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David Cronrath has been named the interim dean of LSU’s College of Art and Design.
Cronrath, a practicing architect and educator for the past 20 years, had served as a professor and director of the LSU School of Architecture since 2000. Before that, he was chair of the Department of Architecture at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln for six years.
“Assuming such a leadership position has given me pause as I contemplate how best to fulfill a very temporary and transitory post,” Cronrath said. “On the one hand, I wish to solidify and preserve the significant advances made by the college that I have witnessed since coming to LSU in 2000, while at the same time making sure that the college moves forward to view new horizons that will stimulate and encourage all who are interested in our collective enterprise.
“I look forward to working with the new management team in the college as we together enhance our teaching mission, support the faculty’s creative enterprise, evaluate our assets ad make deliberative plans for an improved tomorrow.”
Under Cronrath, Nebraska’s Department of Architecture launched a mandatory student purchased computer program; established professional school status for the architecture program, putting it on par with the law and medical schools; authored the visual literacy freshman program for all students in design and fine arts programs; and mentored two graduate students to win the prestigious Skidmore, Owings and Merrill Traveling Scholarship.
He also guided two other students in becoming American Institute of Architectural Students national president.
Outside the university, he helped draft the new architects and engineers registration act and worked on a downtown redevelopment plan for Lincoln, Neb. He has performed similar activities at LSU, having participated in Mayor Bobby Simpson’s Smart Growth Committee, Tiger Town Redevelopment and the Old South Baton Rouge Redevelopment effort.
Cronrath is a native of Philadelphia. He received his bachelor of architecture at Penn State University and his master of architecture at the University of California at Berkeley.
He is currently active in the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards and is a member of the graphics committee for the architectural registration exam.
Faculty, staff, students and community leaders were recently celebrated for their efforts during the past year at the LSU College of Education Honors Convocation, held in the Atchafalaya Room in the LSU Union
The following is a listing of all the faculty and community leaders who were recognized.
Faculty awards were given to:
The Department of Curriculum & Instruction
• Denise Egea-Kuehne: 2004 LSU Distinguished Faculty Award;
• Debbie Guedry: AT&T Fellowship;
• Thomasine Mencer: AT&T Fellowship;
• Beth Tope: Tiger Athletic Foundation Undergraduate Teaching Award;
• James Wandersee: 2003 William W. Craig University Teacher of the Year Award (Louisiana Science Teachers Association).
The Department of Educational Leadership, Research & Counseling
• Gary Gintner: Louisiana Mental Health Counselors Association 2003 Dedicated Service Award; Louisiana Counselor’s Association 2003 Outstanding Service President’s Award and American Mental Health Counselor Association Presidential Nomination
Department of Kinesiology
• Carl Hill: 30-Year Service Award;
• Kathy Hill: 30-Year Service Award;
• Amelia Lee: AAHPERD Alliance Scholar Award, Robert Wood: Tiger Athletic Foundation Undergraduate Teaching Award.
The University Lab School
• Thelda Adams: University Laboratory School Presidential Award Finalist and Middle School Teacher of the Year;
• Jimmie Hayes: University Laboratory School Retiree;
• Daphne Hilton: University Laboratory School Retiree;
• Elizabeth Jolly: University Laboratory School Presidential Award Nominee;
• Mary McGehee: 30-Year University Laboratory School Service Award;
• Patsy Peebles: University Laboratory School Retiree;
• Candice Varnell: University Laboratory School Retiree.
Community Leader
• Phyllis Crawford, Principal of Sherwood Middle School: UCEA 2004 Educational Leadership Award.
The 2005 edition of U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Graduate Schools” recently ranked several LSU post-graduate programs in the areas of business, education, engineering, law and medicine.
Business
After a one-year absence, The Flores MBA program at LSU’s Ourso College of Business Administration is ranked 71st for 2005, and is 41st of ranked public universities. The Ourso College is one of only 467 business schools accredited by the Association for the Advancement of Collegiate Schools of Business, which evaluates the more than 2,000 business schools in the nation. U.S. News considers only AACSB accredited business schools eligible for its rankings. “America’s Best Graduate Schools” also identifies the internal auditing program at the Ourso College as one of the best, recognizing that graduates are recruited nationwide.
