By: Piper Hutchinson | Louisiana Illuminator
A member of Gov. Jeff Landry’s cabinet has been chosen to lead the state’s community and technical college system despite his lack of experience in higher education.
The Louisiana Community and Technical College System Board of Supervisors voted Wednesday to name state Revenue Secretary Richard Nelson as its next system president. Nelson will replace current President Monty Sullivan, who is retiring after serving in the position since 2014. Nelson will officially take office Jan. 1.
The board hired Nelson without conducting a search. It is standard practice for boards to convene search committees and undergo a months-long search process for college and university leaders.
Nelson, a Republican, has no prior work experience in higher education. Before Landry selected him to serve as secretary of the Louisiana Department of Revenue when he took office in 2024, Nelson ran against Landry for governor in 2023 and was previously a one-term member of the Louisiana House of Representatives.
By comparison, Sullivan has more than 30 years experience at two-year and four-year schools in Louisiana and Virginia.
“I’ll tell you with humility, I have a lot to learn about the nuts and bolts of this,” Nelson said in remarks to the board after his hiring. “I really think that the mission of this system is one of the most honorable in the state, and I think one of the most impactful that we can have on the future of the state.”
Nelson will receive a base salary of $400,000, an increase from his $225,000 salary as revenue secretary. Nelson will also receive a $45,000 annual housing allowance, a $25,000 automobile allowance and $20,000 in deferred compensation.
Landry spokeswoman Kate Kelly did not respond immediately to questions regarding when Nelson’s replacement will be announced.
Nelson, 39, is 2010 graduate of the LSU Law Center. After graduating, he worked in the U.S. State Department’s Foreign Service for seven years before returning to Louisiana.
Nelson’s appointment comes amid a major reorganization of higher education leadership in Louisiana.
Last month, LSU hired Wade Rousse, formerly president of McNeese State in Lake Charles, as its system president, and Jim Dalton, the former provost at the University of Alabama, as its Baton Rouge campus chancellor. LSU is also replacing the chancellor at its medical school in Shreveport.
Last week, Southern University System President Dennis Shields announced he would step down, though its board has not yet announced his replacement.
The University of Louisiana System is hiring campus leaders at McNeese and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.