MONROE, La. — More than 500 faculty and staff members attended the “Universities of Louisiana for Our Future Conference” today at the University of Louisiana at Monroe.

This year innovation, integrity, and inclusion were the main focus points for educators.

“We’re talking about the future of work. We’re talking about how our universities are the answer to the challenges that are going to face us in the 21st century. We’re talking about how to better serve students, how to better serve faculty, and how to understand the needs of the employer communities,” said Dr. Jim Henderson, the president and CEO of the University of Louisiana System.

The University of Louisiana System is made up of nine universities throughout the state that includes Grambling State University, Louisiana Tech, and ULM.

“They have their own presence if you will, and ULM is a perfect example of that. But when you bring them together, that’s when you have the power of system and we are leveraging their resource to ensure that we are maximizing the level of investment for our taxpayers and for our students,” said Dr. Henderson

Dr. Henderson says through this conference educators have the chance to come together to share ideas like how to increase the number of graduates and grow Louisiana’s economy through innovation.

“As a person who works in higher education, we’re super excited always to learn new things and so this is a great opportunity for networking and learning,” said ULM Online Director Katie Dawson.

Each year a different university hosts the conference to allow other schools to see what is going on at the various campuses.