Editor’s note: This is the sixth in a series of stories looking at 34 University programs under scrutiny. The Board of Regents, the body that oversees the state’s higher education system, labeled those programs “under-performing” Jan. 26.
 
The College of Agriculture is confident its graduate programs under review will survive, according to Agriculture Dean Kenneth Koonce.
Eight of the University’s 34
programs identified by the Regents as “low completers” are agriculture-related. They were recognized for low enrollment and graduation rates in the master’s and doctoral programs in January.
 
The Regents’ new evaluation standards state that Ph.D. programs must graduate two students each year, and master’s programs must graduate five.
 
Koonce said the majority of the programs have regained enrollment or have restructured.
 
“We will be able to maintain them because they do have
expectations of additional graduates,” he said.
 
Koonce said the University’s agriculture programs are the only ones in Louisiana, significantly aiding the state’s economy.
 
“Terminating the programs would be detrimental to the state’s agricultural production,” Koonce said. “They are instrumental in providing students to the workforce.”
 
Koonce also said the programs are not a financial burden on the University because they are funded by the LSU AgCenter.
 
“LSU has not [made] a large investment in these programs,” he said. “The LSU AgCenter is a separate entity, but they fund majority of faculty in those programs — it’s a very unique situation.”
 
Koonce said most faculty members in the college have primary appointments with the AgCenter.
 
LSU AgCenter interim Vice Chancellor for Research John Russin said the two are linked by research.
 
“Agriculture is the state’s largest industry,” Russin said. “It contributes more than $30 billion to the state per year.”
 
Russin said it’s vital to train graduate students to become the future of the industry.
 
“Without graduates, we can’t do our business,” he said.
 
 
Plant Health Ph.D. and MS
 
“[Plant health] programs were on the list last year, but they were extended,” Koonce said. “They haven’t had the opportunity to have enough graduates within the year, but they have sufficient enrollments now to have the number of graduates necessary in the future.”
 
Koonce said plant health has 15 students currently enrolled in the Ph.D. program and expects three to graduate this year. In the master’s program, 11 students are enrolled and five are expected to graduate this year.
 
These rates meet the Regents’ expectations, leading Koonce to believe the program should survive.
 
Koonce said the Department of Plant Health has been under new administration for the past several years. He commended the new head for his success in turning the program around.
 
 
Food Science MS
 
Koonce said the food science program has also been previously reviewed by the Regents.
 
He said the college is working to combine the Food Science Department with Nutrition and Dietetics because of their similarity.
“We’re combining the undergraduate programs, but we have not done anything with the graduate programs,” Koonce said.
 
He said nutrition is currently part of the human ecology graduate program, but the college is working to transfer the program. He said consolidation is still being discussed and awaiting approval from University administration. The college hopes to make progress within the next year.
 
Koonce said 26 students are currently enrolled in the master’s program, with 12 students expected to graduate this year.
 
 
Entomology MS
 
Koonce said he is confident the master’s degree program in entomology will also survive.
 
He said current enrollment is 11 students, with five expected to graduate this year.
 
“Plant heath and entomology are directly connected to agricultural production in the state in terms of disease, insect, weed control,” he explained. “There is a demand for the programs, and there is no other way of producing students in these areas.”
 
 
Animal and Dairy Science Ph.D.
 
“[Animal Science] has been one of our strongest programs over the last three years though it has only graduated two or three students,” Koonce said.
 
He said the program now has 17 students enrolled, with one expected to graduate this year.
 
“I think that program is going to be all right, as well,” he said.
 
 
Forestry MS and Ph.D.
 
Koonce said the individual graduate degree programs in forestry, wildlife and fisheries have been terminated. He said the school has also been renamed the School of Renewable Natural Resources.
 
“We are going to have a master’s in RNR, which includes concentrations in forestry, wildlife and fisheries,” he said. “That should take care of the low-completers.”
 
He said this area is heavily dependent on the Louisiana marketplace, and enrollment numbers often fluctuate with demand.
 
 
Agronomy MS
 
“We’ve combined horticulture with what was formally agronomy and environmental management into a School of Plant, Environmental Management and Soil Sciences,” Koonce said. “We will have a single degree, a master’s or a Ph.D., and it will have all of those components in it including horticulture and agronomy.”
 
Koonce said the new program has just been approved by the University. He said enrollment and graduation data have not yet been established.
 
“They are important to the state, they are the only programs of their type and they have tremendous support from the LSU AgCenter,” Koonce said. “There will be variations over time in the number of students we graduate, particularly at the graduate level.”
 
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Contact Sydni Dunn at
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