BATON ROUGE – The LSU Board of Supervisors today announced the creation of a search committee to select the university’s next president. “We are pleased to announce the appointment of a search committee made up of accomplished individuals whose singular goal is to help us identify the next leader of LSU,” said Robert Dampf, LSU board chair. “We are ready to move forward, and we fully intend to conduct a thorough, yet expeditious, search process.”

The Presidential Search Committee is reflective of LSU and of Louisiana. The 20 committee members are a diverse group representing the different ethnicities, genders, academic disciplines, occupations, geographical regions and constituencies whose input is vital to selecting the next leader of LSU.

The members of the search committee are:

Search Committee Chair
James Williams	Former chair, LSU Board of Supervisors from the Second Congressional District	New Orleans, La.
Search Committee Vice Chair
Gabriela Gonzalez	Boyd Professor, LSU Department of Physics and Astronomy	Baton Rouge, La.
Search Committee Members
Glenn Armentor	LSU Board of Supervisors from Third Congressional District	Lafayette, La.
Verge Ausberry	LSU Executive Deputy Director of Athletics and Executive Director External Relations	Baton Rouge, La.
Hannah Barrios	Vice President, LSU Student Government	Pollock, La.
Chip Campbell	Alumnus and President of Campbell Companies	Shreveport, La.
Clarence Cazalot	Alumnus and Chair of the LSU Foundation	Houston, Texas
Larry Clark	Chancellor, LSU Shreveport	Shreveport, La.
Lester W. Johnson	Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, LSU Health Monroe	Monroe, La.
Jessica Jones	Director of Student Success, LSU Eunice	Eunice, La.
Valencia Jones	LSU Board of Supervisors from the Fourth Congressional District	Natchitoches, La.
Luke Laborde	Instructor, LSU School of Renewable Resources	Baton Rouge, La.
Lori Martin	Professor, LSU Department of Sociology	Baton Rouge, La.
Roland Mitchell	Dean, LSU College of Human Sciences and Education	Baton Rouge, La.
Steve Nelson	Dean, LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Medicine	New Orleans, La.
Christel Slaughter	Alumna and co-owner of SSA Consultants	Baton Rouge, La.
Tara Smith	Professor and Regional Director, LSU AgCenter Central Region	Alexandria, La.
Rémy Starns	Chair-elect, LSU Board of Supervisors from the First Congressional District	Metairie, La.
Takeyra Wagner	Education Technology Specialist and Staff Senate President at LSU Alexandria	Alexandria, La.
Mary Leach Werner	Immediate Past Chair, LSU Board of Supervisors from the Third Congressional District	Lake Charles, La.

In the charge to the search committee, Dampf asked them to prepare a position description for the presidency position. The committee will also have the latitude to recommend any structural or organizational changes that might facilitate identifying the best leader for the future of LSU. The Board is anticipated to consider the description at its Oct. 23 meeting.

The search committee will determine the method of identifying interested parties and the means for reviewing their qualifications. Though there are no established time limitations, the committee is being asked to move deliberately in completing the search process.

“Our intention is that the search committee will identify individuals who have led or are capable of leading one of the nation’s premier academic, research and health care enterprises,” h Dampf added. “We aim to be a leader in educating future leaders, conducting research that brings understanding and solutions to our challenges, and extending the knowledge of the University well beyond the borders of our campuses.”

Thomas Galligan Jr., dean of LSU’s Paul M. Hebert Law Center, has served as interim president since Jan. 1, 2020.