University of Louisiana at Lafayette

The historic main campus area originally consisted of only 25 acres, and its boundaries were Johnston Street, University Avenue, what is now Hebrard Blvd and to approximately Lee Hall in the Quad. By the 1930s the campus had more than doubled in size, to 60 acres, reaching to the newly constructed St Mary Street to its south, and McKinley Street to its east. This area includes such buildings/areas as: Martin Hall (Admin building), Girard Hall, Stephens Memorial, the Arcade, the Quadrangle (the Quad), Rose Garden dormitories, Judice-Rickles Halls, and Cypress Lake. Also, the two oldest extant buildings on campus are located in this area: Foster Hall (1902) and DeClouet Hall (1905).

Fleur-di-lis fountain in UL Quad

The Arcade by Stephen Hall

A tree in UL Quad

The Quadrangle (Quad), which was completely renovated in 2015 (providing new walkways, landscaping and a fountain containing a 15-foot Fleur de Lis in its center), serves as the ‘heart’ of the university. It is surrounded by Martin Hall/FG Mouton Hall, as well as Moody, OK Allen, Lee, Broussard, Stephens, Mouton, M. Doucet, and Foster Halls. Some of the highlights of the Quad are:

Martin Hall: Originally called “the main building” was the first building constructed on campus, and was completed in September 1901.[6] Now sometimes referred to as “Old" Martin Hall, it stood on campus until 1963, when it was demolished and replaced with the current “New" Martin Hall. It is where the university president and administrative staff for the university are located.

The Arcade: A covered, brick walkway that both surrounds and defines the quad. Built in 1940, and consisting of 415 brick arches, It also is where the “Walk of Honor” begins.

Walk of Honor: This feature honors every one of the undergraduates of the university, from 1903 onward, with a paver engraved with their name and year of graduation. Originally contained in the Arcade only, it now extends to the sidewalks within the Quad, continuing outside the Quad along Boucher Ave, and then turning onto McKinley. Future plans are that it will eventually turn onto St. Mary, heading towards Boucher Street.

The Fountain: Located in the center of the Quad is a circular fountain, with an aluminum, 15’ three-sided Fleur de Lis sculpture as its centerpiece. Designed by over 100 UL students over a five year period,[16] the sculpture weighs over 3,000 pounds. Surrounded by benches it provides a popular gathering spot for students. Once the landscaping has fully matured, it is hoped that this will further give an oasis type feeling to the area.

Located on the campus block bordered by Hebrard Blvd, University Ave and McKinley St, the original Rose Garden was surrounded Baker-Huger, Randolph, Evangeline, and Bonin Halls, which were all female only dormitories and designed by A. Hays Town and completed in 1950. In 2011 Baker-Huger, Evangeline and Bonin Halls were all demolished and were replaced with expanded/state of the art co-ed dormitories, named Coronna and Bonin Halls, now known as the Rose Garden complex.

Cypress Lake and Cypress Lake Plaza: One of the most beloved features on the campus, Cypress Lake is a university landmark that is also a habitat for native irises, alligators, turtles, birds and fish, as well as a hangout for students and a point of interest for tourists visiting Lafayette, Louisiana. Cypress Lake is casually called "The Swamp," which is also the nickname of the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football stadium, officially named Cajun Field. This ecosystem, located in the center of a university, it the only one of its kind in the United States. Many school traditions are held on/around the lake, especially during “Lagniappe Day.” Cypress Lake Plaza is a green space that was constructed in 2018-2019, following the removal of the former student union complex located along Hebrard Blvd. The new Plaza allows for more interaction between the students/faculty/alumni/public and Cypress Lake as well as allows Cypress Lake to be viewable from Hebrard Boulevard.[17]

Student Union Complex: At 128K sq feet and completed in 2015 the new “U” was built to wrap around Cypress Lake, and includes numerous meeting spaces for students, as well several dining options (including the main dining room located on the second floor with floor to ceiling windows offering sweeping views of the lake), SGA offices, a post office, banquet space and a movie theater (the “Bayou Bijou.”)[18][19]

The decades of the 1950–1970s saw tremendous growth, both in the city of Lafayette as well as the university. During that period the main campus again expanded: to the east (Taft St), west (Rex St), and south (Lewis St) bringing the total amount of acreage for the main campus to an approx. 125 acres. Many new academic buildings were located in this area including Dupre Library, HL Griffin Hall (Liberal Arts), Billeaud Hall (Biology), Madison Hall (Engineering), Wharton (Nursing), Angelle (Music), Fletcher (Art/Architecture).

