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Friday, March 1, 2013 On the Move in 2013Dear Faculty, Staff and Students, As the spring semester progresses, I wanted to update you on some of LSU’s many successes thus far in 2013. LSU was named a “Best Value” by both Kiplinger’s Personal Finance and The Princeton Review, meaning that LSU offers a high-quality education at an affordable price. As evidence of that quality, several areas of the university have been highly ranked nationally. For example, the School of Landscape Architecture’s undergraduate program was recently ranked first in the nation and its graduate program was ranked in the top three in the nation by DesignIntelligence magazine. And the E. J. Ourso College of Business has recently received two national rankings – one for the master of public administration program, which ranked in the top 20, and one for the master of science in finance program, which ranked in the top 40. There have also been a number of research accomplishments at LSU recently, including Brent Christner from Biological Sciences, who was featured in National Geographic magazine for his team’s discovery of microbes in a lake hidden under more than a half-mile of ice in Antarctica. Among other things, the discovery may shed light on what lies under the icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn. And Zhiqiang Deng, from Civil & Environmental Engineering, is using satellite data from NASA to develop better tools for predicting and preventing seafood contamination. Recently, Deng and his research group became the first group of scientists in the world to predict oyster norovirus outbreaks in advance. These are just two examples of the outstanding work being performed by LSU researchers. Also in 2013, the university has held a number of events that have brought together both the LSU and Baton Rouge communities, including a talk from poet, author and civil rights legend Maya Angelou to a packed house at the LSU Union Theater; a groundbreaking ceremony by the Baton Rouge Speech and Hearing Foundation at LSU Innovation Park for a new Emerge Center for Communication, Behavior and Development; and the successful kickoff of the new Science Café series, in which a different LSU researcher addresses the public each month at a free event at Chelsea’s restaurant in Baton Rouge. The LSU School of Veterinary Medicine also held its annual open house in January, welcoming to campus more than 5,400 people from Baton Rouge and beyond. The Vet School also showcased its oncology program for animals last month as part of the School’s 40th anniversary celebration this year. As you can see, it has already been a busy semester, full of success stories and accomplishments for the university. But we must never stop looking ahead, and as you know, there is a major initiative on the horizon. LSU is undergoing a transformation, with the help of not only the Board of Supervisors, but also some 75 business people, community leaders, faculty, staff and students who have been selected to serve on the Transition Advisory Team and its various subcommittees and task force groups. These individuals will offer input to the Board so that the reorganization, known as LSU 2015, can be conducted as effectively as possible. As the Transition Advisory Team and its subcommittees and task force groups continue moving toward a new, reorganized university, the LSU Administration will work to keep you informed every step of the way. It’s an exciting time to be at LSU! Stuart Bell, Executive Vice Chancellor & Provost |
LSU Office of Academic Affairs
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