Louisiana Legislature celebrates Tulane Day at the Capitol, recognizing university’s economic impact and statewide contributions
The Louisiana Legislature will celebrate Tulane Day at the Capitol on Wednesday, April 16, to recognize Tulane University’s $5.2 billion annual impact on the state’s economy and its far-reaching contributions to research, education, healthcare and innovation across Louisiana.
Throughout the day, Tulane University President Michael Fitts will meet with lawmakers and state leaders in Baton Rouge to underscore the university’s growing role in tackling some of Louisiana’s most pressing challenges—from population loss and economic diversification to improving public health and expanding access to opportunity.
As one of the state’s largest private employers and importers of intellectual capital, Tulane continues to attract world-class faculty, top-tier students and significant philanthropic and federal research funding.
Tulane is also playing a leading role in addressing the state’s brain drain, creating programs to help more Louisiana students attend college in-state and providing them with career paths that encourage them to stay. Initiatives like the Louisiana Promise Program and the expansion of the Tulane University Innovation Institute aim to keep local talent rooted in Louisiana by aligning academic programs and research with the state’s evolving economic needs.
“Tulane is coming to the Capitol to celebrate our deep, growing and enduring partnership with Louisiana,” Fitts said. “Through Louisiana Promise, the Legislative Scholarships and the Innovation Institute, we ensure that the best and brightest students in the state stay here.”
Tulane’s operations, research, campus expansion and other activities support more than 30,000 jobs across Louisiana and generate $88.2 million in annual state tax revenue. The university is working to expand its campus in downtown New Orleans through a $600 million transformation of the former Charity Hospital building.
By breathing new life into Charity and staying true to the roots of Charity, Tulane will establish a groundbreaking center for public health, cutting-edge industries, research and innovation, and collaboration. This revitalization will feature laboratories, classrooms, retail, dining, and affordable housing —uniting education, research and innovation, business and community to drive progress.
The iconic Charity building would be transformed into a hub of bioscience discovery and entrepreneurship with space for 600 researchers, the Tulane Innovation Institute and components of the School of Medicine, and the Celia Scott Weatherhead School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine.