In 2012, and as part of the selling of its “Horse Farm” property to the city of Lafayette, the university acquired an additional 20 acres along the Johnston/Lewis St corridor when the Youth Park/Dog Park was added to the main campus. In fall 2018, this area was being developed as housing for upperclassmen, and is called the “Heritage at Cajun Village.” With the addition of these 20 acres, the total acreage for the main campus is now at 145 acres.[20]

Law enforcement services on the campus are provided by the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Police Department.

The Marais Press began in the early 1990s, a printmaking shop featuring antique presses and located within Fletcher Hall and the Department of Fine Arts.[21][22] The first project was a book featuring the work of the late Elemore Morgan Jr., a Louisiana artist who taught at the university and received international acclaim for his work as a painter and photographer. More than 200 visiting artists from around the world participate for a week-long residency to work on their projects at Marais Press, a teaching and research hub. Artists help train and mentor students, who get hands-on experience making lithographs, woodcuts, silkscreen, and etchings.

Marais Press is a separate entity from the UL Press, the publishing arm of UL Lafayette's Center for Louisiana Studies.[22]

• 
  Stephens Hall
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  Broussard Hall, named for former U.S. Senator Robert F. Broussard, houses the Physics Department
• 
  Burke-Hawthorne Hall, named for Walter Burke and Doris Hawthorne, houses the Communications Department
• 
  Wharton Hall houses the Biology and Nursing Departments, as well as Television Studio Labs for the Communications Department
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  Partial view of the Arcade

Starting with the purchase of the Whittington Farm property in 1936, the university added ~175 acres just south of the main campus, along Johnston St. This area, now also consisting of the Athletic Complex and Research Park areas form a total contiguous area of over 391 acres, known today as “University Commons.”[23]

Due to the continuing growth of the university during the 1950–70s, all of the main athletic facilities were relocated from the main campus to the University Commons area, which is bounded roughly by Reinhardt Dr, Bertrand St, Congress St and State St. The following is a list of major buildings in the complex:[24]

Located along Coliseum Road, the complex consists of a newly constructed Field House, as well as ~20 lighted acres of grassy fields, and convenient parking. This space enables the university the ability to offer numerous sports/activities to the student population.[25]

Bounded by Cajundome Blvd, E. Landry Road, and Congress St, the Research Park was conceived and developed to be a stimulant innovation and economic development that serves the region, state, and nation.[26] The following is a list of major buildings located in the park:

University Research Park Hotel: Owned by the university, the hotel is a Hilton Garden Inn property. The 155-room hotel includes both classroom and faculty office accommodations and is collaboratively run with the UL Hospitality Management Program.

Lafayette Primary Care Center: LPCC is a joint effort among Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The facility is owned by the University, was paid for by Lafayette General Medical Center and Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center. It is operated by Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center and its mission is to train medical residents in family practice.

CGI Group: CGI Group (more commonly known as CGI) is a Canadian global information technology company that offers many different IT-related services, including consulting, systems integration, outsourcing, and solutions. The company is headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Currently employing 400 full-time people in its Lafayette location, that number is expected to more than double in the near future.[27]

Estuarine Habitats and Coastal Fisheries Center: Owned by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the center opened in 1998 and has numerous high-profile tenants, including: National Marine Fisheries Service, National Ocean Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Resources Conservation Services, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, etc.

Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise (LITE Center): A collaboration between UL and the Lafayette Economic Development Authority (LEDA), the LITE Center is housed in a $27 million, 70,000 square foot complex. The LITE Center is a comprehensive and tightly integrated data visualization and super-computing installation. The center's mission is to connect the most creative and dynamic academic minds with the most innovative and forward-looking industry visionaries.

National Wetlands Research Center: Opened in 1992, the NWRC is owned and operated by the U.S. Geological Survey whose mission is to provide national leadership in biological research and development related to protecting, restoring, and managing natural resources, with an emphasis on fish, wildlife, and wetlands in the South. It is currently focusing on wetland, forest, and animal ecology; spatial analysis; and information and technology transfer.

Photovoltaic Applied Research and Testing Laboratory: Located at the intersection of Cajundome Blvd and E. Landry road, the PART lab is a six acre solar array that is used to study the market’s newest alternative energy products and to provide a training ground for students. Additionally, the energy that is collected at this site provides for the majority of the University’s sports complex energy needs (1.1 megawatts out of the total average consumption of 1.2 megawatts of power.)

Cecil J. Picard Center for Child Development and Lifelong Learning: The Picard Center is a leading university-level research center that produces rigorous, innovative, and actionable knowledge in order to ensure that all children get a strong start and continuous support for excelling in school and life.

