LAFAYETTE, La. — After months of searching, the University of Louisiana System Board of Supervisors has officially named Dr. Ramesh Kolluru as the next president of UL Lafayette, ushering in a new chapter of leadership for the state’s second-largest university.
“Let's build a university that our faculty, our staff, our students, and our state deserve,” Kolluru said after receiving final approval to become UL Lafayette’s seventh president.
Kolluru’s roots at the university run deep — his relationship with UL Lafayette began in 1992 as a graduate student.
“This university has given me everything I've got on my back,” Kolluru said, describing his appointment as “an opportunity to give back to this institution as much as I could, and in this role as president, that would be the unique opportunity and extraordinary honor.”
The university community expressed optimism about the board’s unanimous decision.
“To have Dr. Ramesh Kolluru here to prepare the next generation of Louisiana leaders who will come out of the university means a lot because the university has done it for me and he’s going to come back and return and do it for other students,” said Frank Clavelle III, a student in attendance.
Kolluru was praised by the UL System for his track record as interim president, particularly for helping to secure the university’s prestigious R1 research classification and for leading efforts to narrow a $50 million deficit to within $12 million of breaking even.
“We have candidates for roles who cast a vision of what they would like to do in the future, and I think he has such a body of work to build upon,” said Rick Gallot, the UL System president.
As he steps into the position permanently, Kolluru emphasized that his work is far from over.
“It is an equally extraordinary responsibility that I intend to execute fully, faithfully, and as hard as I can work every single day to move this university that has given me everything I've got forward,” he said. He noted that one of his first priorities will be tackling the university’s remaining financial deficit.
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