BATON ROUGE, La. – Collis B. Temple III of Baton Rouge was sworn in as Chair of the Board of Regents today, sharing with the members his continued support for expanding dual enrollment, promoting equity and diversity across initiatives, and driving engagement with business and industry leaders to better align higher education with the state’s workforce needs.
Temple is a National Sales Director and agency owner with Primerica. Prior to joining Primerica, a financial services company, he was a student-athlete playing basketball at LSU. While at LSU he earned an undergraduate degree in General Business and completed a Master’s in Sports Management, before beginning the pursuit of his Doctorate in Educational Leadership. According to LSU’s Sports Information Department, Temple is believed to be the first Division I student-athlete to complete undergraduate and Master’s degrees and begin the pursuit of a Doctorate while still eligible to play athletics. Temple serves as the representative of the 6th Congressional District with a term that expires on December 31, 2026.
“If we’re going to successfully develop talent in our state we must look for expanded opportunities for all students no matter their race, no matter their zip code, no matter their background,” said Chair Temple. “Expanding dual enrollment so that every student has the chance to earn college credit while still in high school makes the dream of a college degree more attainable and affordable. I am fired up to lead this group of visionary leaders and look forward to engaging with our stakeholders to advance our postsecondary priorities.”
Joining Chairman Temple in leadership roles for 2022 are:
- Gary Solomon, Jr. of New Orleans, Vice Chair
- Sonia Perez of Baton Rouge, Secretary
- Blake R. David of Lafayette, Executive Committee Member
- Jay Seale of Hammond, Executive Committee Member
- Felix R. Weill of Baton Rouge, Executive Committee Member
- Wilbert D. Pryor of Shreveport, Executive Committee Member
The Board of Regents, a state agency created by the 1974 Louisiana Constitution, is a policy and advocacy board coordinating the activities of the state’s public higher education institutions. Its responsibilities include creating a statewide vision for educational attainment and talent development and adopting a funding formula to incentivize improved student outcomes. Members of Regents are gubernatorial appointees, chosen to serve six-year terms after receiving Senate confirmation. The sixteen-member voluntary board includes two individuals from each Congressional District, as well as three members-at-large and one student member elected annually from the Council of Student Body Presidents.
During its regular January meeting, Regents also received a report on implementation of the Uniform Policy on Power-Based Violence as required by Act 472 (Freeman) of the 2021 Regular Legislative Session. The legislative response will be submitted on behalf of the Board to the Governor and Senate and House Education Committees, as well as the Senate Select Committee on Women and Children.
Ongoing Power-Based Violence Policy implementation highlights required by law include:
Uniform Policies – Each public postsecondary education system (Louisiana State University System, Southern University System, University of Louisiana System, and Louisiana Community and Technical College System) has adopted a compliant policy aligned to the Board of Regents Uniform Policy on Power-Based Violence/Sexual Misconduct.
Ongoing Training – In addition to initial training of all system and campus leadership, management boards, and confidential advisors, Regents launched a new annual mandatory training video for all responsible employees on January 1, 2022.
Confidential Advisors – Regents established the adequate ratio of confidential advisors to students as 1:1,500. To date, 188 confidential advisors have been trained, exceeding the minimum of 137 needed.
Administrative Reporting – Chancellors and system presidents have submitted incident reports of power-based violence for inclusion in Regents’ legislative response due on January 15, 2022.
Memorandum of Understanding (MOUs) – All campuses have completed their work on MOUs with law enforcement entities in their geographical areas. These will be fully executed early in 2022 based on law enforcement agencies’ final approval.
Data Publications – All institutions published semiannual campus crime statistics.
“As we enter this new year, we remain laser-focused on student safety and talent development here in Louisiana,” said Commissioner of Higher Education Kim Hunter Reed. “In this rapidly changing environment, our work remains challenging, and our educators and Board remain committed to increasing overall attainment so that Louisiana prospers. My congratulations to our new Board Chair Collis Temple and our incoming Board leadership team. We are looking forward to a productive year ahead.”
Additional reports received during the January meeting for submission to the legislature include:
- 2021 HBCU Advisory Council Report (Act 417 – Hughes)
- Louisiana Minority Sports Initiative Task Force Report (HCR 19 – Brass)