BATON ROUGE – Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS) Board Chairman Woody Oge issued the following statement in response to the conclusion of the February 2016 Special Legislative Session on behalf of the Board of Supervisors:
"We applaud Governor Edwards and the Louisiana Legislature for making tough decisions and finding solutions for the current year's budget deficit. We appreciate the fact that our lawmakers confronted many difficult decisions in recent weeks and appreciate the continuing support they have shown to Louisiana's community and technical colleges.
“Even with the progress made during the Special Session, it appears that the LCTCS will face a significant budget reduction in fiscal year 2017. Over the past eight years, Louisiana's community and technical colleges have worked to expand workforce and educational access in spite of more than a dozen budget cuts. Our colleges have done the hard work of eliminating programs, centralizing services, and even merging institutions.
“But clearly, the current financial environment requires that we redouble our focus and commitment to the people of Louisiana and the business community that rely on our graduates to power their operations. Even in these tough fiscal times rest assured that Louisiana's community and technical colleges remain committed to serving students, industry, and communities."
