Jean McGuire
Professor
Rucks Department of Management
Professor
Rucks Department of Management
LSU'S Biweekly Newsletter for Faculty & Staff
January 12, 2007 |
VOL. 23, NO. 10 |
|
| Jean McGuire Professor Rucks Department of Management |
What was your previous position and where?
I was professor of management at the John Molson School of Business, Concordia University, Montreal.
What are your major accomplishments?
My research on corporate governance has been well received. At Concordia, I served twice as associate dean, in research and Ph.D. programs, and served as Ph.D. and MSc. director. I have also organized several international conferences dealing with international management.
What is your research interest?
My focus is on corporate governance. In this research, I examine not only U.S. corporate governance, but international issues as well.
What do you hope to accomplish at LSU?
As the Rucks chair of management, I hope to be able to use my position to contribute to the excellence of the [E. J.] Ourso College of Business and the department of management.
What do you enjoy most about LSU?
I appreciate that faculty are encouraged to undertake important projects. My colleagues and the administration have been extremely encouraging of every initiative I have suggested.
 |
|
Chris Austin conducts fieldwork in the forests of Papua New Guinea, Oceania. |
Chris Austin, assistant curator of herpetology at LSU’s Museum of Natural Science, or LSUMNS, and adjunct professor in biological sciences, recently discovered a new species of lizard while conducting field research in Borneo.
Austin, along with colleague Indraneil Das from the Institute of Biodiversity and Environmental Conservation at the Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, will publish their findings and photos of the new species in the prestigious Journal of Herpetology. The article, which will contain the currently embargoed scientific name of the species, is slated for publication in March 2007.
“We actually found four specimens at once,” said Austin. “One of the best methods for finding lizards in the rainforest is to look under logs. We found two individuals of the new species under one log and two more under another.” With more than 15 years of fieldwork experience behind him, Austin knew immediately that he had found a new species. After collecting the lizards, he and Das began the difficult work of proving what they already knew.
“Determining that a species is new to science is a long and laborious process,” said Austin. “Natural history museums and their invaluable collections are critical in that they allow scientists to examine known biodiversity in order to determine a species is new.” He and Das examined specimens from a slew of museums around the world.
Natural history collections, such as the more than 80,000 specimens in the LSUMNS reptile and amphibian collection, are important because taxonomy – the science of describing, naming and classifying organisms – has implications for basic and applied fields of science. “We can’t conserve what we don’t know we have. It is imperative that we know what species exist in order to preserve them for future generations,” said Austin.
He used the cutting-edge molecular genetics lab at the LSUMNS to decipher the genetic code of the lizards. “We sequenced the DNA of this new species and several other closely related species in order to help our diagnosis,” he said. “Using DNA to help describe new species is becoming one of the most important tools for scientists to use in documenting and describing biodiversity.” The global decline of biodiversity has become a major public issue recently, and the use of modern molecular methods is proving to be fundamental in gaining a better understanding of the situation.
The new species is distinguishable from its closest cousin, a type of skink found in the southern Philippines, in several distinct ways:
These traits combined to confirm the original hypothesis that the lizard was, in fact, an entirely new species.
Austin spent the entire summer of 2006 in New Guinea, his geographical area of expertise, conducting fieldwork with graduate students. He is currently working on research funded by the National Science Foundation to understand why New Guinea, called a megadiverse region, has such a high level of biodiversity.
“While we were there, we collected what we think is a new species of snake, a new species of lizard and probably two or three new species of frogs,” he said. “But the process of certifying a new species takes so long that it will be awhile before we’re certain.”
Austin has been at LSU since 2003, coming from post-doctoral positions in Australia and Japan. “What attracted me to the university the most was LSUMNS and its international reputation for excellence,” he said. Access to the LSUMNS genetics lab makes that aspect of identifying a new species much easier, giving Austin and his graduate students at-home resources that many other researchers have to travel to reach.
LSU has launched a new Web site detailing upcoming changes to transportation routes and parking on campus. The site, www.lsu.edu/easystreets, is part of the new “Easy Streets” campaign, which details the LSU Office of Parking, Traffic and Transportation’s efforts to help to make LSU’s campus safer and more pedestrian friendly.
“Easy Streets” is a campaign to inform the LSU community and campus visitors about in-progress street closures, which are meant to address the safety concerns of pedestrians and cyclists, enhance the timing of bus schedules and encourage alternative methods of transportation to and from campus. The “easy” in “Easy Streets” represents the ease students, faculty and staff will have in getting to and from classes and appointments without the congestion of traffic and motorists speeding through crosswalks.
The Web site provides information for each group of people – visitors, students and faculty and staff – who will be affected by the restricted street access on campus. There is information available on commuter travel routes, maps of visitor parking areas, alternative transportation options and frequently asked questions.
Beginning in the spring semester, gated and manned booths will be erected at nine intersections in order to restrict traffic inside the campus core. Campus buses, staff and faculty B and C permits, as well as other authorized vehicles will be allowed passage on these streets, but all other vehicles will be restricted between the hours of 7 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday. The following streets will have restricted access during the spring semester and will be visibly marked as “Easy Streets”: Cypress Drive (between North PMAC Lot and Dalrymple Drive), Tower Drive (between Raphael Semmes and Highland Road), Fieldhouse Drive, South Campus Drive (between Highland and South Stadium Roads), CEBA Lane, South Stadium Road (between West Stadium Drive and Highland Road), North Stadium Road (between West Stadium Drive and Fieldhouse Drive) and Dalrymple Drive between Infirmary Road and Cypress Drive. Additionally, Infirmary Road will become a one-way street northbound (going toward Chimes Street).
