WBRZ - Baton Rouge

BATON ROUGE - Southern University has entered into an agreement to exchange students and possibly faculty with a university in Brazil starting as early as next spring.

The Advocate reports Chancellor James Llorens signed a memorandum of understanding this past week with Jorge da Silva, a professor and social scientist from Rio de Janeiro State University.

The two called the agreement a boon for students at both schools and an opportunity for the institutions to learn from each other.

The program could be an enrollment booster for Southern, which has seen its student population drop from nearly 9,500 students to below 7,000 during the past several years. Southern is prepared to accept as many as 500 Brazilian students starting next year.