SPORTS: Gov. Bobby Jindal calls for nonexistent Pete Mavavich statue, p. 3
ENTERTAINMENT: Shakespeare highlighted at Swine Palace, p. 7
Reveille The Daily
VOLUME 118, ISSUE 147
thedailyreveille
@lsureveille
thedailyreveille
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Thursday, July 10, 2014
Committee aims to improve Mayor-President La. economy through WISE plan meets with Tufts STUDENT GOVERNMENT
SAM KARLIN / The Daily Reveille
Paul Babineaux Contributing Writer
Renee Barrow Staff Writer
Donations exceeding $1 million from organizations like the Dow Chemical Company demonstrate the clear connection between private industries and higher education. Central to this link at the University is the Committee of 100, a private, non-profit organization comprising of Louisiana’s CEOs and university presidents. Similar to the goals outlined by the Workforce and Innovation for a Stronger Economy plan, or WISE, the Committee of 100’s goal is to address issues affecting economic growth. “Workforce is one of the
most critical areas for all of our members,” said Committee of 100 CEO Michael Olivier. The Committee of 100 plans to host several events around the state to initiate discussions about WISE, starting in August. Olivier said the events will help explain the tenets of WISE to the business community. According to these tenets, 80 percent of WISE funding supports workforce development. Universities in Louisiana have an opportunity to compete for this money, and the number of graduates a given institution provides in a high-demand field will affect the amount for which it qualifies. Under WISE regulations, universities will have to match 20
percent of private donations. Olivier said August’s event will take place in Baton Rouge and be available as a webinar. Representatives from technology corporations like AT&T and IBM will be present. Other host locations will include Monroe, Shreveport, Lake Charles and New Orleans. At the last public WISE council meeting, LSU President F. King Alexander said the Committee of 100’s fall events will give the administration an opportunity to “separate the contenders from the pretenders.”
Contact Renee Barrow at rbarrow@lsureveille.com
LSU SYSTEM
Med school re-accredited
Lauren Guillot Contributing Writer
After 18 months of preparation, LSU Sheveport Health Sciences Center received a full eight-year reaccreditation by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education. The LCME, formed in 1942 by the Association of American Medical Colleges and the American Medical Association, accredits over 150 institutions in the U.S. and Canada. Without accreditation, the medical school would lose its medical residency programs and federal funding, and graduates would be unable to get medical licensing in most states. LSUHSC Interim Dean John V. Marymont said he was relieved by the news. “To put this in context, full LCME accreditation for us is like crossing the finish line after a grueling race,” he said in a news release. “No one is guaranteed
re-accreditation, and some of the best medical schools in the nation have not been able to achieve what our school has just accomplished.” A group of LCME reviewers visited the campus in January and commended the school for its information technology program. They were impressed the school provided students with tablets for clinical rotations and laptops pre loaded with course work. According to Sally Croom, LSUHSC executive director of communications and public relations, the LCME cited three areas in which the medical school was non-compliant with standards. These areas were: a lack of a formal scientific method component in the first two years of the curriculum, no formal mechanism for assessing the potential risks to students who take elective programs in other areas of the country and the need for more student recreation and relaxation facilities. “We are very pleased with the
overall report and have already begun working on the three areas.”said Chancellor Robert A. Barish in a news release, In the 2014-2015 school year, LSUHSC will begin to offer an evidence-based research component throughout the medical school curriculum, called “Translating Research into Practice.” “Ultimately, our students will benefit from the ability to more effectively incorporate research into their treatment of patients,” Barish said regarding TRIP. The Dean’s office is working on creating a plan to evaluate outside electives before they are offered to students. The school’s officials are also seeking funds to improve the Student Union to accommodate more student activities.
After more than six months of waiting, East Baton Rouge MayorPresident Melvin “Kip” Holden fulfilled his promise to Student Government when he met with President Clay Tufts to organize plans and form a future relationship between the two offices. In his January State of the City address, Holden promoted an initiative to have regular meetings with student government presidents from various universities to learn the viewpoints of young leaders. This initiative, which had seemingly been ignored, became a reality in late May. Tufts said he realized it was going to take effort from both offices to get a formal meeting in place and decided at the end of May to reach out further through SG State Capitol Adviser Brad Guin. “The mayor was very cordial with setting up a time for he and I to meet,” Tufts said. “And from what we discussed, I feel that this is going to be a successful venture between the students and the city.” The meeting between Holden and Tufts addressed several important issues regarding public safety in critical areas such as Tigerland and college apartments, campus development projects focusing on lighting, and a project to better connect Baton Rouge to the campus. Tufts expressed concern for the safety of students in the Tigerland area, focusing on the increasing number of robberies. The mayor agreed and proposed the addition of police units patrolling in the area. Tufts said he and the mayor also discussed the addition of more
standard lighting on and around campus to produce a safer environment and a more uniformed look. “If you look at other campuses, most have the same design, look and type of lighting systems standard across their campus,” Tufts said, “One thing that the mayor and I discussed is the transition to LED standard lighting systems stretching a few miles off of campus.” Holden and Tufts agree the standard lighting of campus will create a more inviting atmosphere to the campus and signal to visitors from the interstate that they are approaching the University. Tufts said the proposed light fixtures would be especially beneficial to the dark areas created by the oak trees and behind the UREC and Sorority Row, which is where a large portion of robberies on campus occur. In the meeting, Holden also brought up the “Sister City Project.” The project is focused on creating a closer relationship between the Baton Rouge and the University. Holden believes a closer relationship among University departments and the city could reap multiple benefits. Tufts said the project is still in the preliminary stages, but he and the mayor agree the project would encourage young job seekers to remain in Baton Rouge through a closer connection downtown and would be a way to showcase the school for recruitment purposes. The details of the sister city project and advancement of other programs are set to be confronted further when Holden and Tufts meet at the end of July. Contact Paul Babineaux at pbabineaux@lsureveille.com
THE DAILY REVEILLE ARCHIVES
Contact Lauren Guillot at lguillot@lsureveille.com
Mayor-President Melvin “Kip” Holden speaks to the media in January at the State of the City address.