Nicholls State University
, founded in 1948, is a public university located in Thibodaux, Louisiana, USA. Nicholls is part of the University of Louisiana System of universities. Originally called Francis T. Nicholls Junior College, the institution split from the Louisiana State University System in 1956. The university is named for Francis T. Nicholls, a former governor of Louisiana, and member of the Louisiana Supreme Court.
The campus, once part of historic Acadia Plantation, fronts on Bayou Lafourche, about southwest of New Orleans and southeast of Baton Rouge.
Nicholls is located in Acadiana, also known as "Cajun Country," an area rich in tradition and culture. It is also located in the heart of the Mississippi River Delta, allowing easy access to the river, its distributaries, Louisiana's wetlands, and the Gulf of Mexico. The school is sometimes referred to as "Our Harvard on the Bayou;" the university bookstore even sells shirts sporting this light-hearted nickname.
Nicholls is the home of the John Folse Culinary Institute.
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NICHOLLS COLONELS TICKETS
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Academics
The University of Louisiana System has identified the following areas as Unique Areas of Excellence at Nicholls State University. These are areas of study that, because of either their unique classes or their leadership in Louisiana education, have been selected for this special honor. John Folse Culinary Institute, Biological Sciences - Marine and environmental sciences emphasis, Nursing, Allied Health Sciences, Teacher Education, Accounting and Information Systems, and Child, Family and Social Services.
Other notable degree programs include: Bachelor degrees in Art, English, Mass Communication, Master degrees in Business Administration and an Executive MBA program
Athletics
Nicholls sports teams participate in NCAA Division I (Football Championship Subdivision or FCS for
football) in the
Southland Conference.
Nicholls' colors are
red and
gray (two-tone) and the athletics teams are nicknamed the Colonels.
On
November 19,
2005, the No. 24-ranked Nicholls Colonels football team clinched its first Southland Conference Championship by defeating the
McNeese State Cowboys 39-26 at John L. Guidry Stadium. With that win, Nicholls finished the regular season tied atop the conference standing with Texas State. The Colonels advanced to the Division I-AA playoffs as the conference champion, based on their 32-29 overtime victory over then fifth-ranked Texas State, but eventually lost to the then No. 3 ranked
Furman Paladins, 14-12, in Paladin Stadium in Greenville, S.C.
Nicholls official athletics mascot is the colonel. President Stephen Hulbert stated that "The Colonel is and will remain the mascot designation for Nicholls State University and its intercollegiate athletics program" on March 31, 2004 while calling the current Colonel depiction antiquated and reminiscent of the Civil War in the South. The decision to retire the mascot was made to avoid portraying racist sentiments associated with the Civil war confederacy. Although met with criticism from the school and surrounding community who were in favor of preserving the colonel mascot, the retirement of the mascot was considered vital to the public relations outlook of the university and its policy of solidarity with The University of Louisiana System's policy on discrimination. Hulbert unilaterally retired the mascot despite a vote by students and alumni to retain it, and a student contest to select a new mascot failed, as Hulbert didn't like the newly-proposed mascot, the
nutria.
The Nicholls State University Department of Athletics currently sponsors men's intercollegiate baseball, basketball, football, golf and tennis along with women's intercollegiate basketball, softball, soccer, tennis, track, volleyball and cheerleading.
Nicholls' primary athletic rival is
Southeastern Louisiana University.