After a unanimous decision by the Board of Supervisors for the University of Louisiana System, Dr. Wade Rousse will serve as the next president of McNeese State University. Rousse says he could hardly sleep the night prior, as he was so excited to get to work as university president.
“And [I] just feel like the most lucky guy on Earth to be able to come back to the university that truly gave me my start [and] launched my career, and be able to be a part of that leadership team to make sure that we drive this university forward,” he says.
Rousse spent 3 years at McNeese before leaving to join the workforce; though he technically graduated from Nicholls, he says he’s always considered McNeese to be his true undergraduate experience.
Rousse says he and his team are focusing on seeing construction projects and building updates through, and making sure every student knows how their time at McNeese will help them in the workforce. He thinks all this should help curb McNeese’s declining enrollment rate.
“We have got to— the number one university global objective for the upcoming year is to stabilize enrollment,” he says. “We can no longer have a continuing declining enrollment.”
McNeese was hit hard by Hurricane Laura in 2020 and is facing around a 21% decline in enrollment. Rousse hopes that ongoing facility upgrades in addition to his focus on ensuring each part of the university has a clear goal will help bring McNeese back.
“We still have about $100 million worth of projects that are underway,” he explains. “We have a $30-something million [student] union — state-of-the-art — in the middle of our campus and [it’s] a true game-changer in driving student experiences.”
Other projects include dorm renovations and changes to suites in McNeese’s football stadiums.
Rousse previously served various roles at McNeese, most recently as executive vice president.
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