The Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors and the Contractors Educational Trust Fund (CETF) have made donations totaling over $362,000 to Louisiana Tech University in support of the construction engineering technology program in the College of Engineering and Science. Representatives of these and supporting organizations visited Ruston last week to present Louisiana Tech President Les Guice with the generous gift during a ceremony in his office in Wyly Tower on the Louisiana Tech campus. “Louisiana’s construction industry has been highly supportive of construction education for many years and we are grateful for their continued financial investments in Louisiana Tech University,” said Guice.  “Their gift is enabling us to enhance support of our students and faculty.  Through the industry’s guidance, we are making curriculum improvements and offering excellent career opportunities for our graduates here in Louisiana.” The donations to Louisiana Tech were made possible through the generosity of the state’s general contractors who voluntarily assesses themselves a fee during the licensure application or renewal process.  The funds collected from these fees are awarded to Louisiana universities with accredited construction programs in an effort to enhance these programs and provide opportunities to educate and prepare students to contribute to the construction industry in Louisiana. “The timing of these contributions could not be better,” said Steve Terrill, area manager for Louisiana Associated General Contractors, which is instrumental in creating the funding mechanism for these donations.  “As the State of Louisiana struggles to provide needed funding for higher education, the Louisiana Associated General Contractors, State Licensing Board for Contractors and the CETF are able to step forward and support quality programs such as construction engineering technology at Louisiana Tech that will produce the next generation of construction professionals and leaders in our state.” The Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors was created in 1956 for the purpose of protecting the general public from incompetent and fraudulent acts of a contractor while promoting the integrity of the construction industry.   The State Licensing Board for Contractors consists of 15 Commercial members appointed by the Governor representing all segments of the contracting industry, and five Residential Subcommittee members. Louisiana Tech’s construction engineering technology program provides students with a background in math, science, engineering, construction and business to prepare graduates for leadership positions in the construction industry.  The program prepares graduates for the responsibility of managing and supervising activities related to converting the plans and specifications prepared by engineers and architects into finished facilities. For more information on Louisiana Tech’s construction engineering technology program, visit coes.latech.edu/construction-engineering-technology.