Nineteen in '19 – University of Louisiana Monroe

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Dear Alumni and Friends of ULM, At the University of Louisiana Monroe, 2019 was a year of accomplishments.

Among many proud moments, I announced at Commencement on Dec. 14 the ULM graduation rate for six-year and four-year cohorts has reached historic highs.

Adding to that, of the 770 degrees awarded nearly 50 percent were in the health sciences and STEM majors.

These facts show ULM is providing career-track degree programs in highdemand fields which meet the needs of students and employers.

In this booklet we highlight 19 other achievements in 2019. To all who made these successes possible, thank you, and we look forward to 2020 and ULM remaining the Best on the Bayou.

Nick J. Bruno, Ph.D. ULM President

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he University of Louisiana Monroe has received official confirmation of institutional accreditation for the next 10 years from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. The reaffirmation of accreditation, which ULM has held continuously since 1955, was officially announced on Dec. 10, 2019, by the SACSCOC Board of Trustees during the annual meeting in Houston.

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he TOP Project Award from the North Louisiana Economic Partnership was presented to ULM and the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine. President Nick J. Bruno, Jr., Ph.D., was instrumental in bringing the medical school to the ULM campus. The first class of medical students begins in July 2020. The award recognizes a project that illustrates North Louisiana as a thriving region – a destination for high-quality talent, innovative companies and global investment.

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study found the University of Louisiana Monroe contributed $566.8 million to the Northeast Louisiana* economy in Fiscal Year 2017-2018. Conducted for ULM by Economic Modeling Specialists International (EMSI), the compelling study shows how the university is unmatched in its positive impact to the students, the region and the state. The university supports a variety of businesses and it benefits society as an economic driver, among other contributions.

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mily Ogden loves to teach – and she loves to learn. The ULM alumna and Louisiana Department of Education High School Teacher of the Year for 2020, is enrolled in the ULM Educational Leadership Graduate Program. She earned a B.S. in Elementary Education from ULM in 2013.

In her six years as an educator, Ogden taught math at Start Elementary School and Rayville High School. In August 2019, Ogden became assistant principal at Start Elementary School.

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atthew Talbert, Ph.D., ULM Associate Professor of Biology, received a $352,500 grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive Kidney Diseases supporting research into the connection between obesity and diabetes. Talbert asks, " ... a key question for those of us that are trying to find ways to improve therapies for obese and diabetic humans is this: what are the molecular pathways and genes involved in causing the onset of insulin resistance in body tissues?"

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ommitted to improving the health of Northeast Louisiana residents, ULM received a USDA grant of $597,274 to help infants and children with heart conditions. Written by Bryan Donald, Pharm.D., of the College of Pharmacy, the project is for “Expanding pediatric cardiology services with telemedicine and collaborative drug therapy management.” ULM, in collaboration with Ochsner Health System and the Northeast Louisiana Economic Alliance, seeks to provide affordable pediatric cardiology services via telemedicine to patients throughout the rural areas of NELA.

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he Biedenharn Family, in partnership with the Louisiana Board of Regents and ULM Foundation, has provided more than $5.5 million in funding for ULM. In 2019, the following were established: B.W. Biedenharn Chair in Business – $1,000,000, Emy-Lou Biedenharn second Professorship in Music – $100,000, Elizabeth and Haydn Cutler Professorship in Biotechnology – $100,000, Francesca and C.D. Oakley Professorship in Academic Innovation Center – $100,000, Doll and Henry Biedenharn Jr. Professorship in Communication – $100,000 and JoAnn and Miles Sager Professorship in Computer Information Systems – $100,000.

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$55.4M goal exceeded!

Thank You!

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he ULM Foundation SOAR Campaign exceeded its goal of $55.4 million with a spectacular sum of $56,000,985.

SOAR stands for S – Students/Succeed, O – Opportunities/ Educate, A – Athletics/Achieve, R – Renovations/Build. ULM’s first capital campaign launched in 2014, encouraging private financial support from individuals, organizations and businesses. It funds endowed scholarships, endowed faculty and research, student-athlete scholarships, renovations and construction.

