Goal #3: Adopt the LSU Scholarship First Agenda as it aligns with the LSUS mission

To best align with LSU A & M, we pledge to adopt the LSU Scholarship First Agenda as it aligns with the LSUS mission.

Goal #3: Adopt the LSU Scholarship First Agenda as it aligns with the LSUS mission

  1. Increase opportunities for faculty/student research collaborations for both face-to-face and online students
  2. Develop areas of thought leadership for societal impact
  3. Promote development of original research or practice-based curricular initiatives informed by scholarship
  4. Align scholarship with regional job opportunities
  5. Increase extramural funding

Below are the strategies and targets the university will employ to achieve this goal. 

Follow our progress on the strategic plan (coming soon).

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Strategies:

  1. Increase internship opportunities, with real-world to classroom experiences
  2. Increase funding for faculty and student scholarship/research collaboration
    1. Work with Hanover Research through the Office of Sponsored Research to identify new external funding opportunities
    2. Identify campus-wide funding opportunities (e.g., TRIO grant).
    3. Centralize travel funds in Dean’s Offices; create equitable/competitive processes for awarding to faculty
  3. Develop and implement new programs meeting workforce needs (e.g., BS in Nursing, BS in Data Science, new doctoral programs)
    1. Use Lightcast and BoR dashboards to identify prospective new programs
    2. Train Chairs and Program Directors in curricular analytics software and make this routine part of curriculum review
  4. Publicize student-faculty research
    1. Work with faculty to highlight/feature student researcher accomplishments
    2. Stories to feature at least two faculty/student projects per semester
  5. Evaluate curriculum to explore additional opportunities for student research
    1. All UG programs will revise curricula by AY 2025-2026
    2. Based on the above analysis, plan for new courses by AY 2025-2026
    3. Add components to research/applied courses as part of curricular revision
  6. Increase funding to recruit top-talent faculty and staff
    1. Complete a new salary survey and identify funds for increases by SU24
    2. Add additional inter-session courses (possibly for research opportunities)-add sessions and study abroad; Create structure for intersessions of 2 weeks in Winter and Summer.

Targets:

  1. Add 3 Nexus degrees where course credit is combined with internships. Ensure each UG degree program has internship/culminating course experience opportunities by May 2029
  2. Ensure each College (and department/program, where appropriate) has an advisory council with external partners by May 31, 2027
  3. Centralize internships through Career Services (utilizing Handshake) to enable assessment and measurement of process by May31, 2027
  4. Add clearly delineated assessments within Handshake by May 31, 2028
  5. Increase # of grants, total grant $ awarded: FY 24 = $1.861million. Goal = $2 million by FY 2028
  6. Increase internal research funding: Office of Sponsored Research will survey faculty in Fall 2025 to assess need and impact
  7. Increase funding for FRD grants though the Faculty Senate. FY24 was $88,783. Increase to $100,000 by FY 2026
  8. Identify at least two new programs per year (FY25, FY26, FY27, FY28 and FY29) that the data suggests for us to discuss with faculty for potential development.
  9. We will add 4 new programs over the 5-year period 2025-2030 (e.g., BSN, data science, doctoral): Targets: at least 3 new F2F UG programs and at least one new doctoral program launched by FA29)
  10. 25% of new (upper-level) courses presented to C&C will include research opportunity/requirement by AY 2027-2028
  11. Continue to conduct student satisfaction surveys: NSSE
  12. UG programs collect data in culminating capstone or other course for seniors by Fall 2028
  13. Plan for 2 intersession Study Abroad trips to China and UK in SU 2027
  14. Increase # of intersession courses; add 3 more by SU 2027