School of Education’s Blanchard Honored with Distinguished Graduate Teaching Award
April 29, 2026
BATON ROUGE, LA – Joy Blanchard, PhD, associate professor of higher education in the Lutrill & Pearl Payne School of Education, has received the LSU Foundation Distinguished Graduate Faculty Teaching Award, recognizing excellence in graduate-level teaching.
The award celebrates faculty who demonstrate sustained, superior teaching and meaningful
contributions to graduate education over multiple years. Recipients are selected based
on their commitment to student learning, mentorship, and classroom impact.
Blanchard’s teaching and scholarship center on higher education law, with a focus on intercollegiate athletics, negligence liability, student safety, and faculty rights. Her work bridges research and practice, equipping graduate students with a strong understanding of legal frameworks that shape higher education today.
In addition to her teaching, Blanchard is an active leader in her field. She previously served on the board of directors for the Education Law Association and was the organization’s national conference co-chair in 2018. She also contributes to scholarship advancement through her service on editorial boards, including the Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice.
Before joining LSU’s faculty, Blanchard built a strong foundation in student affairs, serving as assistant dean of students at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and holding roles in residence life, student conduct, service-learning, and student activities—experiences that continue to inform her teaching and mentorship.
Blanchard earned her PhD in higher education from the University of Georgia, a master’s degree in higher education from Florida State University, and a bachelor’s degree in secondary French education from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. She is also pursuing a Master of Jurisprudence in Labor and Employment Law from Tulane University.
Her recognition with the LSU Foundation Distinguished Graduate Faculty Teaching Award reflects a sustained commitment to graduate student success and excellence in teaching at LSU.
About the LSU Lutrill & Pearl Payne School of Education
A school of the LSU College of Human Sciences & Education, the Lutrill & Pearl Payne School of Education (SOE) offers undergraduate programs for students who want to pursue a career as a pre-kindergarten through 12th-grade teacher or acquire dual certification in both traditional elementary and special education classrooms. In addition, SOE offers 3 graduate certificates, 17 master’s degree program areas, 9 EdS certificate programs, and 2 PhD degrees in 11 areas of focus. SOE’s focus is not only on preparing highly qualified teachers but also on preparing educational leaders, curriculum studies scholars, educational technology experts, applied researchers, higher education professionals, school counselors, and clinical mental health counselors. SOE specializes in scholarly expertise regarding pressing educational and wellness issues across the entire lifespan.