“The ranking really reflects how much our programs have advanced,” said Robert T. Sumichrast, dean of the Ourso College of Business Administration. “The national audience is taking notice of the work we are doing.”
The Flores MBA program last appeared in “America’s Best Graduate Schools” in 2003 at 76th. Changes in the rankings methodology kept the program out of the published 2004 rankings, but significant achievements in the past year have earned the program a higher ranking than before.
This year U.S. News added a public affairs ranking in which the Ourso College’s master of public administration placed in the top 100.
“Our public administration program is very influential in the state and we are making good progress in raising the quality of all aspects of the program,” Sumichrast said. “Being included in the latest rankings by U.S. News attests to the progress we are making.”
Education
While there are more than 3,000 teacher preparation programs in the country, U.S. News ranks only those with Ph.D. programs. Among these, LSU’s College of Education ranks at 69th overall, but is clearly in the top 50 among public graduate schools of education. In addition, LSU’s teacher preparation programs have been rated “exemplary” in the Louisiana teacher preparation accountability system.
“It is worthwhile to compare ourselves with our peers, but it’s important to remember that those qualities that cannot be easily measured are often most important,” said Barbara Fuhrmann, dean of the College of Education at LSU.
Engineering
Three programs in LSU’s College of Engineering were ranked. The chemical engineering program ranked 50th, along with schools such as Michigan State and Arizona State and just behind schools such as Yale University and Vanderbilt University. The civil engineering program ranked 65th, along with schools such as Rutgers, Tufts and Syracuse University. The mechanical engineering program ranked 82nd, along with schools such as George Washington University, Oregon State University and Tulane University.
“We are very pleased by these rankings that reflect the recognition the college richly deserves. This is clear evidence that the academic and research community is beginning to take notice of the major accomplishments and the advances that have been made in the college in recent years,” said Pius Egbelu, dean of the College of Engineering. “Engineering education is changing and undergoing transformation. The college is repositioning itself for the change by engaging in cutting-edge research and education and becoming a leader among its peers through the pursuit of excellence and quality in all our scholarly endeavors.”
Law
The LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center moved up in this year’s rankings, from 99 to 89. LSU is tied for 89th on the list with four other universities – Georgia State, Hofstra, Seton Hall and Nebraska.
“We at the Law Center are pleased with our dramatic ascent in the U.S. News ratings,” said Law Center Chancellor John Costonis. “We moved from third to second tier and into the nation’s top 100 law schools last year, and then jumped ahead an additional 10 spaces this year. This upward thrust will continue because it derives from durable structural changes that will continue to pay off years into the future.”
Medicine
LSU’s clinical psychology doctoral program ranked 77th, along with several other universities including Baylor University, New York University, the University of Tennessee and Loyola University in Chicago. Professor Johnny Matson, who directs the clinical psychology program, said he is not at all surprised that LSU is on the list, and he thinks the program should be ranked even higher.
“In the ‘Web of Science’ rankings, which are done more scientifically than the U.S. News rankings, we are ahead of the top five programs listed in U.S. News,” he said.
The Web of Science rankings, he said, are based on the number of publications written by faculty members in a program and the number of times those publications are cited by other faculty members in the field. Matson said LSU’s clinical psychology Ph.D. program accepts graduate students from the nation’s top universities, and that some of the best students he’s ever worked with received their undergraduate degrees from LSU.
“LSU’s top students are as good as any of them,” he said.
Social Work
The master of social work program also ranked in the top 100, coming in at 79th, along with Eastern Washington University, Georgia State, Monmouth, Ohio University and the Universities of Minnesota, South Florida and Vermont.
Mary Ellen Kondrat, dean of the School of Social Work, has been at LSU less than a year, and likes what she’s seeing within the school.
“In the next few years, we hope to move up on this list, and I believe we will based on the progress that I’m seeing,” Kondrat said. “Our students have historically done well on the national licensing exam, and they report that they are well prepared when they get into the work force. Employers also report that our students are extremely well prepared.”
Speech-Language Pathology
LSU’s master’s program in speech-language pathology ranked at 62nd. Paul Hoffman, chair of the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, said he is pleased that the program in speech-language pathology maintained its ranking in the top 25 percent.
