Benoit, Pike, Weinstein, and Wilson-Kennedy Named 2026-27 SEC ALDP Fellows
August 25, 2026
BATON ROUGE - Four faculty members have been selected to represent LSU in the 2026-2027 SEC Academic Leadership Development Program (ALDP): Edward Benoit, III, Pamela D. Pike, Susan Weinstein, and Zakiya S. Wilson-Kennedy.
“The SEC ALDP reflects an important institutional commitment: developing strong academic leaders at every level,” said Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs & Provost Joseph Messina. “These four faculty members have already distinguished themselves as scholars and leaders. This experience will broaden their understanding of higher education, expose them to new perspectives and prepare them to assume greater leadership responsibilities at LSU and beyond.”
The SEC ALDP identifies, prepares, and advances faculty for leadership roles within the SEC and higher education. Since the program began in 2008, 60 LSU faculty members have been selected as SEC ALDP fellows, including the 2026-27 cohort. At least 13 former LSU fellows have gone on to serve in senior university leadership roles including as president, vice president, vice chancellor, provost, vice provost, or dean.
Each SEC institution develops its own university-level program for its fellows, who also participate in two SEC-wide workshops during the academic year. At LSU, Senior Vice Provost Jane Cassidy, LSU’s SEC ALDP liaison, meets with the fellows weekly and invites guest speakers to join the discussions. These speakers include senior university leaders, such as the President, Chancellor, and Provost, who offer insights into the responsibilities and challenges of leading a university. Together, the LSU and SEC components of the program help participants broaden their perspective from leading within a department or college to thinking about the university as a whole.
At LSU, the SEC ALDP is part of the university’s broader effort to develop strong academic leaders from within the faculty. The Office of Academic Affairs solicits nominations from academic leaders and applications from tenured faculty who have demonstrated leadership potential. Fellows often already serve in roles such as department chair, associate dean, director, or other positions that require them to lead faculty, students, programs, and academic initiatives.
This fall, LSU will host the SEC ALDP fall conference in Baton Rouge, welcoming fellows and academic leaders from all 16 SEC institutions to campus. The conference, themed “Leading Through Change,” will give participants an opportunity to engage with university leaders, exchange ideas with peers, and explore the challenges and opportunities facing major research universities.
About the Fellows
The 2026-2027 LSU fellows represent a range of disciplines and leadership experiences across the university. Together, they bring expertise in academic administration, faculty development, student success, research, and community engagement to this year’s cohort.
Edward Benoit III
Associate Professor and Director
School of Information Studies
College of Human Sciences & Education
Edward Benoit, III, is an associate professor and director of LSU’s School of Information Studies. He previously served as associate director of the school for five years before assuming the interim director role in January 2025. Benoit joined LSU in 2014 after earning master’s degrees in history and library and information science and a doctorate in information studies from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
As a leader in the School of Information Studies, Benoit developed a systematic, data-driven assessment program that became central to the school’s decision-making and curricular improvement efforts. He also helped lead the launch of the school’s LSU Online programs in 2020. During that period, graduate enrollment grew from approximately 175 students to more than 1,000, allowing the school to invest in additional faculty and staff.
As director, Benoit has prioritized faculty support, introducing programs including a summer research grant, faculty development funding and support for open-access scholarship. His leadership approach emphasizes collaboration, transparency and shared governance.
Pamela D. Pike
Spillman Professor of Piano Pedagogy
Associate Dean of Research, Creative Practice and Community Engagement
College of Music & Dramatic Arts
In her administrative role, Pike mentors faculty and students through grant writing and research projects, serves as a liaison between the college and community partners, oversees student travel and study abroad grants, and organizes the annual CMDA Research Expo, which she established in 2022.
Pike has held leadership roles in piano pedagogy and music education for more than two decades. She has redesigned curricula, aligned programs with national standards, mentored undergraduate and graduate students, and supervised graduate teaching assistants. Her professional leadership also includes service with the College Music Society, Louisiana Music Teachers Association and Frances Clark Center for Keyboard Pedagogy.
Susan Weinstein
MacCurdy Distinguished Professor of English and Chair
Department of English
College of Humanities & Social Sciences
Susan “Sue” Weinstein is the MacCurdy Distinguished Professor of English at LSU, where her work focuses on New Literacy Studies and English Education. She served as chair of the Department of English from 2022 to 2025 and as interim associate dean in the College of Humanities & Social Sciences during the 2025-2026 academic year. She returns as chair of the Department of English this fall.
During her time as chair, Weinstein successfully advocated for increases in instructor salaries and developed new ways to support faculty and graduate students through additional travel and research funding and departmental awards.
Her leadership also extends beyond LSU. Weinstein has a long history of collaboration with local teachers, schools and community organizations and has served as board president of Humanities Amped and Forward Arts, two youth-focused arts and education nonprofits.
Zakiya S. Wilson-Kennedy
Associate Dean for Academic Innovation and Engagement
Ron and Dr. Mary Neal Distinguished Associate Professor of Chemistry Education
College of Science
Zakiya S. Wilson-Kennedy is associate dean for academic innovation and engagement in LSU’s College of Science and the Ron and Dr. Mary Neal Distinguished Associate Professor of Chemistry Education. Her career has included leadership roles at LSU, North Carolina A&T State University and the University of Delaware, with a focus on student and faculty success in chemistry and STEM higher education.
At LSU, Wilson-Kennedy has helped design and expand programs supporting students and faculty across the College of Science. She spearheaded SCI 1001, a first-year seminar that now includes approximately 40 sections serving 1,300 students annually, and leads the CHEM 1100 initiative, a research-informed redesign of the gateway chemistry sequence.
Her scholarship focuses on transformative learning, mentoring and the use of artificial intelligence in STEM instruction. She has generated more than $30 million in external support and has been named a fellow of the American Chemical Society, American Association for the Advancement of Science and NOBCChE. She has also served on the National Academies Board on Higher Education and Workforce.