La. Const. art. VIII § 5 - Board of Regents

• Library: Constitution of the State of Louisiana of 1974
• Currency: Current with changes from the November 3, 2020 election
• Citation: La. Const. art. VIII § 5

(A) Creation; Functions. The Board of Regents is created as a body corporate. It shall plan, coordinate, and have budgetary responsibility for all public postsecondary education and shall have other powers, duties, and responsibilities provided in this Section or by law.

(B)

(1) Membership; Terms. The board shall be composed of fifteen members, of whom two members shall be from each congressional district and the remaining member or members shall be from the state at large appointed by the governor, with consent of the Senate, for overlapping terms of six years, following initial terms which shall be fixed by law. The board should be representative of the state's population by race and gender to ensure diversity.

(2) No person who has served as a member of the board for more than two and one-half terms in three consecutive terms shall be appointed to the board for the succeeding term. This Subparagraph shall not apply to any person appointed to the board prior to the effective date of this Subparagraph, except that it shall apply to any term of service of any such person that begins after such date.

(C) Vacancy. A vacancy occurring prior to the expiration of a term shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term by appointment by the governor, with consent of the Senate.

(D) Powers. The Board of Regents shall meet with the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education at least twice a year to coordinate programs of public elementary, secondary, vocational-technical, career, and higher education. The Board of Regents shall have the following powers, duties, and responsibilities relating to public institutions of postsecondary education:

(1) To revise or eliminate an existing degree program, department of instruction, division, or similar subdivision.

(2) To approve, disapprove, or modify a proposed degree program, department of instruction, division, or similar subdivision.

(3)

(a) To study the need for and feasibility of creating a new institution of postsecondary education, which includes establishing a branch of such an institution or converting any non-degree granting institution to an institution which grants degrees or converting any college or university which is limited to offering degrees of a lower rank than baccalaureate to a college or university that offers baccalaureate degrees or merging any institution of postsecondary education into any other institution of postsecondary education, establishing a new management board, and transferring a college or university from one board to another.