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LM's Precision Ag and UAS (Unmanned Aircraft Systems) Research Center joined AeroVironment Inc.’s University Collaboration Project utilizing AeroVironment Quantix drones and the AeroVironment Decision Support System. AeroVironment donated two Quantix drones, along with one year of full access to AV DDS, to the Research Center in exchange for ULM mapping the local ecosystem and agricultural areas and gathering data analytics.

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ew ULM Safe app reinforces campus security. The safety of each person on the ULM campus is the number one priority of the administration of President Nick J. Bruno, Jr., Ph.D., and the University Police Department. That priority has been recognized.

ULM has the distinction of being named one of the Safest Colleges in America by Alarms.org, and thus, one of the safest in the state.

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he Office of Sponsored Programs and Research is pleased to announce another successful year in receiving grants and contracts from federal and state agencies and foundations. OSPR received notifications on almost $14 million in newly awarded research projects for 2018-19.

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he Hawkeye, ULM’s student-run newspaper, won first place in “Best College Newspaper” and third place for the “Best College Website” at the Southeast Journalism Conference "Best of the South 2018," held in February 2019. In March, Hawkeye photographer and editor-in-chief Prajal Prasai won first place for a photo taken on a New York City subway platform while attending the Spring National College Media Association Convention.

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alons for Taps is comprised of faculty and student members of the ULM Trumpet Studio. These musicians volunteer to perform “Taps” live at the funerals and memorial services for U.S. veterans.

Talons for Taps was founded in 2019 by Eric Siereveld, D.M.A., assistant professor of trumpet in the School of Visual and Performing Arts.

Original student members include Kody Jernigan, William Joiner, Kris Balint, Sabrina Mata, Ian Lee, Hawk Walker, Solomon Abang, Austin Pasche, Vincent Capuano and Ryan Blomquist.

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LM is among 10 Sun Belt Conference institutions with Top Team GPA Awards for the 2017-18 academic year. The awards honor the teams with the top cumulative team grade point average in each of the sponsored sports within the Sun Belt from the 2017-18 academic year. Warhawks men's basketball was named a Top Team with a GPA of 2.7. Of the 10 teams, ULM was the only basketball team to earn the honor.

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he Thomas J. Nicholson Virtual Reality Lab opened in the ULM Library, making cutting-edge immersive technology available to students and faculty. The lab was funded by a generous donation from the Jean and Saul A. Mintz Foundation. It features 28 student stations with VR headsets and headphones, an instructor’s station and two networked projection screens.

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LM maintained designations in 2019 as a Carnegie R3 Doctoral University and a U.S. News & World Report Best National University for the third consecutive year. These designations move ULM toward its goal in the vision statement of the Strategic Plan: to be recognized among the top 200 universities in the nation for excellence in teaching, research, and innovation, with an emphasis on the health sciences.

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ribbon-cutting officially opened the Wally Jones Golf Complex, located between Brown Stadium and Warhawk Field. The 5,000-square-foot building includes coaches’ offices, locker rooms, guest restroom, storage rooms, kitchen and players’ lounge. It features an indoor 1,000-square-foot SAM PuttLab and TrackMan Golf Simulator. Outside is a covered tee area, 6,000-foot tee area and five target greens. The $800,000 facility was funded entirely by donations to the SOAR Campaign.

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ouisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards was the keynote speaker at ULM Spring Commencement. The governor thanked the 900 graduates for choosing ULM for their education, saying, “You stayed and you believed in Louisiana and I believe in you. You are an indispensable part of what makes Louisiana great.” He shook hands with each graduate after they received their diploma.

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he University of Louisiana Monroe unveiled the newly renovated training facility for student athletes located inside Malone Stadium.

Athletic Director Scott McDonald states, "Through a grant provided by the NCAA and support from the ULM Facilities Corp, we are now able to provide our student athletes with a new and technologically advanced training and rehab facility."

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700 University Avenue, Monroe, LA 71209 318.342.1000 | ulm.edu