History of the Student Information System

As with all historic institutions in America, in early LSU history, the student information system was simple record-keeping by pen and paper processes. Eventually these pen and paper processes grew and developed across all institutions into a complex business system propelling the institutions forward.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, as business systems across the globe looked to digitizing and computerizing their businesses, LSU A&M embarked on the process of moving from pen and paper to a mainframe system triggering a huge technological leap. This is the system LSU A&M is still using.

Similarly, LSU of Alexandria, LSU Eunice, and LSU Shreveport modernized their business processes and adopted different computerized student information system applications, bringing modernization and a technological step forward for each institution.  

As most organizations that were early adopters of technology found, a new round of modernization became necessary in the early 2000s.

In 2016, an effort began for LSU A&M to move off the mainframe and acquire a new system. During this process, which was called Geaux Forward, LSU A&M solidified the needs and requirements for a modern student information system for all participating institutions. This effort was paused in 2018.

In 2020, exploration into a new student information system began again, eventually leading to the selection in 2021 of Workday as the vendor across the participating institutions.