Master Plan for Higher Education

Article VIII of Louisiana’s Constitution authorizes the Board of Regents (BoR) to develop a master plan for higher education in Louisiana. This Master Plan provides a broad vision for the State’s higher education system and acknowledges its interdependence with the economy and its many contributions towards better lives for Louisiana’s citizenry. The actions outlined in this Plan are guided by the reality that Louisiana must raise the educational attainment of its adult citizens if it is to compete successfully in the 21st century world economy. The Plan also addresses the need to strategically invest in targeted research to sustain and expand the State’s economic development. Finally, increased accountability is a common thread which undergirds every element of this Master Plan.

To move Louisiana aggressively forward, the Board of Regents has embraced a robust new attainment goal that calls for 60% of all working-age adults (ages 25-64) in Louisiana to hold a degree or high-value credential by 2030. As we stand on the brink of a new decade, this Master Plan, born of the Board of Regents’ unique charge to guide postsecondary education across the state, will set the foundation to increase opportunity.  Our Talent Imperative is to Educate, Innovate, and Collaborate.

To review the complete Master Plan, click here:

MASTER PLAN FOR HIGHER EDUCATION    Institution Role, Scope, and Mission   Strategic Plan 2020-21 through 2024-25    Data Dashboard – Master Plan

• Previous Master Plans (1972-2011)
  • 1972
    • 1972 Supplement
  • 1978
  • 1980
  • 1982
  • 1984
  • 1994
  • 2001
  • 2011
    • 2011 Annual Review
• Master Plan Annual Reviews
  • Master Plan for Public Postsecondary Education: 2011 – Revised April, 2012
  • First Annual Review of the Master Plan for Public Postsecondary Education:  August, 2012
  • Second Annual Review of the Master Plan for Public Postsecondary Education:  August, 2013
  • Third Annual Review of the Master Plan for Public Postsecondary Education:  August 2014
  • Fourth Annual Review of the Master Plan for Public Postsecondary Education – August 2015

Institutional Licensure

Board of Regents serves as the authorizing body for post-secondary schools operating in Louisiana that are not part of Louisiana State System Schools. This includes occupational and trade schools, defined as Proprietary Schools and Degree-Granting schools, both those that offer Academic Degrees and Religious Degrees.

Proprietary schools
Degree-Granting Institutions

• SARA

  Louisiana became a member of SARA on December 1, 2014. SARA is a national initiative which seeks to establish comparable national standards for the interstate offering of postsecondary distance-education courses and programs. SARA is a voluntary agreement among regional compacts (SREB, NEBHE, MHEC, and WICHE) and member states. Each member state approves their in-state institutions for SARA participation. Institutional membership is voluntary and open to accredited, degree-granting institutions from all sectors of postsecondary education (proprietary, public, private). Once approved, SARA member institutions may offer distance education programs in other SARA member states without additional authorization. For more information on SARA, and for the latest listing of participating states and institutions, visit www.nc-sara.org/directory

  PLEASE NOTE: As of January 11, 2021, Initial and Renewal applications have been combined into one document with a check box to select initial or renewal. The link to the updated application is under step #2 below. 

  For postsecondary institutions located in Louisiana: Accredited, degree-granting institutions located in Louisiana seeking INITIAL SARA membership and RENEWAL SARA membership should do the following:

  1)    Review the following document: Louisiana SARA Institutional Application Process and Student Complaint Process

  2)    Complete the Application and Approval Form for Institution Participation in SARA 

  3)    Attach the following documents to the Application for Institutional Approval to Participate in SARA:

  (a) A copy of the institution’s student  complaint process;

  (b) documentation explaining the institution’s policies and practices addressing catastrophic events; and

  (c) continuity of operations

  4)    Enclose a check or money order in the amount of $1,500, made payable to the Louisiana Board of Regents

  5)    Submit the above items to:

  The Louisiana Board of Regents

  P.O. Box 3677

  Baton Rouge, LA. 70821-3677

  Attention: LeAnn Detillier

  Applications are reviewed and approved on a rolling-basis. Applications will be reviewed and submitted to the Board of Regents for consideration within 60 days of receipt.

  If you have questions regarding the SARA institutional application process, please contact LeAnn Detillier at LeAnn. Detillier@laregents.edu.

  For SARA-approved postsecondary institutions located outside of Louisiana:

  SARA-approved postsecondary institutions listed on the NC-SARA website’s listing of approved institutions (www.nc-sara.org) may operate within Louisiana without additional authorization, unless the institution offers courses or programs which require clinical experiences in the State of Louisiana and such clinical experiences place more than 10 students from each program in Louisiana who are physically present simultaneously at a single facility/site.

  SARA Student Complaints (NOTE: THIS PROCESS IS ONLY APPLICABLE TO SARA STUDENTS)

  If you are a student living outside of Louisiana in a state currently participating in the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA), and you are enrolled via distance education in a Louisiana college/university that is a current member of SARA, and you are unable to resolve a complaint with the college/university, or feel that not all issues were resolved with the final disposition of the college/university, you may appeal to the Louisiana Board of Regents. To find out whether or not your college/university is SARA-approved and/or the state in which you reside is a SARA state, please visit the National Council for SARA website at www.nc-sara.org. Below are links to the forms you will need to file your formal complaint:

  Louisiana SARA Student Complaint Process (read this first)

  LOUISIANA SARA STUDENT COMPLAINT FORM

Data/Policies

• Data

  Data Governance & Advisory Council

  • Reporting Calendar
  • Statewide Student Profile System (AY, 2020)
  • Enrollment, Statewide Student Profile System – Statewide Student Profile
  • Statewide Completers System (AY 2019-2020)(Current)
  • Completion, Statewide Completers System – Degrees and Certificates and Awarded
  • Financial Aid Data System (FADS)
  • Retention/Transfer/Exit Reports
  • Inventory of Degree and Certificate Programs
  • Student Credit Hour Production Data
  • Association for Institutional Research (AIR)
  • Southern Association for Institutional Research (SAIR)
  • HigherEdInfo.org – National Information Center for Higher Education Policymaking and Analysis (Created by NCHEMS)
  • NCES The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS)
  • SREB Data Exchange
• Policies
  • HBCU Designation
  • Quality Postsecondary Credentials of Value