Following a new financial gift from Art Favre, founder and owner of Baton Rouge-based Performance Contractors, LSU has named its new School of Construction after the industrial construction executive.
The university announced at a press conference Tuesday afternoon that Favre has gifted an undisclosed sum to establish a permanent endowment for the school, now known as the Art Favre School of Construction. Coincidentally, Favre is also being honored with the 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award during the Louisiana Energy Awards on Nov. 18, presented by 10/12 Industry Report.
The school’s future $107 million home, meanwhile, will be named the Performance Contractors Construction & Advanced Manufacturing Building. Favre previously gifted $15 million toward the building’s construction.
Unlike that earlier contribution, Favre’s latest gift will establish an unrestricted endowment intended to provide the school with a permanent source of funding for faculty recruitment, research and other priorities.
Favre, a member of LSU’s inaugural construction management graduating class in 1972, founded Performance Contractors in 1979. The company has since grown into one of the nation’s largest industrial contractors.
At Tuesday’s press conference, Favre said the school’s creation was the culmination of a decades-long effort by local construction industry leaders to elevate LSU’s construction management program.
“What did it take to get to this point? Well, to start with, it’s taken roughly 35 years. No big deal,” Favre quipped.
He added that the program had historically been “woefully underfunded” relative to other departments within LSU’s College of Engineering despite its growth and the construction industry’s importance to Louisiana’s economy.
“We all knew we needed more independence to ensure construction had a prominent place in the College of Engineering for the future,” Favre said.
The announcement comes as LSU prepares to break ground on the 148,000-square-foot building in 2027. Planned for South Stadium Drive across from Tiger Stadium, the facility will house classrooms, laboratories and research space focused on construction, engineering and advanced manufacturing.
LSU has secured more than $52.6 million in philanthropic contributions toward the project, leaving $12.4 million to reach its $65 million private fundraising goal. The state has committed another $42 million.
The School of Construction, approved by the Louisiana Board of Regents earlier this year, builds on LSU’s existing Bert S. Turner Department of Construction Management, which the university says graduates more construction professionals annually than any other program in the nation.
The school will broaden LSU’s construction curriculum while expanding research into AI, automation, robotics, advanced materials and digital twins. College leaders have also developed new bachelor’s degree programs in construction engineering and fire and emergency services administration.
Vicki Colvin, dean of LSU’s College of Engineering, framed the new school as a response to the industry’s increasing reliance on technology and collaboration across engineering disciplines.
“Construction is no longer a low-tech industry,” Colvin said. “It’s going to become a high-tech industry, and it’s going to do it right here in Louisiana.”
