LSU Chancellor James T. Dalton Named Spring Commencement Speaker for the College of Science

The LSU College of Science is honored to announce Dr. James T. Dalton, LSU Executive Vice President & Chancellor, as the Spring 2026 Commencement Speaker.

Dr. Dalton is a distinguished academic leader, researcher, and innovator whose career spans higher education, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical discovery. In close collaboration with LSU leadership, he oversees the university’s academic and research enterprise and operational effectiveness while advancing LSU’s mission and its goal of becoming a Top 50 research university. He also serves as Executive Vice President of the LSU System, working alongside President Dr. Wade Rousse to promote academic and scholarly excellence across Louisiana.

Before joining LSU in 2025, Dr. Dalton served as Executive Vice President and Provost at the University of Alabama, where he oversaw the academic, research, and service missions of 13 colleges and academic divisions, supporting more than 40,000 students and an annual academic budget exceeding $1.2 billion. Prior to Alabama, he served as Dean of the College of Pharmacy at the University of Michigan, where he elevated the college to a No. 3 national ranking, doubled research expenditures, launched new academic programs, and led successful fundraising efforts for scholarships, endowments, and facilities.

Dr. Dalton’s career also includes significant leadership in the private sector. As Chief Scientific Officer and Vice President for Preclinical Research and Development at GTx, Inc., he directed teams developing therapeutics in oncology and endocrinology. His pioneering research has resulted in more than 100 issued U.S. patents, over 500 international patents, and more than 21,000 research citations.

A fellow of both the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS), Dr. Dalton was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2019 and the National Academy of Inventors in 2025 in recognition of his contributions to biomedical research and academic leadership. He earned his BS in pharmacy from the University of Cincinnati and his PhD in pharmaceutics and pharmaceutical chemistry from the Ohio State University, where he also completed a postdoctoral fellowship.

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