Cade Farm Labs: Located roughly 15 miles from the main campus, the 600-acre complex accommodates numerous facilities in an integrated array including: a working dairy, a Crawfish Research Center and an equestrian arena. The farm also includes production acreage for beef, sugar cane and specialty crops.

New Iberia Research Center: A 118-acre site located in New Iberia, La. and containing 24 buildings at a total of ~485,000 square feet, the NIRC is a diversified animal housing system that includes indoor/outdoor cages for small non-human primates in large family groups, outdoor corncrib/minicrib combinations for housing macaque and Cercopithecine species, and indoor single housing units for all non-human primate species in cage sizes recommended by the United States Department of Agriculture. Consisting of over 6,800 non-human primates, the NIRC is the largest primate center in the US.(See more detailed info of the NIRC in main article.)

UL's New Iberia Research Center in New Iberia conducts basic and applied research on several species of non-human primates including macaques, grivets, capuchins and chimpanzees.[33] Incorporated as the Gulf South Research Institute in 1965, the facility was transferred to UL in 1984. The Center houses over 6,800 non-human primates used for breeding and studies.[34][35] The center is also a contract breeding and testing facility, selling animals to other laboratories and conducting experiments under contract with other parties.[36]

In 2008, the Humane Society of the United States conducted an undercover investigation in the center which found monkeys being shot with sedation guns while in their cages, one monkey repeatedly hit by a worker in the teeth with a metal pole and another worker striking an infant monkey among other apparent AWA violations.[37] In 2015, the U.S. Department of Agriculture cited the center for six potential violations of the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) which the government alleges lead to the death of one monkey, injuries to another and the escape of five from their enclosure.[38]

In 2016, Project Chimps, a nonprofit organization, announced a partnership with NIRC to relocate 220 of the university's retired research chimpanzees to a sanctuary in northern Georgia.[39]

• In 2018, No. 24 U.S. News & World Report list of "Universities and Colleges Where Students Are Eager to Enroll"[47]
• In 2017, No. 9 Brookings Institution social mobility report "Ladders, labs, or laggards? Which public universities contribute most"[48]
• Department of Petroleum Engineering ranked No. 13 in the world – and No. 7 in the United States – CEOWORLD magazine "World's Best Universities for Oil, Gas, and Petroleum Engineering in 2017" list[49]
• In 2018, "Best 382 Colleges", by The Princeton Review[50]
• Named to the "2014 President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll."[51]
• No. 10 among research universities for percentage of research and development expenditures funded by business, National Science Foundation September 2013 Report.[52]

Beginning in 2011 the university began a massive program to overhaul its residential options for students. Since that time, the majority of the school's former dormitories have been demolished and replaced with either apartment or suite style accommodations. The first phase of the initiative began in 2003, with the demolition of three of the male-only dorms: Caffery, Roy and McCullough. They were replaced with Legacy Park in 2004, an apartment-style complex that is also co-ed. (Another male-only dorm, Voorhies Hall, was also razed in 2003, but the Child Development complex was built in its place.) The final male-only dorm, Stokes Hall, was demolished in 2016, with the long-term plan of expanding Legacy Park into the area.[64]

In 2011 the second phase of the project began when most of the traditional female-only dorms were demolished and replaced with suite-style, co-ed, units. The dorms demolished during this period included: Baker-Huger, Bonin, Evangeline, Denbo, and Bancroft. The two resulting areas are now known as the Rose Garden Complex (lower classmen), and the Taft Street Complex (upper classmen); 2018 saw the start of the third phase of the project when construction began on a new complex located at the corner of Johnston and Lewis streets. This area formerly consisted of a university-owned parking lot, as well the Youth/Dog Park, which the university acquired as part of the sale of the "Horse Farm" property to the City of Lafayette. Named "The Heritage at Cajun Village," the new complex is designated for married students/families and graduate students.[20] Following the completion of the complex (fall 2019) the married/family complex "Cajun Village" has been planned for eventual demolition and replaced with suite-style living for upper classmen.[65]

As of 2023 only three of the original dorms on campus remain standing: Randolph Hall (now functioning as a recreational center for residents), Agnes Edwards Hall (now co-ed/junior suite-style) and Harris Hall (now co-ed/traditional-style).[66] Following the completion of Heritage, as well as Rose Garden and Taft Street complexes, the university could house close to 5,000 students on campus, achieving a goal set in the school's master plan as of 2020.[67]

A listing of past & present offerings is as follows:

The Greek community at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette is composed of 23 organizations, governed by four councils.[68][69] In 2022, 6% of undergraduate men and 13% of undergraduate women were active in the UL's Greek system.[70]