re: Note to Out of State Alums

WRONG...tuition only pays 47% of the cost...most of the cost is paid by the state of Louisiana by taxes...if you're not paying taxes and paying in-state tuition..you're freeloading

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Its not like LSU's enrollment will drop 4,000 over night because of this decision.

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LSU will be forced to accept lower-performing in-state students, because the number of out-of-state students willing to pay the ~14k a year will be very small.

Do you think Louisiana students are responsible for the jump in ACT scores of incoming freshman? Look at the education system in this state.

LSU will not be having open admissions ever again. If anything, the school decreases and its budget will adjust accordingly.

I'm not going to believe the OOS students are solely responsible for the ACT jump, its neither here no there though. LSU is becoming a more competitive academically so its naturally more attractive to premier instate students.

The point is that the State's not seeing a return on that investment dollar. If they were all sitting around BR or NOLA helping churn the economy, sure. But they're not.

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The point is that the State's not seeing a return on that investment dollar. If they were all sitting around BR or NOLA helping churn the economy, sure. But they're not.

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I'd really like to see the statistics proving that in-state students are a BETTER return on the dollar. High quality graduates of any residency are leaving LA.

That wasn't a flame, I'm legitimately interested. LSU and LA have issues regarding brain drain and higher education, but I don't believe pushing out of staters away will resolve anything.

An important thing to keep in mind is that people receiving this scholarship still had to pay 25% of tuition not covered by the non-res exemption, which ends up being the same amount of $ as in-state tuition (~4k). Out of state students pay this out of pocket, while in state students receive money from TOPS -- the state pays for them.

Not good. Some of the donors that contribute the most amount of money to LSU live outside of Louisiana. This will hurt donations that the university receives. Loyalty is a two way street and the university needs to be loyal to the alumni in order for the alumni to give more generously.

This really doesn't have anything to do with the cost of tuition but the principle of this action.


Of course this comes at the same time that we have illegals attending state universities in many states at in-state rates.

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Some of the donors that contribute the most amount of money to LSU live outside of Louisiana. This will hurt donations that the university receives

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You really think donors that contribute the most money are concerned about the instate vs. out of state tuition rates? If they're giving money, more than likely they will support the University regardless.

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none of your arguments address why an out of state alum has a logical reason to get a discount...bottom line is that everyone want a freebie...

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An important thing to keep in mind is that people receiving this scholarship still had to pay 25% of tuition not covered by the non-res exemption, which ends up being the same amount of $ as in-state tuition (~4k). Out of state students pay this out of pocket, while in state students receive money from TOPS -- the state pays for them.

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WRONG...tuition only pays 47% of the cost...most of the cost is paid by the state of Louisiana by taxes...if you're not paying taxes and paying in-state tuition..you're freeloading

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if I remember correctly, the legacy program waived 75% of the out of state fees, which makes up much of this difference (although I'm not sure where you're getting the 47% numbers). Full out of state is about 3x tuition. I don't know if it was a good program for LSU, or not, but the freeloading comment is a little over-dramatic. My kid is going to LSU and academic scholarships more than make up the difference in losing the legacy. But without the academic money, she'd be going elsewhere.

My problem is not with the loss of the scholarship, but with the timing of the announcement. My daughter had already academically qualified for LSU and decided not to take the ACT test again. The announcement in August 2010 did not give her enough time to take the ACT and be certain that a scholarship would be available. Representatives of LSU told me that scholarship money was first come, first served and when it ran out no more would be available and there was only one more chance to take the test before the deadline.

As LSU was her dream school and both sets of grandparents and several other relatives live within a 35 mile radius of Baton Rouge, I have dug deeper and told her she could still attend. I should point out that she was qualified to attend both Texas or Texas A&M which require you to be in the top 8% and 10% of your Texas high school graduating class to attend as a freshman (UT has since raised their standard to the top 6%). Now with less than a month to go until school starts, LSU again raises OOS tuition by 17%, too late to attend another school.

I lived in Louisiana for 33 years and my job was transferred out of state (not my choice), first to Ohio and then to Texas. If LSU continues to upset OOS alumni, what will it do if the state pulls the TOPS program and there are no in-state parents and students willing to pony up the money and enrollment starts to fall and tuition has to be increased even more? Believe me, once the OOS alumni children begin to attend their state universities and colleges, you will not get them or their future children to even consider LSU.

We OOS alumni do pay tuition comparable to in-state and then add another $13,000/year. I will be paying >$30,000/year for my daughter to attend my alma mater and stay in an overpriced, outdated dormitory, as well as, an additional $3,000/year for her to spend in Louisiana stores, not to mention the money we will spend to visit her.

Sorry for being so long, but as a long time lurker, this issue brought me out of hiding and now I have a hard time being quiet.

Thanks PRK!

I should also point out that I have had season basketball tickets since 1978 and have attended every SEC basketball tournament since 1979. I also had season football tickets until I moved to Ohio. Since my daughter will be attending LSU, I have again obtained season football tickets, so it is not like I have not continued to support LSU even though I live out of state. I also give to the traditiion fund and have given to the alumni fund. I visit my parents and in-laws at least once a month, so I still continue to spend and contribute to the economy of Louisiana.