The Louisiana Board of Regents revised on Wednesday its role, scope and mission statements, which will be incorporated into a final response to state legislation that requested the Regents to study certain aspects of post-secondary education.
Meg Casper, the board’s associate commissioner for public affairs, said the statements contain revisions and updates to each institution’s mission statement.
According to a news release, the statements revised at the monthly meeting will differentiate audiences served and programs offered at each post-secondary education institution in Louisiana.
“An example of this is [University of Louisiana at Monroe],” Casper said. “They have a great pharmacy program.”
 
As a result, ULM’s revised mission statement will include specific wording to emphasize its pharmacy program.
“Think about these statements as lanes in which our institutions travel. An ideal system clearly establishes parameters and monitors activities to make sure no one veers into another campus’ lane,” Commissioner of Higher Education Jim Purcell said in the release. ”Once approved, the role, scope and mission statements will allow us to give the board specific guidance when making decisions about program additions, consolidations or eliminations.”
Deputy Commissioner for Academic and Student Affairs Larry Tremblay said in the release many of the items in the requested by the state legislature had been addressed in previous meetings, so Wednesday’s meeting focused on updating statements.
The final role, scope and mission statements will be adopted by the board in February and will become part of the Master Plan for Higher Education.
Board of Regents Chairman Bob Levy said the board’s response to the resolution outlines what its members believe is necessary for higher education to thrive both as an educational institution and as a business.
“We have to ensure that educational opportunities are available in every region of our state, but we also have to balance that against a mandate of efficiency,” he said.
 
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Contact Rachel Warren at [email protected]