The institution has a governing board of at least five members that is the legal body with specific authority over the institution. The board is an active policy-making body for the institution and is ultimately responsible for ensuring that the financial resources of the institution are adequate to provide a sound educational program. The board is not controlled by a minority of board members or by organizations or interests separate from it. Neither the presiding officer of the board nor the majority of other voting members of the board have contractual, employment, or personal or familial financial interest in the institution.
A military institution authorized and operated by the federal government to award degrees has a public board in which neither the presiding officer nor a majority of the other members are civilian employees of the military or active/retired military. The board has broad and significant influence upon the institution’s programs and operations, plays an active role in policy-making, and ensures that the financial resources of the institution are used to provide a sound educational program. The board is not controlled by a minority of board members or by organizations or interests separate from the board except as specified by the authorizing legislation. Neither the presiding officer of the board nor the majority of other voting board members have contractual, employment, or personal or familial financial interest in the institution.
The State of Louisiana has a two-tiered governance structure for higher education. Each higher education institution belongs to one of four higher education systems - The Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College System, The University of Louisiana System, The Southern University and Agricultural and Mechanical College System and the Louisiana Community and Technical College System. LSUA belongs to the Louisiana State University and A&M System. Each system is governed by a Board of Supervisors, which is charged in Article VIII, Section 7 of the Louisiana Constitution [1] with supervising and managing the institutions within that system. In addition to the four higher education systems with their management boards, Article VIII, Section 5 of the Louisiana Constitution [2] provides for the Louisiana Board of Regents. The Board of Regents is charged with planning, coordinating and budgetary responsibility for all public higher education in Louisiana. As paraphrased on the Board of Regents’ website [3] , the Board of Regents is given the following authority:
- to review or eliminate existing degree programs or departments;
- to approve, disapprove, or modify proposed academic programs or departments;
- to study both the need for and feasibility of new postsecondary institutions as well as the conversion of existing schools into campuses offering more advanced courses of study;
- to formulate and update a master plan for higher education (which must include a higher education funding formula); and
- to review annual budget proposals for the operating and capital needs of each public institution prior to compilation of the Regents’ higher education budget recommendations. The Board also recommends priorities for capital construction and improvements.”
The Constitution specifies that any duties not specifically vested in the Board of Regents be assigned to the management boards.
The LSU Board of Supervisors [4] is a sixteen member board with a quorum of ten. In some cases the nine member Executive Committee (Chair, Vice Chair, Chairs of standing committees, and appointees of the Chair) may take action. The Louisiana Board of Regents [5] is also a sixteen member board but has a quorum of nine. Once members of the LSU Board of Supervisors and Louisiana Board of Regents have been appointed, their conduct and responsibilities are guided by existing laws and policies designed to prevent potential conflicts.
The LSU Board of Supervisors is responsible for the dispersal of state-appropriated funds to the individual institutions that it serves (Louisiana Constitution, Article VIII, Section 12 [6]).
Neither the LSU Board of Supervisors nor the Louisiana Board of Regents is controlled by a minority (all votes are majority decisions) or by organizations or interests separate from the board. Neither the chairman of the Board of Regents, nor the chairman of the Board of Supervisors, nor the majority of other voting board members have contractual, employment, or personal or financial interest in the institution.
Documentation
[1] Louisiana State Constitution (1974) - Article VIII, Section 7 (External Link)
[2] Louisiana State Constitution (1974) - Article VIII, Section 5 (External Link)
[3] Louisiana Board of Regents Website (10kb)
[4] List of LSU Board of Supervisors Members (External Link)
[5] List of Louisiana Board of Regents Members (9kb)
[6] Louisiana State Constitution (1974) - Article VIII, Section 12 (External Link)
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