WBRZ - Baton Rouge

RUSTON - The proposed merger of Louisiana Tech University and LSU-Shreveport has been endorsed by the Ruston-Lincoln Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors.

The board unanimously approved a resolution last week urging area lawmakers to support a proposed merger of the two institutions into one enlarged Louisiana Tech with Ruston and Shreveport campuses.

The proposed merger is the leading recommendation of a study conducted by Eva Klein and Associates and supported by the Louisiana Board of Regents.

Chamber President Scott Terry described the proposed merger as a "win-win" for Ruston and for the Shreveport-Bossier area.

Terry said the merger would strengthen higher education opportunities in north Louisiana as well as boost the region's economic growth.