Dear LSU-Eunice Friends:

I would like to take this opportunity to share my sincere wish that the coming year will be for you and for our university community-alumni, parents and friends as well as all of those who live and work on the campus-a year of hope, strength, and renewed commitment to all that is good and excellent.

This year greets us with both blessings and stark new challenges, from political and military conflicts to economic contraction. There is a powerful element of renewed optimism in our ability to face these challenges and prevail. South Louisiana is not immune to the vulnerability of these challenges. But, we can have optimism and confidence that our communities have the courage and creativity to triumph in the face of these challenges and thus never to lose sight of our vision.

The difficulties of our time may be complex and bewildering, but they offer us clear choices in how we respond to them. Either we can choose simply to react as these challenges force themselves upon us, or we can view them as opportunities for creativity and leadership. The easier course is the first-to allow external events to shape us. But this can lead to insular and even selfish behavior driven by fear. The better course, the one we must choose, calls for commitment to higher ideals beyond our self interests.

On the economic front, the impact of the worldwide financial turmoil is becoming evident throughout higher education. Many of our peer institutions against which we benchmark our practices have announced steep budget cuts, hiring freezes, caps on salary increases, and other measures, including layoffs. For the first time in memory, the assessment of the financial outlook is negative for higher education.

LSU Eunice's' response to these economic challenges, under the leadership of Dr. Nunez, have always been to be active rather than passive. It is now abundantly clear that we must not merely prepare to "weather the storm" as some have called us to do. What the world is experiencing is no passing storm; it is an economic climate change. Volatile markets illustrate the serious structural nature of the challenge

s confronting us. But we are experiencing more than just a market-driven recession. It is a seismic shift in the entire economy affecting major industries, name-brand businesses, whole tiers of white-collar and blue-collar jobs, and accustomed ways of organizing our society and economy in many sectors, from banking to publishing. No one should expect higher education to be immune to potential fundamental threats and questions.

In summary, this new year greets us with great opportunities and with more than the usual number of challenges. Facing those challenges will, I believe, draw out our best as we answer the call to responsible stewardship of the legacy of excellence entrusted to us. Genuinely listening to all views and making difficult financial decisions will require an extra measure of wisdom and courage of the sort that Chancellor Bill Nunez and his team has drawn upon in the past and will rely on in the future. I can imagine no other community with whom I would rather share these times. Thank you for your support, your hard work, and your trust.

To quote Dr. Nunez, "LSU at Eunice is the place where careers are built and dreams come true". We invite you to join us as investors in this dynamic campus so the work can continue to educate every student that walks through the doors.

Sincerely,

E. Lynn Lejeune, Chair
LSU-Eunice Foundation Board