Highlights

• Jaimie Hebert stepped down as UL Lafayette’s interim president on Thursday, asking to return to his provost position after three months
• The UL System Board appointed Dr. Ramesh Kolluru as the new interim president
• The board plans to form a presidential search committee after faculty pushed back on the closed-door process
• The university has cut more than 70 positions since September to address $25 million budget deficit
• Kolluru promised a revenue growth plan after Thanksgiving, saying “broken systems” failed the university, not its people

UL Lafayette Gets New Interim President as Board Promises Search Committee

Jaimie Hebert steps down after three months, and Ramesh Kolluru takes over as the university faces $25 million budget deficit.

LAFAYETTE, La. (KPEL News) — The University of Louisiana at Lafayette got a new interim president Thursday morning when the UL System Board met in special session to address the university’s leadership crisis.

Dr. Jaimie Hebert, who served as UL’s interim president for three months since August, asked the board to let him return to his previous position as provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. The board approved his request and appointed Dr. Ramesh Kolluru, UL’s vice president for research, innovation, and economic development, as the new interim president.

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“I wanted to thank the board for the honor of being able to serve my alma mater for the past three months,” Hebert told the board. “I can’t say it wasn’t a trying time but the folks behind me right now and on our campus are some of the most extraordinary people I’ve worked with in my career.”

What UL Lafayette Families Need to Know

The leadership change happened during one of the toughest stretches in UL Lafayette’s history. Hebert inherited a $25 million structural budget deficit when he took over in August after longtime President Joseph Savoie stepped down. Since September, the university has cut more than 70 positions through layoffs, retirements, resignations, and reassignments.

The financial crisis started after Savoie left in July, a year before his contract ended, and Jerry Luke LeBlanc, the university’s longtime vice president for administration and finance, resigned in May. The timing of both departures raised questions from faculty and community members about what university leaders knew about the budget problems and when they knew it.

Presidential Search Committee Plans Announced

The board’s decision to appoint Kolluru as interim president instead of permanent president answers faculty concerns that came up this week. Faculty members criticized what they saw as plans to skip the required search committee process outlined in the board’s own rules.

The UL Lafayette Chapter of the American Association of University Professors sent a letter Monday to UL System Board Chairman Mark Romero pushing for a transparent search process. “Regardless of who is ultimately selected for the position, the process for identifying the next president of UL Lafayette must be fair and open and must involve the input of faculty, staff, and students,” the letter said.

READ MORE: UL Lafayette Faculty Speak Out on Presidential Search Controversy

Board policy requires the chairman to appoint a search committee of at least six board members plus a UL Lafayette faculty member selected by the Faculty Senate. That’s the same process other UL System schools used for recent presidential searches at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, Northwestern State University, and other campuses.

Kolluru’s Vision for Financial Turnaround

Kolluru promised to unveil a revenue growth plan after Thanksgiving in his first remarks as interim president. He spoke directly about the budget crisis and personnel cuts.

“It’s not our people who have failed our systems. It is our broken systems, in some part, that have failed our people,” Kolluru told university staff, faculty, and students. He said he’ll change the systems that have been “holding us back” and promised that “together, faculty, staff, and students, we will reset and rebuild.”

Kolluru brings a research background to the role. As vice president for research, innovation, and economic development, he’s worked to push UL toward becoming a top-tier research university. He’s known nationally for applying computing and informatics research to problems in health care, disaster management, and supply chain management.

What This Means for the UL Community

Hebert’s decision to step down clears the way for him to potentially apply for the permanent president position through the formal search process. Sources told The Acadiana Advocate that Hebert was interested in applying for the job.

The board also dealt with another personnel matter on Thursday. Former President Savoie was set to take a sabbatical before moving into a faculty position, but he announced Wednesday he’ll retire at the end of the year instead. The board discussed “rescission of President Emeritus and related matters” during Thursday’s meeting.

What Happens Next for UL Lafayette

The UL System Board will now form a presidential search committee following its established process. Based on recent searches at other UL System schools, the process typically takes several months:

• Public meetings on campus to gather input on what people want in a new president
• National advertising of the position
• Review of applications by the search committee
• On-campus interviews with semifinalists
• Presentation of finalists to the full board
• Final interviews and selection by the UL System Board of Supervisors

Kolluru will work with administrators to keep addressing the budget deficit and cutting costs. Nearly $2 million in recurring deficit remains, along with at least $10 million in debt from prior years, according to recent reports.

The university launched a website documenting budget moves and is asking faculty and staff for ideas on additional savings and ways to bring in more money.