2018 First Extraordinary Session ENROLLED
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 5
BY SENATOR PEACOCK
A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
To commend Bossier Parish Community College on the occasion of its fiftieth anniversary
and to extend congratulations to its student body, faculty, administration, prospective
graduates, and alumni for fifty years of academic excellence and workforce
opportunities afforded to northwest Louisiana and the state.
WHEREAS, it is with great pride that the citizens of the Bossier community
commemorate the founding of Bossier Parish Community College (BPCC) from its humble
origins as a pilot program that established a small, two-year commuter college to its present
status as a professional workforce development institution granting associate degrees,
academic certifications, and technical competency area diplomas (TCA) in a myriad of
occupations and disciplines; and
WHEREAS, in the 1960s Bossier Parish and the surrounding region experienced a
boom in manufacturing and service industries that has continued until present day; during
that time, progressive civic leaders addressed the necessity for career education that would
provide technical programs and short-term training for entry level employment that would
maximize growth potential and expand economic opportunity; and
WHEREAS, when classes began in the fall of 1967, enrollment numbered one
hundred students with a faculty of eight instructors; today, over eight thousand students are
offered associate degrees and certifications in sixteen different venues designed for
individuals who seek occupations in the business, industrial, and military communities; and
WHEREAS, utilizing cooperative endeavors with industry and local governments,
BPCC continues to leverage the synergy provided by such partnerships to enhance
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progressive economic growth for the state and the nation by the production of a well-trained
workforce equipped for the challenges of an ever-changing workplace; and
WHEREAS, BPCC possesses an impressive list of vital disciplines in occupational
sciences, general studies, telecommunications, theatre and music, culinary arts, teacher
education, childhood development, construction, oil and gas production, engineering,
manufacturing, business, retail management, and criminal justice; and
WHEREAS, with a plethora of medical institutions that populates the Caddo-Bossier
area, BPCC trains a vast number of medical professionals and provides associate degrees in
health care sciences, in particular, the fields of public health, health education specialties,
health services, health care management, nursing, and occupational therapy; and
WHEREAS, BPCC is on the cutting edge of the latest digital technology and offers
programs in data research, information technology, computer drafting and design, cyber
innovation, and information systems security; and
WHEREAS, Bossier Parish Community College has entered into articulation
agreements with other degree-granting institutions, which include Louisiana Tech
University, Northwestern State University, Grambling State University, Southern Arkansas
University, Kilgore Junior College, and Louisiana State University-Shreveport, where
students can matriculate to earn college credits and advance their education; and
WHEREAS, nonacademic courses are offered through the Community Education
Division that provide training and continuing education to supplement numerous civic,
business, and industrial employment needs; and
WHEREAS, throughout its fifty-year history, BPCC has promoted a familial
atmosphere between the student body and faculty and has sought to strike a balance between
scholarship and career obligations by providing academic flexibility, financial aid, and the
opportunity for part-time attendance in day or night classes; and
WHEREAS, Bossier Parish Community College provides an intellectually
stimulating environment in which students develop academic and vocational skills with
which to compete in a highly specialized technological world and fulfills its mission through
the advanced delivery of quality programs that provide a sound academic education with
broad vocational and career training innovations.
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THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
commend the Bossier Parish Community College on the occasion of its fiftieth anniversary
and does hereby congratulate its students, alumni, and graduates for their many contributions
to the continued prosperity of the Bossier-Shreveport community.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to
Dr. Rick Bateman Jr, Chancellor of Bossier Parish Community College.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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