“This ranking reflects the national visibility of our faculty and student research in the areas of childhood language development and intervention for childhood language disorders,” he said.
According to U.S. News, rankings are based on two types: expert opinion about program quality and the statistical indicators that measure the quality of a school’s faculty, research and students. For the rankings in all five areas, indicator and opinion data came from surveys of more than 1,000 programs and nearly 9,100 academics and other professionals in the fall of 2003.
“I am very pleased that LSU has moved up in a number of categories in this year’s U.S. News rankings,” said LSU Chancellor Mark Emmert. “These improvements show what we at LSU have known for a while now – that the university is moving forward and establishing itself as a university of national prominence.”
“These latest rankings are proof that the Flagship Agenda is working,” said Provost Risa Palm. “By working to advance LSU on a national level, we have shown the world how the university has improved during the past few years.”
For more rankings information visit http://www.usnews.com.
The Fire Department of New York City has become a customer of FiRST Responder Systems & Technology LLC, which is located in LSU’s Louisiana Business & Technology Center.
FiRST Responder Systems & Technology is a software and technology firm serving the national first-responder community. According to FiRST, the Fire Department of New York City reviewed and purchased multiple copies of the company’s HazGuide HazMat resource software. FDNY will utilize FiRST’s technology as part of its city-wide Hazardous Materials Response.
“Being able to welcome New York City to the FiRST Responder Systems & Technology family of customers is a very important moment for us as a company,” said Jeffrey A. Bean, president and chief executive officer. “To have a fire department with the reputation of New York City’s – along with our other terrific customers from fire departments to military installations – find that our HazGuide product can assist them in their mission mitigating hazmat incidents means that our company is continuing to deliver on its promise of providing the very best technology solutions to our nation’s firefighters.”
According to the company, HazGuide is “the nation’s first fully integrated and searchable software application that cross-references chemical information taken from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Pocket Guide, Emergency Response Guidebook 2000, U.S. Fire Administration HazMat Guide, Coast Guard Chemical Hazards Response Information System Guide and Materials Safety Data Sheets Database.”
HazGuide allows responders to search for hazardous materials not only by chemical name, but also by United Nations number, Chemical Abstract Service registry number, Department of Transportation placard or National Fire Protection Association placard. This will mean that responders can, with greater speed and efficiency, identify chemical reactions, review respirator recommendations, quickly access procedures and recommendations for chemical classes and determine chemical properties such as flash point, boiling point and lower explosion limits.
“It is exciting to have an incubator start-up company gaining acceptance in the marketplace with verification from the Fire Department of New York City. This is a major accomplishment and proof of the product ...We are proud of their success, which comes from dedication and perseverance,” said Charles D’Agostino, executive director of the Louisiana Business & Technology Center.
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| Nearly 200 volunteers from LSU and schools and businesses around the state volunteered to construct the School for the Deaf’s playground. |
Recently, nearly 200 volunteers turned out to help construct a new playground for students at the Louisiana School for the Deaf.
Fifty-five students from LSU and 140 volunteers from the School for the Deaf, Ascension Alternative High School, local businesses and Home Depot stores all over Louisiana donated their time for the project, run by KaBOOM, a national non-profit organization that funds and constructs playgrounds throughout the country.
KaBOOM’s largest source of funds comes from Home Depot, which pledges funds and volunteers for playground construction.
Marybeth Lima, an associate professor of biological and agricultural engineering at LSU, and her biological engineering students worked with the School for the Deaf to come up with designs for a playground, but when the time came to begin construction, there was no money to begin the project.
So Lima suggested to Trish Mann, the school social worker for the LSD, that the school contact KaBOOM about a grant.
“Time after time, Marybeth was the one providing the (connection),” Mann said. “If it wasn’t for her and her contacts, this wouldn’t have happened.”
The playground marked the sixth one that Lima and her students have constructed in the Baton Rouge area. In adherence to KaBOOM’s usual practices, the playground had to be constructed in a day. With teams of 10 to 15 people working together, the project was completed in six hours.
“We tried to go with things that kids identified as important such as slides and structures where they could climb up high and play,” Lima said.
The playground includes a rock wall, spiral slide and monkey bars.