Scott Farmer Steps Down as Director of Athletics

LAFAYETTE – Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Director of Athletics Scott Farmer, who served in the position for the past five years and led the department to unprecedented growth both on and off the field, announced on Tuesday that he is stepping down from his position effective immediately.

The University announced that Deputy Director of Athletics Dr. Jessica Leger would serve as the interim AD while the school conducts a national search. The appointment of Leger is pending approval from the Board of Supervisors of the University of Louisiana System.

Farmer, who will move into a teaching position in the University's School of Kinesiology, oversaw a department that doubled its athletic budget, spent more than $69 million in improving facilities and doubled its donations to the Ragin' Cajuns Athletic Foundation (RCAF). The Ragin' Cajuns established themselves as one of the top athletic programs in the country by virtue of numerous NCAA postseason appearances and championships.

"We are grateful to Scott for his years of valuable service as our director of athletics," University President Dr. E. Joseph Savoie said. "In his new teaching role, his real-life experiences will provide valuable lessons for our students."

Farmer was instrumental in the development of the University's $115 million Athletics Facilities Master Plan, a three-tiered plan that was launched in 2013 and includes major facility upgrades that will benefit all 16 Division I athletic programs.

"I am extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to lead this athletic program for the past five years, while seeing tremendous growth and success both on the field and in the classroom," Farmer said. "The support shown by our alumni and fan base to our student-athletes, coaches and support staff has been wonderful and I believe that the University's best days are ahead."

From a period between 2013-15, the department was ranked among the top 50 schools nationally in a poll by the National Association of College Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and released by CBSSports.com.

During the 2013-14 athletic year, that included six conference championships, Louisiana was ranked 34^th nationally, finishing as the top non-BCS school in the final rankings. In 2014-15, the Ragin' Cajuns were ranked as the 44^th-best athletic programs in the country, finishing ahead of 25 schools that compete in Power 5 conferences.

While student-athletes were excelling on the field, they were also excelling in the classroom enjoying 12 consecutive semesters of earning a combined grade point average of 2.8 or above. After setting cumulative GPA records in each semester during the 2013-14 academic year, the Ragin' Cajuns produced the highest combined semester GPA - 3.056 – in the Fall 2014 semester.

During the past four years, Ragin' Cajuns student-athletes graduated at a rate that led the state of Louisiana, the Sun Belt Conference and ranked among the top 15 schools nationally among athletic programs in the Group of 5.

Farmer played an integral role in establishing the Ragin' Cajuns Athletic Foundation (RCAF) in 2009, and guiding the fundraising arm of the athletic department to three consecutive years of raising $2 million in Annual Fund donations along with $10 million in total funds donated in 2015.

Upon his arrival at UL Lafayette in 2007 as Senior Associate Director of Athletics, Farmer worked to more than double the number of football season tickets sold – from just under 4,800 when he arrived – to a record 13,755 in 2014.

Leger, who began her career at UL Lafayette as Assistant Director of Athletics for Compliance in 2007 before gaining oversight of the Student-Athlete Academic Center and becoming Senior Woman Administrator (SWA) in 2012, was named Deputy Director of Athletics in July. She has been responsible for Sun Belt Conference and NCAA rules and regulations including student-athlete eligibility and rules compliance.

"I am thankful to Scott Farmer for being a tremendous mentor to myself and many others over the years here at UL Lafayette, and for the leadership that he has given to the Department of Athletics," Leger said. "I am also thankful to Dr. Joseph Savoie for the opportunity to lead the Department and continue striving for the goals that have been established prioritizing both athletic and academic excellence."

A former member of the Ragin' Cajuns softball team, Leger earned a bachelor's degree in marketing from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 2003. She later earned her Master of Education degree in education administration with a supervision concentration from the University in May 2006. She received her Ph.D. in higher education administration in 2010 from Louisiana State University.

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University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics

Scott Farmer Steps Down as Director of Athletics

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