Southeastern unveils its 'College Portrait'
Contact: Rene Abadie
3/31/08
HAMMOND – Southeastern Louisiana University joined other members of the University of Louisiana System recently in unveiling a consumer-oriented Web page designed to provide consistent information that can offer viable comparisons of institutions for prospective students and their parents.
The online resource includes detailed data on areas such as cost of attendance, degree offerings and campus safety.
The University of Louisiana System, which includes Southeastern and seven other regional institutions, is the first in the country to launch its College Portraits. The Voluntary System of Accountability initiative is a joint project of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities and the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges.
“This tool will allow prospective students and their parents to evaluate an institution’s profile and compare it with others,” said Southeastern President Randy Moffett. “The profiled information is consistent and uniform, which makes it very user-friendly.”
In addition to providing a snapshot of a university’s statistical information, the College Portrait also lists information on students’ actual experiences and perceptions of the institution. It includes student learning outcomes as documented through objective sources such as surveys and performance on professional licensure examinations.
“A Web site can never replace an actual visit to an institution, where prospective students get to meet other students and faculty and tour the campus itself,” Moffett said. “But it does provide sound information that students and parents can use in helping to narrow down their choices.”
Access to the list of University of Louisiana System institutions offering the College Portraits is through the system Web site, www.uls.state.la.us.
“The University of Louisiana System has been a key supporter during the launch of the Voluntary System of Accountability this spring,” said VSA Executive Director Christine Keller. “We’re pleased and excited to see the first College Portraits available to prospective students and their families and believe this is an important step forward in providing understandable and consistent information on the college experience.”
The College Portraits are part of the system’s larger accountability effort to ensure all students have access to a college education, graduate on time, and meet Louisiana’s workforce needs. In addition to Southeastern, other institutions in the system include Grambling State, Louisiana Tech, McNeese State, Nicholls State, Northwestern State, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and the University of Louisiana at Monroe. The institutions all together enroll approximately 80,000 students.
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