Chancellor Michael Martin said in an e-mail to students, faculty and staff despite going through two hurricanes and two budget cuts during the past year, the University is still a “strong and dynamic flagship university.”Martin said he is proud of the University’s top-tier ranking in U.S. News and World Report’s annual Best Colleges list and the average ACT score of entering freshman is reaching 26. The chancellor also touted several big-name hires the University made recently, including Engineering College Dean Richard Koubek and David Constant, interim dean of Graduate Studies. He went on to praise the University’s athletic teams and the recent renovation of the Music and Dramatic Arts building. “We begin the 2009-10 academic year with great optimism, but we must be realistic about continued budget concerns,” Martin said. “The state funding outlook will not likely improve in the coming year, so tight budget conditions will likely dominate our agenda for months to come.”The University had to cut about $30 million from its operating budget since January. Martin said the University will work closely with House Speaker Jim Tucker’s Postsecondary Education Review Commission, making recommendations for change across Louisiana’s higher education system. “Do not doubt that the coming year will bring opportunity, frustration, success and change,” Martin said. “Such is life at an ambitious student-centered, research university.  I remain confident that we have the capacity to meet any challenge and sustain the progress that has become the hallmark of LSU.”
 
—-Contact Kyle Bove at [email protected]