The higher ed bubble cometh.

Julia O’Donoghue of NOLA.com reports.

Louisiana higher education officials talk about potential cuts to colleges and universities

Higher education officials are optimistic that the final cut to Louisiana’s colleges and universities won’t be as high as recently has been suggested, but if it stays up anywhere near the level proposed, several schools will have problems functioning next year.

“These cuts are not just cuts. These cuts go well beyond what we typically talk about as budget cuts,” said Sandra Woodley, president of the University of Louisiana system, in an interview Thursday.

The state government won’t know exactly how big next year’s budget hole is until later in January. Currently, Louisiana has a projected financial shortfall of $1.4 billion next year, but that deficit is likely to grow as a result of dropping energy prices.

For every dollar the price of a barrel of oil drops, Louisiana’s government loses between $10 million and $12 million for its annual spending plan, according to state economists.

“We really don’t know what the [higher education] cuts will be until the end of the month,” said Roy O. Martin, the head of Louisiana’s Board of Regents, which oversees all of the state’s higher education institutions.