Highlights

• UL System Board scheduled a special meeting for 9 a.m. Thursday at Abdalla Hall on the UL Lafayette campus
• Dr. Ramesh Kolluru, current vice president of research, confirmed as front-runner for presidency
• UL's faculty chapter of the American Association of University Professors demands a transparent search committee process
• Decision comes amid $25 million budget deficit that has already resulted in more than 70 position cuts
• System board policy requires a search committee, including a faculty representative selected by the Faculty Senate

UL Lafayette May Name New President This Week Without Public Search Process

Faculty members and professors express concern over the lack of transparency as the UL System Board prepares for Thursday's meeting

LAFAYETTE, La. (KPEL News) — The University of Louisiana at Lafayette could name a new president Thursday, but faculty members say the process violates the board’s own policies.

The Times-Picayune and The Current report that Dr. Ramesh Kolluru, UL’s vice president for research, innovation, and economic development, is the front-runner. The UL System Board of Supervisors called a special meeting for 9 a.m. Thursday at Abdalla Hall on the Lafayette campus. No agenda has been posted.

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Faculty say the board is skipping the required search committee process outlined in its own rules.

What UL Lafayette Faculty Are Demanding

The UL Lafayette Chapter of the American Association of University Professors sent a letter on Monday to UL System Board Chairman Mark Romero and board members asking them to stop any rushed appointment.

“Regardless of who is ultimately selected for the position, the process for identifying the next president of UL Lafayette must be fair and open and must involve the input of faculty, staff, and students,” the letter states.

The faculty group pointed out the board’s own policy on filling executive vacancies requires a search committee with “a faculty member of the affected institution, selected by the Faculty Senate of the affected institution.” The Current and The Advocate confirmed system rules require the board chairman to appoint a search committee of at least six board members, plus a UL Lafayette faculty member chosen by the Faculty Senate.

“Given the current financial crisis at the University, the next president should be trusted to act in the best interests of the University and the people that constitute this institution,” the AAUP chapter wrote. “A search process hidden behind closed doors, and without the input of those same people, will have the opposite effect.”

Mark Romero, who Gov. Jeff Landry appointed as UL System Board chairman last June, didn’t respond to requests for comment from The Current. System spokesman Marcus Jones also didn’t respond.

Who Is Ramesh Kolluru?

Dr. Ramesh Kolluru has run UL Lafayette’s research division since 2013. He oversaw the university’s climb to Carnegie R1 status in 2021 — a designation for the top 3% of U.S. universities with the highest research activity.

Kolluru grew up in India and came to Lafayette more than 30 years ago as a grad student. He got his Ph.D. in computer science from what was then the University of Southwestern Louisiana in 1996. He’s a tenured professor in the School of Computing and Informatics.

Under Kolluru’s watch, UL Lafayette grew its annual research spending from $62 million in 2013 to $164 million in 2020 — a 168% jump. He’s helped bring IT and biotech companies to the region, which created more than 2,000 jobs. The National Science Foundation lists the university as one of the fastest-growing research schools in the nation.

Kolluru started three major research centers at UL Lafayette, including the nation’s only NSF “big data” center of excellence. He’s brought in more than $65 million in research grants during his career.

Gov. John Bel Edwards put him on the Louisiana Cybersecurity Commission. He won the Governor’s Technology Leader of the Year award in 2008. He chairs Lafayette Economic Development Authority and sits on the board at Ochsner Lafayette General.

Kolluru told The Current Tuesday he’d been planning to apply for the job and had “submitted [his] materials for consideration.” He said the decision would be up to the UL System Board of Supervisors. He didn’t respond to follow-up requests for comment.

Gov. Jeff Landry told The Times-Picayune that Romero asked whether he had a problem if Kolluru applied. “I said I got no problem,” Landry said. “Y’all go find whoever you want.”

Financial Crisis Backdrop

The leadership search comes during one of UL Lafayette’s toughest periods. Former President Joseph Savoie stepped down in July, several months before his contract ended. He left shortly after Jerry Luke LeBlanc, the university’s longtime vice president for administration and finance, quit in May.

Interim President Jaimie Hebert took over August 1 and announced in September the university faced a $25 million budget deficit left by his predecessor. Savoie still gets his presidential salary of $510,500 through the end of 2025, plus campus housing and a vehicle allowance.

READ MORE: UL Announces Major Budget Crisis Requiring Emergency Cuts

Hebert has cut more than 70 positions through layoffs, retirements, resignations and reassignments. He ordered university departments to cut 10% from operating budgets and Academic Affairs to cut 5% to protect instruction.

Earlier this month, 51 people were fired and 19 others reassigned — the biggest job loss since the deficit came out. Hebert told The Current they’ve closed all but about $2 million of the structural deficit but still owe at least $10 million from past years.

Hebert, an Abbeville native, has bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate degrees in statistics from UL Lafayette. He was president of Georgia Southern University and Sam Houston State University’s provost before joining UL as provost and vice president of Academic Affairs in 2018.

Hebert told The Current he hasn’t decided whether he’ll go for the permanent job. “I’ve not given any thought to it, honestly,” he said. “At this point, I’m focused on the problem that’s at hand.” But according to The Advocate, he is certainly "interested in participating in a search as an applicant for the next UL president."