Louisiana Tech faculty, staff, and students celebrated with incoming students and their parents as nearly 100 of the region’s top academic high school prospects pledged to join the University’s College of Engineering and Science (COES) Class of 2026 at Commitment Day 2022.
Applicants who earned qualifying scores on the ACT were invited to attend the sixth annual Commitment Day event at the Integrated Engineering and Science Building on Tech’s Ruston campus. There, they had the opportunity to take placement exams and meet with Louisiana Tech faculty and leaders, including COES Dean Dr. Hisham Hegab, COES Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies Dr. Heath Tims, and officers from student organizations and other students from their majors.
Each of the attendees signed a pledge to pursue a degree in one of fourteen majors at Louisiana Tech: biomedical engineering, chemical engineering, chemistry, civil engineering, computer science, construction engineering technology, cyber engineering, electrical engineering, industrial engineering, instrumentation and controls systems engineering technology, mathematics and statistics, mechanical engineering, nanosystems engineering, and physics.
They received COES and Louisiana Tech swag, participated in photo ops with COES faculty, and celebrated their academic accomplishments at a reception with their families.
Hylie Holloway, Biomedical Engineering freshman and Commitment Day 2022 volunteer, attended the 2021 Commitment Day ceremony, which she says helped solidify her commitment to Louisiana Tech and biomedical engineering.
“As a high school senior, what made me love and appreciate Commitment Day was the fact that it felt like I was being acknowledged for my desire to chase after such a challenging degree. I came from a high school where only the athletes were praised for their achievements, and the signing day just showed how special it is to be a part of the College of Engineering and Science. My favorite part about helping with this year’s Commitment Day was talking to individual seniors and seeing how excited everyone was. When I was a senior, I had no idea how challenging the curriculum as a freshman in engineering would be. I would almost describe my senior self as being naive to what I was getting into, but I would have it no other way. When I went through Commitment Day, I thought there was no way the experience could have been better. But seeing it now, I could feel the excitement in the air. The balloon drop and the confetti going everywhere while the band was playing were immaculate! What I loved was that many professors were present as well. My main takeaway from then and now is that you are cared about here. I plan to never miss a Commitment Day for the rest of my time at Tech!”
“Commitment Day is a good way for incoming students to introduce themselves to faculty and students they’ll be learning and researching within their programs,” Nanosystems Engineering volunteer Jonathan Tairov added. “It’s a great addition to orientation where students may not meet as many faculty or other students in their fields.”
Prospective students still have the opportunity to participate in a virtual ceremony and enter a drawing for a scholarship. Anyone who would like to commit to earning a undergraduate Engineering and Science degree at Louisiana Tech, contact the COES Office of Undergraduate Studies (coesugs@latech.edu).
