Louisiana Colleges Hit with New Rounds of Budget Cuts

BATON ROUGE — Louisiana's colleges are bracing for the newest rounds of budget cuts, with higher education hit with a $25 million cut in the final month of this fiscal year and another $66 million in slashing for the upcoming budget year.

The reductions are lower than lawmakers considered before they wrapped up their work. But they fall on top of years of reductions that campus leaders say are chasing away administration leaders, faculty and students.

Commissioner of Higher Education Jim Purcell says the cuts will be difficult, but he says higher education "dodged the bullet" compared to scenarios that had higher education facing steep reductions topping $200 million.

Purcell says campuses may furlough employees, cut programs and tap whatever minimal reserves they have to cope with the latest round of reductions.