MOFFETT NAMED PRESIDENT EMERITUS OF SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA UNIVERSITY

BATON ROUGE – The Board of Supervisors for the University of Louisiana System today named Randy Moffett President Emeritus of Southeastern Louisiana University.  Moffett worked in a variety of positions at Southeastern for 32 years including president from 2001-2008 before becoming president of the UL System.  He is retiring in September after 41 years in higher education.

“Thank you for this honor.  Education in my opinion is the noblest profession as it gives you the opportunity to shape the lives of those coming behind you.  I truly believe you can only be as successful as the team of people you have around you, so by honoring me you are recognizing the people I have been fortunate to work with during my years at Southeastern,” said Moffett.

An emeritus position is one of the highest academic honors awarded to professors and administrators usually on the occasion of their retirement.  While campus presidents can bestow an emeritus title to a university employee, a president emeritus title must be approved by the UL System Board.

Current Southeastern President John Crain made the recommendation.

“Dr. Moffett’s distinguished service as President of Southeastern for seven years as the capstone of his long career at the university qualifies him for this honor.  In truth, during the course of his presidency at Southeastern, Dr. Moffett led the institution to what many consider the pinnacle of its achievement, recognition and reputation,” said Crain.

Building on a strong foundation established at Southeastern over previous administrations, Moffett was known as one who pushed for excellence in all areas, urging faculty to raise the bar for their students and themselves and encouraging the campus community to embrace a strong service-oriented mentality. At Southeastern, he oversaw the change of the institution from an open-admissions university to one with selective admissions, which were increased several times over succeeding years without a major impact on enrollment.

Major events during his presidency included handling the crisis associated with Hurricane Katrina, which saw Southeastern become a home for more than 1,600 misplaced New Orleans area college students; the approval of Southeastern’s first doctoral program, a doctorate in educational leadership; the development of the university’s Southeast Louisiana Business Center, a model of cooperation between the university, economic development agencies and other organizations to encourage business growth; and strong cultural outreach into the community, including the opening of Southeastern’s Columbia Theatre for the Performing Arts in downtown Hammond.

During his tenure at Southeastern, the university restored football to its athletics program, initiated a $52 million residence hall replacement project, and renovated Strawberry Stadium with the addition of a parking garage and new press box and hospitality suites.

Prior to serving as Southeastern’s president, Moffett held the positions of provost and vice president for academic affairs, vice president for planning, research and development, dean and professor of the College of Education, and director of Continuing Education and Special Activities.

A native of Jonesboro, Moffett began his career as a high school classroom teacher in the Jackson Parish School System and worked at Northwestern State University as both Director of High School Relations and Assistant Director of External Affairs.

He earned degrees from Louisiana Tech University, Northwestern, and Louisiana State University.

Moffett has been married to Dr. Barbara Moffett for over 40 years.  They have three children and five grandchildren.

-ULS-

ABOUT THE UL SYSTEM: The University of Louisiana System is the largest higher education system in Louisiana enrolling about 94,000 students at Grambling State University, Louisiana Tech University, McNeese State University, Nicholls State University, Northwestern State University, Southeastern Louisiana University, the University of Louisiana  at Lafayette, the University of Louisiana at Monroe, and the University of New Orleans.