LSU President William Tate will get a taste of Louisiana on his inaugural Scholarship First bus tour that kicks off Monday. The tour, powered by RoyOMartin, the first stop will be at LSU’s original campus in Pineville. Tate says this is a listening tour and an awareness campaign all rolled into one.
“For me, it’s just exciting to be with the people of the state. It’s extremely important that they understand that the leadership at LSU and our team is deeply committed to understanding what they need,” said Tate.
The goal of the tour is to learn more about some of the state’s key industries to ensure alignment with LSU’s priorities. Tate says the agenda prioritizes agriculture, biomedical, energy, defenses, and coastal resilience.
“We have to make sure our coasts are really well engineered and the science is outstanding. We got to make sure that the technology is secured on the cyber side,” said Tate.
The 1,000-mile road trip will travel across Louisiana – making stops in Monroe, Alexandria, Jeanerette, Natchitoches, Crowley, Chopin, New Orleans, and Lake Charles. Tate says information gathered during the tour will help to put the finishing touches on its master plan.
“We want to make sure as a public university that we have a public showing. That it’s imperative to hear from the people and to make sure we’re going in the right direction,” said Tate.
The tour ends in Convent on March 16.
Here’s Jeff Palermo’s interview with LSU President William Tate.
The public itinerary includes metros as big as New Orleans and Shreveport and as small as Chopin and Minden, as Tate captures the full perspectives of Louisiana. Of course, you can’t get a taste of Louisiana without tasting the food, and Tate intends to sprinkle in a few stops to the Bayou State’s favorite diners. Details are subject to change. Media are invited to the bulleted events below. Follow LSU’s social media accounts or check www.lsu.edu/president/tour for updates, highlights and behind-the-scenes activities.
Monday, March 13
President Tate and the Scholarship First tour bus will depart from LSU’s Memorial Tower bright and early, with a special send-off from Coach Kim Mulkey. After a stop for boudin, the bus will head to LSU’s original campus in Pineville for an important announcement, then roll through the meat pie capital of Louisiana, stopping in Shreveport for the evening.
- 6:00 a.m. Send-off from LSU’s Memorial Tower (Baton Rouge, LA)
- 9:30 a.m. Unveiling of LSU’s Economic Impact on Louisiana at the place where it all began (Pineville, LA)
- 11:00 a.m. Tour the Roy O Martin plywood factory, the nation’s largest and learn about the importance of the timber industry (Chopin, LA)
- 1:00 p.m. “Meat” and Greet with Natchitoches Alumni and Friends at Lasyone’s Meat Pie Restaurant
Tuesday, March 14
Tuesday will take Tate on a picture-perfect road trip through north Louisiana with stops in the “Friendliest City in the South” and “Sportsman’s Paradise,” giving way to glimpses of the state’s agricultural past and its future. After a lunchtime social with area supporters in Monroe, the bus will make its way back to Central Louisiana for a reception hosted by LSU alumnus Roy O Martin in Alexandria.
Wednesday, March 15
After breakfast at Lea’s Lunchroom, the bus will depart from Alexandria, making its way through New Iberia to the “Sugar City,” Jeanerette, to tour sugarcane farms and processing plants and learn more about the importance of sugarcane to the Louisiana economy. Then it’s a mad dash to Cajun Country, reaching Crowley just in time to harvest crawfish with Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser, before ending the day in Lake Charles.
- 10:00 a.m. Visit to “Sugar City” to tour sugarcane farms and processing plants in Jeanerette
- 1:30 p.m. Crawfishing in Crowley
- 3:00 p.m. Resiliency Tour in Lake Charles – visit storm affected areas with elected officials, local leaders and LSU experts
Thursday, March 16
On the final day of the tour, the bus will hustle down to Convent to visit with Shell and discuss the future of the energy industry in Louisiana, then jaunt over to the Big Easy to sit down and dine on world-famous Creole and Cajun cuisine. From there, the group will visit the Port of New Orleans to make an exciting announcement, then end the day celebrating on the Northshore with LSU family and friends.
- 3:30 p.m. Announcement at Port of New Orleans
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