These changes were recommended as part of the Parking Master Plan in conjunction with Walker Parking Consultant and the Chancellor’s Parking Task Force. Most of the streets that will be restricted were already prohibited to student traffic.
LSU recognized 1,811 graduates at the university’s 261st commencement exercises on campus on Thursday, Dec. 21.
Each college held its own ceremony to recognize its own individual students.
Eight University Medalists, or students graduating with perfect grade-point averages, were recognized, as well as five students from the Honors College who participated in a specific honors program and successfully completed an undergraduate thesis.
There were also 131 honor graduates, who finished with grade-point averages between 3.70 and 4.0.
The December 2006 graduates represented 56 Louisiana parishes, 35 states and 48 countries. Approximately 51 percent of the graduates were women and 49 percent were men, and they ranged in age from 20 to 71.
The names of students who received degrees can be accessed at LSU’s commencement Web site, http://www.lsu.edu/commencement. The list is for December 2006 graduates who have authorized the release of their names.
The College of Engineering’s ceremony featured Phyllis M. Taylor as its keynote speaker. Taylor is chair and chief executive officer of Taylor Energy Company LLC, as well as chair and president of the Patrick F. Taylor Foundation, a philanthropic organization that benefits education, law enforcement, military and other humanitarian efforts. The Louisiana TOPS scholarship program was created by Taylor’s late husband.
LSU Board of Supervisors member Laura Leach also served as the guest speaker at the College of Agriculture’s diploma ceremony. Leach is active in the community and is one of the principal owners of Sweet Lake Land & Oil Company of Lake Charles, La.
The December 2006 commencement also recognized 33 LSU employee graduates. The list of these graduates can be found on following page of this issue of LSU Today.
The LSU School of Landscape Architecture has the top-ranked undergraduate degree program in the nation, according to the results of a 2007 survey released by DesignIntelligence, the leading journal of the design professions. The same study also ranked the school’s graduate program fifth in the country.
“This is extremely significant,” said David Cronrath, dean of the College of Art & Design, which oversees the School of Landscape Architecture. “One of the criteria for the LSU Flagship Agenda is to have our academic units recognized by national organizations for exceptional quality.”
While U.S. News & World Report magazine has established a nationally recognized ranking system for universities and many university programs, the magazine does not rank design schools. To fill that void, DesignIntelligence began its own ranking of accredited programs in architecture, landscape architecture and interior design several years ago. Rankings are based on statistical information, professional surveys and academic surveys. Practitioners at leading U.S. landscape architecture firms complete the survey, which asks them which schools have produced the best-prepared graduates during the past five years.
“While the professional and academic surveys are based more on reputation than hard evidence, it is important to note that it is these same firms who actually hire graduates from accredited schools,” Cronrath said.
LSU’s School of Landscape Architecture undergraduate program moves up to first place from third, where it was ranked in 2006. The graduate program, meanwhile, remains in the top five for the second year in a row. More significantly, the school has been among the top 10 since the survey began.
“To me this demonstrates the school has a well-rounded and effective educational program,” Cronrath said.
Bachelor’s Degrees:
Deborah Ann Anderson – Renewable Natural Resources
Allison Renee Brown – Arts & Sciences, English
William Joseph Leonards III – AgCenter Administrative Services
Bruce Eric Messick Jr. – User Support & Student IT Enablement
Michael Octave Robert – Audubon Sugar Institute
Danielle Nicole Walker – LSU Libraries, Administration
Master’s Degrees:
Alvaro Manuel Armas-Rosales – Oceanography & Coastal Sciences
Ann Marie Chapman – Vet Teaching Hospital & Clinics
Roxanne Kearns Dill – University College, Administration
David Nicholas Hayes – Student Services, The Student Health Center
Danielle Armantine Lauzon – Animal Science
Martha Moreau Ratcliff – Information Technology
Kanwalbir Singh Sekhon – Agronomy
Celena Raquel Trahan – Student Services, Residential Life/Administration
Doctoral Degrees:
Gerlinde Grandstaff Beckers – Dept. of Educational Theory, Policy and Practice
Abhinav Bhushan – Center For Advanced Microstructures & Devices
David Nathan Carter – Southeast Region Parish Offices
Carrie L. Castille – La. Coop Ext. Services, Administration
Melissa W. Cater – Central Region Parish Office
Karen Gruszynski – National Center For Biomedical Research & Training
Kyudong Han – Basic Sciences, Biological Sciences
Guerry Owen Holm Jr. – Coastal Ecology Institute
Jason Paul Juneau – LSU Libraries, Administration
Todd Anthony Pourciau – Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research
Karen Marie Rowley – Mass Communication, Instruction
Robert James Soileau – Communications
Todd Anthony Tarifa – Southeast Region Parish Offices
Onur Tuncer – Turbine Innovation & Energy Research Center
Weihua Wang – Basic Sciences, Chemistry
John William Wright – Continuing Education, Independent & Distance Learning
Charles Fredrick Zewe – LSU Office of the President
Certificate of Education Specialist:
Dustin Michael Hebert – Developmental Studies, Academic Affairs & Services
Patricia Jeanette Hieronimus – Academic Center for Student Athletes