Even the most educated college student does not know everything that is happening in our state’s legislature, but the implications of Louisiana’s lack of a higher education commissioner should be simple to grasp.

The higher education commissioner revises or eliminates degree programs or academic departments, approves or modifies degree programs or academic departments, oversees institutional merges, makes budget recommendations, implements the GRAD act and reviews all higher education to maximize funding, according to Louisiana’s Board of Regents Web site, regents.louisiana.gov.

Though an important job, this position has been vacant since the previous commissioner, Sally Clausen, quietly retired and rehired herself to collect unused vacation and sick leave payment last summer.

After she quit in response to criticisms, lawmakers created a law that requires the salary of future commissioners to be approved by the legislature’s joint budget committee.

The law works, but in August, the Board of Regents decided to go without an interim commissioner, because the first one they tried to hire, Tom Layzell, was a pricey applicant.

Instead of searching for a new interim commissioner, the Board of Regents decided to undertake the task themselves and appointed four members to work with the senior staff as a committee. Layzell agreed to serve as an advisor.

During all of this, a search committee was tasked with recommending two applicants by late October.

And now, though the commissioner was projected to be selected by January, Louisiana is still without one as we enter February.

Last Wednesday, Robert Levy, chairman of the Board of Regents, told the Associated Press that he does not think a commissioner will be chosen before the start of the legislation session in April.

Louisiana has already gone half a year without a higher education commissioner, and we are expected to go longer.

We are not without guidance, as there is a committee in place, but as most Nicholls students know, group projects tend to be half-assed and a jumbled mess when it comes time to present.

Why is the Board of Regents taking so long to find someone to do the job? We understand it must be difficult to find someone who wants to undertake this mess of a state, but there have obviously been interested parties.

Though the higher education commissioner position has been vacant since last summer, most students still do not realize what goes on within our state legislature.

And if you didn’t know that the person who was supposed to be overseeing our budget concerns wasn’t there, then what else don’t you know?