Flagship group cheers new GRAD Act

Louisiana’s Flagship Coalition, composed of business leaders from around the state, is taking at least partial credit for the passage of its “top priority” legislation during the recent regular session. House Bill 549, also known as GRAD Act 2.0, builds upon a program by the same name that was implemented last year. This latest version provides colleges and universities with greater flexibility to save money by granting operational autonomies in personnel, purchasing, facilities and investment. It also strengthens accountability by prioritizing student success metrics such as graduation and retention rates. Flagship Coalition co-chair Sean Reilly says legislative leaders and Gov. Bobby Jindal were receptive to updating the program. “The GRAD Act 2.0 legislation fit perfectly with the Flagship Coalition’s mission to bring fundamental, common-sense business principles to LSU and other universities,” he says. “Going back to late last year, the Jindal administration was very open to our higher education suggestions and made GRAD Act 2.0 a priority.” Smaller colleges opposed parts of the bill because they feared those provisions were better suited for larger institutions, like LSU. In particular, graduation goals represented a thorny issue. The final version of the bill, though, reportedly cleared up those concerns. As of this morning, the bill was still pending final approval on Jindal’s desk. —Jeremy Alford