Despite our delay, it is wonderful to see the campus filled with students ready to tackle another semester – especially this semester, with a national championship under our belt. Just as our football team excelled the entire season, so do our faculty in their scholarly and creative works, as well as our alumni who succeed every day in their fields. This is a testament to the magic that occurs daily in our classrooms and to the support of our amazing staff. We are so glad to have everyone back and to begin another semester transforming lives and driving the marketplace of ideas. 

Sincerely, 

Stacia Haynie
Executive Vice President & Provost
LSU

Professional Opportunities for Faculty Development

LSU's Learning & Teaching Collaborative, a resource for faculty to learn and incorporate best practices for teaching and learning, provides training in new technology and learning pedagogy. Faculty development opportunities are year-round and can be found on the website. Events will feature current research-based best practices with provided resources. The Learning and Teaching Collaborative welcomes suggestions in regard to specific topics or development opportunities. Visit LSU's Learning & Teaching Collaborative's website to find out more information on upcoming events this semester. 

LSU's Pregnancy & Parenting Program Requests Feedback from Parents

The Pregnancy & Parenting Program would like to provide a forum for employees and students to identify potential opportunities for its program. The program's committee is seeking input from LSU faculty, staff and students for current and future initiatives. Click here to find a survey that includes questions relating to initiatives such as a “sitter database.”

Make-Up Class Days and Changes to the Academic Calendar

Due to classes being cancelled on Jan. 13 and 14 for the national championship, the university will hold two make-up class days in order to ensure that the spring semester meets the minimum number of required class days. The make-up days will be held on two Saturdays: Jan. 25 and Feb. 8. This allows LSU to make up the days without interfering with the Mardi Gras holiday or spring break. To read the full announcement for make-up days, click here. 

Online Faculty Scholars Program Offers $1,000 Stipends

Applications are now being accepted for the LSU Online Service-Learning Faculty Scholars Training Program, which offers $1,000 stipends to full-time LSU faculty members who teach online courses and are interested in experiential education and hands-on learning that benefits the community. Applications are due February 14. For additional details of how to apply for the Online Faculty Scholars Program, click here.

BA in Art Approved

The Board of Regents recently approved the establishment of the BA in Art. The BA in Art serves to bridge existing fields of study within the LSU School of Art with key programs in the College of Art & Design as well as other programs across the university. To find out more information about a BA in Art, click here. 

Letter of Intent Waiver That Removes Step in Academic Programming Implementation

The Board of Regents is piloting a Letter of Intent (LOI) waiver process that removes the additional step in academic programming implementation. The goal of this pilot is to support innovation by allowing campuses to be nimble and responsive to the demands of industry and academia while ensuring a thorough and effective new degree program proposal and evaluation process. Click here for more information about the Letter of Intent Waiver. 

If you have any questions on starting this path to program implementation, please contact Anna Bartel (acastr1@lsu.edu). 

Zero Cost Textbooks (ZCT) Designation for Courses

This spring, faculty were given the opportunity to designate their courses with a special enrollment code of ZCT. This code alerts students to courses/sections with zero textbook costs. Sixty-eight courses chose to pilot this special enrollment code. Please keep this designation in mind for fall courses. Departments will have the ability to designate a section as a “zero-cost textbook” until March 6, 2020. After that time, they should contact the Registrar’s Office to include the remark and code. To read additional information about the ZCT, click here.