving them better criteria.

[fanof71]

Maggard to take a 15% paycut as part of the cost savings at UL

[Cajunrunner]

Maggard to take a 15% paycut as part of the cost savings at UL

He absolutely should. He’s being allowed to retain the VP title while Danny Cottonham took a title demotion (and maybe pay cut?).