Dawg80 sitting back remaining silent. Nah. That'd be like me saying something coherent. Will never happen.
Don't even go there with me, bud! The delusional ones are other clueless posters. And don't put comments on me. I NEVER, NOT ONCE, posted LSUBR cares about LSUS or Shreveport. I said Shreveport WANTS LSUBR to care. Get it? Or, maybe you don't....
All LSUBR had to do was make some vague promises about some new curricula and just like that, in a snap, Shreveport goes all googly-eyed over it. And many S'porters, that some on here kept touting as being IN LOVE with Tech, turned away from Tech so fast it'd make your head spin!! Which is why I laughed at that stupid study, which wasn't worth the paper it was written on, and I laughed at the notion that S'port gives a rat's butt about Tech. They don't.
Oh, yes, they will accept Tech's help if/when BR turns its back on them....again. But, only as a last resort.
So, stuff that delusiuonal stuff up your butt! I am the ONLY ONE who has a clear vision on this matter.
And LFR......whew! lives in a frickin dream world.
Facts:
My initial post on this topic, some months ago (however long it's been) was simply concern for a segment of the college-going public, of NW LA, specifically SB, who NEED an option like LSUS offers. For expressing that concern, man! I was viciously attacked. Let's review that concern. I said there are....just guessing...about 3,000 undergrads and another maybe 200 grad students who cannot afford, for several reasons, to pursue other high ed options. If LSUS disappears, I said, some other institution: NSU? would have to step up to fill that void, or those students would be left holding the bag. Well, well! excuse me for caring! The rants from posters on this forum, like "who cares?" or "they're not college material anyway." Really? Who died and left you boss of other people's futures and choices?
After that, I began investigating the TRUTH of this "merger-take over" and found the facts wanting. That study that some on here held up as the second coming of the Bible, is a joke. Full of mistakes, blatant lies and stupid conclusions. I am a member of two of the organizations cited in that study. I showed those paragraphs to other members of said organizations, and it was like: "Really, we said that? News to me."
There are muiltple factions all with a rooting interest in the status of LSUS. Not surprisingly, those interests are in direct conflict with each other. I understand where each is coming from, just as I understand the red & blue diehards on this forum ONLY looking at how this might benefit Tech, even as it throws many people under the bus. I get it.
There are other ULS schools rooting for a change in status for LSUS. They each have their own reasons and interests, and I understand why they would "wish" the way they do. And, each is represented by a different faction of state legislators who, while adhering to the wishes of their constiguents, are naturally at odds with each other. Which is why I predicted nothing substantial would happen re: LSUS. The one caveat remains LSUBR and what they want.
The dynamics are about to change with this pending merger of the positions at LSU. Now, one person has the power, and mandate, to look at what is good for LSUBR and what is good for the LSU system as a whole.
Shreveport WANTS LSUBR to care about LSUS and to provide funding and support for LSUS. And yes, it is true, there is a small group who have already grown weary of the empty promises of BR and want something different for LSUS for the benefit of SB. But that group is powerless to affect change. They are mere spectators.
Anyway, we'll all have to wait and see what LSUBR does...or doesn't do. And, if I hear any more "rumors" I will post them here and suffer the vicious attacks of the uninformed.
We now return you to your regular programming.....football.
I've always been a little curious about this position.
So something like 3000 out of the 4500 LSUS students couldn't afford in some way to attend Tech's Shreveport campus instead (do we cost a lot more than LSUS? or they couldn't reach our admissions standards?). And Northwestern and Grambling (who would offer lower admissions standards than Tech) are simply too far away for these students, right?
Is that the concern?
I just want to make sure I've understood your position.
On the issue of displacing students who need an LSUS type school, yes, that's a concern. Right.
Many are non-traditonal students, for instance, who are teachers or are trying to become certified to teach, who have families and are working a job somewhere else during the day....maybe teaching....who attend education classes which begin at 4:30 or 5:00 and are over by 7:30 or so. Each course meets once per week, usually a Tu, Wed, or Thu. If they are carrying 6 credit hrs, that's two classes a week. They have to arrange baby sitters or make other accommodations for those nights.
Other students, both non-traditional and traditional, simply cannot afford the tutition and/or the travel expenses to attend elsewhere.
In these cases, they require a 4-yr degree, so attending BPCC is only a temp reprieve. They'll have to get into a 4 yr school eventually.
That makes sense, although the numbers seem pretty high.
And Tech offers night classes. So I don't see how the non-traditional students will be that bad off (assuming they can meet selective admission requirements).
Yeah, I can see where it'd be bad for the students who can't quite get into a selective admissions school. Or travel.
But the community has to weigh that against all the students who can get admitted into a selective admissions school and don't want to travel (or settle for a less academically respected school).
Why should the better students be forced to travel to the school that is the best fit for them?
There probably can't and won't be two 4-year public schools in Shreveport. So somebody's going to lose. To me, the thing that might tip the scales towards a more academically rigorous University is what it means for the community as a whole. The group that simply isn't ready for Tech can brush up at the Community College, and the ones that won't ever be ready for Tech can either top out at the CC or will have to drive to Grambling or Northwestern.
This can't really be that many people. And while, yeah, it'll stink for them - it sure seems like making decisions off of that small group's opportunity to get a 4-year degree without leaving town is kind of limiting.
I thought that the new Shreveport campus was planning to cater to non-traditional students. I took a few classes at Barksdale and, aside from USAF members, there were several non-traditional students in every class. I agree that those people need somewhere to go, but Tech could fill that void just as well as LSUS, and give Shreveport/Bossier direct access to a Tier 1 research university. I don't really care what it's called... merger, takeover, whatever. It seems like Tech being the primary university in S/B and North Louisiana is a win for the university and the community.
Agreed. But that is NOT what was being said at the time. And, to my knowledge, not being said now. In fact, and maybe you weren't following the discussion closely months ago, the exact OPPOSITE was being touted. It was essentially that SB (and NW La) needed a Tier 1 Research university to bring in high tech industry, to service business and industry already there, to provide opportunities for the best of the best student population and to hell with those who couldn't measure up.
There is a thread....maybe several threads...on this forum with all those posts stating as much.
And, I also agree with you about the semantics: merger? takeover? Whatever! But, many on this forum rail against the use of the term "takeover," so watch your back now. They'll get ya!
As for those who might be displaced by this "merger," NSU is the logical choice to fill the void, but that would mean providing some kind of facility in S'port to house an NSU-Shreveport "campus." There is the NSU Nursing School and a Childcare instructional facility, not sure what they call it, but it's to train those who work in childcare centers. With a little expansion, perhaps, those facilities might serve. I've been in the Childcare Center, it's not very big.
So! with budget constraints, can/will Louisiana step up and provide a means to serve the needs of those displaced LSUS students?