After two years of operation, a residential college is being suspended and reorganized. The Vision Louisiana Residential College opened in fall 2004 as a curriculum for students interested in the future development of Louisiana. This year the program is undergoing restructuring and is unavailable to students. “Everything is being put on hold,” said Gaila Starns, the residential college administrative coordinator. She said Vision Louisiana will return as part of another residential program, the Honors College. Specifics concerning the program’s new home remain unclear. “We’re in the process of determining what’s going to be done,” said Granger Babcock, associate dean of the Honors College. “It should be ready to go in the fall,” Babcock said. The decision to move Vision Louisiana to the Honors College was characterized by Starns as a mutual decision by the Department of Residential Life and the Office of Academic Affairs. “It was an administrative decision,” agreed Robert Rohli, faculty director of the residential college program. Frank Cartledge, vice provost of Academics and Planning, said decreasing enrollment in the program led to the decision. “The courses to be offered in the junior and senior years would be undersubscribed,” he said. Cartledge explained this would frustrate the program’s focus on group projects. Despite the suspension of Vision Louisiana, involved students still have options. Students in the program were given the choice to join the Honors College. They can also become mentors when the program re-opens or use their unique course credit for a special leadership minor. Vision Louisiana, previously based out of Acadian Hall, featured a four-year program that provided the equivalent of an academic minor. The program was developed in agreement with Vision 2020, the growth plan conceived by the Louisiana Department of Economic Development. Vision Louisiana featured special Louisiana-centered courses and team-based assignments and projects that would culminate in a presentation to the state Legislature. The program also featured other residential college staples like in-residence office hours and study groups. Though the reorganization may cause delay and complications, the move is supported by involved students and faculty, including Rohli. “I really think this is going to make it a great program,” he said.
—–Contact Daniel McBride at [email protected]