SHREVEPORT — State Sens. Thomas Pressly and Sam Jenkins are urging LSU System leadership to provide greater transparency and accountability following a decision by the LSU Board of Supervisors to eliminate the longstanding chancellor position at the LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport.
In a joint statement, Pressly, R-Shreveport, and Jenkins, D-Shreveport, called on LSU System President Wade Rousse and Executive Vice President and Baton Rouge campus Chancellor Jim Dalton to reaffirm the institution’s mission and future in Northwest Louisiana. LSU leaders are scheduled to visit the region this week to discuss the direction of the Shreveport health sciences campus.
“It’s incredibly disappointing that LSU chose to take away the Chancellor position of the Health Sciences Center in Shreveport without any conversation at all with the community, elected officials, business leaders, and even their own students and faculty about doing so,” Pressly said. “The people of Northwest Louisiana want this campus to be a leader in teaching our future doctors and nurses, improving health outcomes, and finding new solutions to pressing health challenges through research and innovation.”
The senators said the move replaces the chancellor role with a senior vice chancellor position reporting to Baton Rouge leadership, reducing local autonomy at the Shreveport campus. They argue the change conflicts with legislative intent established when lawmakers created the chancellor position for LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport.
“25 years ago, the Legislature clearly said that decisions about the future direction of the Health Sciences Center in Shreveport should be made here in Shreveport,” Pressly said. “Instead of reclassifying leadership in the pursuit of higher rankings, we should be discussing bringing more research, students, and resources to this campus.”
Jenkins said the health sciences center has long served as a cornerstone for the region’s economy and workforce development.
“For generations, we have depended on the LSU Health Sciences Center to be an economic and educational engine for our region and state,” Jenkins said. “With such a community-driven purpose driving this institution, we expect the university’s leadership to engage with both stakeholders and the public before undertaking massive changes and restructuring.”
Jenkins also raised concerns about the historical distribution of LSU resources across the state.
“In the past, we saw LSU disproportionately send resources and funding to the main campus in Baton Rouge and the Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, while LSU’s institutions in Shreveport and elsewhere in the state didn’t receive their fair share,” Jenkins said.
The senators said they will meet Wednesday with Rousse, Dalton and other LSU officials as discussions continue about the future governance and priorities of LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport.