LSU Office of Academic Affairs Hosts Inaugural Gold Standard of Excellence Event

BATON ROUGE – On March 5, the LSU Office of Academic Affairs hosted LSU’s inaugural Gold Standard of Excellence celebration at the Hilton Capitol Center in Baton Rouge. Thirty-five faculty members who won highly prestigious or prestigious pathway awards in 2024 and 2025 were recognized at the event.

In 2024, the LSU Office of Academic Affairs launched the External Awards & Recognition Program to provide LSU faculty and academic leadership with centralized strategic support to identify, apply for, and attain external awards at the national and international level. In addition, the program currently provides a $10,000 stipend to winners of highly prestigious awards and a $5,000 stipend to winners of prestigious awards. Highly prestigious and prestigious pathway awards are key indicators used in evaluating institutions for membership in the Association of American Universities (AAU) and directly advance LSU’s goal of becoming a top-50 research university while increasing the university’s national visibility and reputation.

By earning one of these awards, the honorees have met the “gold standard” in their field, as defined by recognition from their national and international peers for work of exceptional impact and quality.

Dr. Laura Choate, Director of External Awards & Recognition, served as the Master of Ceremonies, with Executive Vice President & Chancellor James T. Dalton and Interim Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs & Provost Troy Blanchard providing remarks. Each honoree was called to the stage for a celebratory photo with the Chancellor and the Provost.

“When I was hired on, they told me to do everything I could to promote scholarly excellence and grow the research footprint and make LSU one of the premier elite flagship universities, and I take that responsibility very seriously,” said Executive Vice President & Chancellor James T. Dalton. “Look around here tonight. This is what it's all about. Outstanding faculty at the top of their fields doing cutting-edge research, creative works, and everything else across the board.”

Each honoree will receive a custom lapel pin, designed exclusively for Gold Standard of Excellence honorees, with 14 karat gold detailing to reflect the distinction they have earned. Created as a lasting marker of achievement, the pin serves not only as recognition of their work, but as a visible symbol of excellence that recipients can carry forward, both as a point of pride and as encouragement to continue reaching new heights.

“The background of the pin is a rich purple, symbolizing excellence, wisdom, creativity, and the kind of intellectual courage that sustains meaningful work. Gold symbolizes the highest measure of quality, a benchmark against which all else is judged. Gold carries weight. It lasts. And it reflects years, often decades, of disciplined inquiry, creativity, and persistence. Gold is the standard. Excellence is the force behind it. Without excellence, achievement does not endure. Without purple, the gold cannot shine.”

Troy Blanchard
Interim Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs & Provost

These achievements also reflect the support of colleagues and mentors who contributed along the way, through guidance, collaboration, and letters of recommendation. Such recognition is rarely the result of individual effort alone. As these honorees continue their work, they will in turn play an important role in supporting and mentoring others pursuing similar distinctions.

“We're not done here. We have to keep reaching higher. That's part of our job as faculty and leaders,” said Dalton. “Looking across your departments, looking across your peers, encouraging them to take that next big step, to take the big risk that results in a big reward, and ultimately being recognized for those accomplishments. So, celebrate your awards and mentor the next person to help them make that step along the way.”

The celebration underscored that these awards go beyond institutional impact, marking deeply personal milestones for faculty that the university is proud to celebrate. They reflect risks taken, ideas defended, experiments repeated, books written, performances refined, and discoveries made. As awareness of the External Awards & Recognition Program continues to grow, the university looks forward to recognizing even more faculty achievements in the years ahead—and welcoming more honorees to the stage at future celebrations.

Academic leaders and faculty interested in learning more about the External Awards & Recognition Program are encouraged to contact Dr. Laura Choate. She is available to present at departmental meetings, provide guidance on award opportunities, and share insights from Academic Analytics to help identify faculty who are strong candidates for highly prestigious and prestigious pathway awards. Faculty are also encouraged to submit awards they have received through the program’s online reporting form.

 

Honorees

Highly Prestigious Award Recipient

• Raquel Robvais, Fellowship, American Council of Learned Societies; Fellowship, National Endowment for the Humanities, Department of Communication Studies, College of Humanities & Social Sciences

Prestigious Pathway Award Recipients

• Lisa R. Avalos, Fulbright Scholar, US Department of State, Paul M. Hebert Law Center
• Sviatoslav Baranets, Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program, National Science Foundation, Department of Chemistry, College of Science
• Corina Barbalata, Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program, National Science Foundation, Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering, College of Engineering
• John Bardes, Summer Stipend Award, National Endowment for the Humanities, Department of History, College of Humanities & Social Sciences
• Will Beavers, Outstanding Investigator Award, National Institutes of Health, Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine
• Susanne C. Brenner, Blaise Pascal Medal in Computational and Information Sciences, Fellow, European Academy of Sciences, Department of Mathematics, College of Science
• Eric Burns and Michela Negro, Giuseppe and Vanna Coconni Prize, European Physical Society, Department of Physics & Astronomy, College of Science
• Les Butler, Fellow, The American Association for the Advancement of Science, Department of Chemistry, College of Science
• Matthew Calamia, Fellow, American Psychological Association, Department of Psychology, College of Humanities & Social Sciences
• Katie Cherry, Fellow, American Psychological Association, Department of Psychology, College of Humanities & Social Sciences
• Manas Ranjan Gartia, Fellow, National Academy of Inventors, Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering, College of Engineering
• Zack Godshall, Fulbright Scholar, US Department of State, Department of English, College of Humanities & Social Sciences
• Tina M. Harris, Fellow, International Communication Association, Manship School of Mass Communication
• Weishan Huang, ASPIRE Award, American Association of Immunologists, Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine
• Ali Kazemian, Kavli Frontiers of Science Fellow, National Academy of Science, Department of Construction Management, College of Engineering
• Michael Khonsari, Honorary Member, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering, College of Engineering
• Lois Kuyper-Rushing, Fulbright Scholar, US Department of State, LSU Libraries
• Jimmy Lawrence, Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program, National Science Foundation, Cain Department of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering
• Guoqiang Li, Fellow, National Academy of Inventors, Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering, College of Engineering
• Marybeth Lima, Fellow, American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Department of Biological & Agricultural Engineering, College of Engineering
• Hai (Thomas) Lin, Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program, National Science Foundation, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering
• Chris Marvel, Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program, National Science Foundation, Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering
• Nicholas A. Mason, Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program, National Science Foundation, Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science
• Femi Olorode, Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program, National Science Foundation, Department of Petroleum Engineering, College of Engineering
• John A. Pojman, Fellow, The American Association for the Advancement of Science, Department of Chemistry
• Kevin T. Smiley, Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program, National Science Foundation, Department of Sociology, College of Humanities & Social Sciences
• George Z. Voyiadjis, Theodore von Karman Medal, American Society of Civil Engineers, Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering
• Fahui Wang, Fellow, American Association of Geographers, Department of Geography & Anthropology, College of Humanities & Social Sciences
• Zakiya S. Wilson-Kennedy, Fellow, American Chemical Society, Department of Chemistry, College of Science
• Amy Xu, Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program, National Science Foundation, Department of Chemistry, College of Science
• Fan Zhang, Outstanding Investigator Award, National Institutes of Health, Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science
• James T. Dalton, Fellow, National Academy of Inventors, Department of Chemistry, College of Science