re: Something to be proud of -- LSU Athletic Program to support academics

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If Jindal had the kahunas to change the state charter to allow very small across-the-board cuts to all state agencies instead of """""""""""JUST"""""""""""" health care and higher education....but no. Jindal has sorely disappointed me.

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I guess you missed the part where Jindal proposed a budget in February that took exactly $0 from higher education but it got shot down... LINK

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You want to know the sad part? The legislature will view this "new" funding source for LSU academics as a further reason to cut LSU's academic budget by the same amount. The net effect will be zero. Watch.

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This is exactly what will happen!

When gaming/gambling was approved; it was touted that revenues would be directed toward education. Well they are, but they took away the exact same amount from education as gambling provided so there was no net increase. Legislators then used the funds how they wanted and the "increase in funding of education" never happens and no one called them on it.

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This is analogous to our states higher education approach. Instead of acting like Texas and pouring tax revenue into the flagship, we spread our money thin to a bunch of crappy directional schools in our state.

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Just a question: Are you a student or alumni of LSU?

LSU's financial shortfalls have nothing to do with the amount of funding they get from the state.

LSU's financial shortfalls have everything to do with the gross mismanagement of the academic resources of the university.

IMO, things started heading downhill when Mark Emmertt released the "Master Plan" and told the state that LSU would be the flagship university and therefore deserved to get whatever funding it wanted without ever getting the state's opinion.

As a student at LSU during this fiasco, there was a very clear line when this started happening. From creative fees like the "Academic Excellence Fee", to the gutting of the instructor pool and their replacement with PHD's who have no interest in actually teaching , LSU made it perfectly clear what they were interested in.

I love my alma mater, and I'm proud to have my diploma hanging on my wall. But it really upsets me to see the president crying wolf to the state and athletic dept all due to a situation that the LSU administration has directly contributed to, not the state.

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UGA ...... of the best academic schools in the conference.

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uh huh.

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uh huh.

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Yeah duh. I chose those two schools because their athletic departments are independent from the school. Those schools have found other avenues than taking from the athletic department to have academic success.

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Yeah duh.

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UGA is not an academic powerhouse. Complete myth.

The quota system, which they claim doesn't exist takes "students" from all over the state to make sure it is "diverse." Diversity comes at the price of accepting the best students.

The job placement rate is terrible.

UGA is a product of supply and demand. The state lottery program (going down fast) has created a vast supply of money that allows more people access to the university. It didn't become harder to get in due to an increase in quality.

Nobody is saying that it's going to solve all of LSU's financial problems, but $7 million pays a lot of professor's salaries, even if it is just a small part of the total budget.

It's been said already, but I'll say it again - this is not a new development. LSU has been doing this for years, as have almost every university with a self-sufficient athletic department:

UGA athletics to transfer $6 million for academic support

Florida Gators give $6 million to university

University of Tennessee Athletics Pledges Additional $1 Million per Year Support of Academics

Arkansas adds $1 million donation to the university’s academic services for the third consecutive year.

LSU Athletic Department contributes $4 million to the University

Ohio State athletic department contributes additional $4 million for library renovations

Yeah, because that's what I said.

The sky's not going to start falling because the athletic department continues to make contributions to the academic side of the university as it's been doing for a long time. I don't feel like trying to convince you otherwise.

I like how you say contributions like there is actually a choice involved. I never said the sky was falling. I did say that the unsuccessful financial mess of the academic side shouldn't raid the financially viable athletic side. The athletic side needs the money if we want to continue our dominance as a program. The minute you start screwing with that is the minute it starts to worry me. This solves nothing on the academic side but hurts the athletic side. I'll never understand getting to a point at the top, and instead of continuing to invest in that product, you choose instead to redistribute that elsewhere to the detriment of the successful program. Your institution isn't going to be great at everything, but it's better to be great in a few areas than mediocre in all of them. Louisiana, regarding higher education, has never understood this. And obviously LSU doesn't either.

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Over the initial five-year term of the policy, LSU Athletics will provide $36 million to other parts of LSU. In addition, in years in which the athletics program generates a surplus, a portion of the surplus would be transferred to other components of LSU, with the remainder of the surplus being used to fund reserve accounts to protect against future financial uncertainties and provide a funding source for long-deferred maintenance projects for athletics facilities.

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Doesn't sound like it's just surplus to me. Sounds like a continuous revenue stream from the athletic department.