Louisiana ranked at or near the bottom in educational achievement from 1877 through 1935. From the end of Reconstruction to 1904 spending on education in Louisiana was so low that even Mississippi and Arkansas were spending twice as much as Louisiana. As late as 1909, there were only 87 high schools in Louisiana with an all white enrollment of about 3500 students.
In 1904 the state legislature made the state superintendent of education responsible for teacher certification. In 1916, white teachers were required to have 36 hour of college courses. Less was expected back teachers and they were paid just less than half of what white teachers were paid. Black schools were also more dilapidated than white schools and were not furnished at government expense.
In 1904 expenditures for public schools in Louisiana totalled $1 million and by 1912 had increased to $5.8 million However there were no high schools for blacks until after World War I. As late as 1938, many parishes still had made little effort to educate blacks.
Despite an apparent lack of interest in education an impressive number of colleges were established in Louisiana during this period. The public institutions founded during this period included: Southern University, Louisiana State Normal college (now Northwestern Louisiana University), Louisiana Industrial Institute (now Louisiana Tech University), Southwestern Louisiana Industrial Institute, Grambling College, Southeastern Louisiana College, Ouachita Junior College, (now Northeast Louisiana University) and Lake Charles Junior College (now McNeese University).
Private colleges were also founded during this period. New Orleans had none of the publicly funded institutions, but had a number of private schools. Tulane, in 1884, became a private institution. Other New Orleans schools were H. Sophie Newcomb Meorial College for Women, St.Mary's Dominican College, Xavier University, Loyola University and Dillard University. Outside of New Orleans, the Baptist founded Louisiana College in Pineville and the Methodists began Centenary in Shreveport.
While none of the colleges and universites founded during this period flourished, all survived. On the other hand, Louisiana State University experienced a kind of Golden Age during the Huey Long years. He saw to it that LSU had outstanding faculty and an extraordinary construction program as part of his plan to bring Louisiana into the modern age.
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