When LSU’s Board of Supervisors emerged from its executive session Tuesday, very few expected the decision it announced.
The Board picked a president, of course — Wade Rousse, who many saw as the frontrunner — but also surprisingly appointed an executive vice president.
What happened? LSU got creative.
What’s changing
As part of the motion to appoint Rousse as the president, the Board also appointed Jim Dalton as executive vice president, a role that will serve as the chancellor of the Baton Rouge campus and oversee the other research-intensive institutions in the LSU system, which include Pennington Biomedical Research Center, the AgCenter and the health sciences centers in Shreveport and New Orleans.
Dalton was one of the finalists for the presidential position and was the one who received the most votes from the presidential search committee as a finalist (19 out of 20). He was previously the provost at University of Alabama.
Throughout the search process, Rousse was clear that one of his first moves as president would be to urge the Board of Supervisors to split the current LSU president role into president and chancellor. He got his wish before he even took office.
This role given to Dalton, however, represents a more complex change to LSU’s existing structure than just appointing a Baton Rouge chancellor. Dalton’s executive vice president essentially makes him the system’s highest-ranking academic officer.
Rousse said he’ll release specifics within 30 days, but said the rough outline will split the previous presidential responsibilities into clear divisions.
“External affairs, government affairs and athletics will report to the president. All of the scholarship enterprises will report to [Dalton],” Rousse said shortly after being named president.
Why the change was made
Until 2012 when the roles were combined at the recommendation of Gov. Bobby Jindal, the LSU system had a system president and a chancellor over the Baton Rouge campus.
Rousse, and many others in recent years, have made the argument that the Baton Rouge campus is too large for one person to effectively preside over the whole LSU system and give adequate attention to the main campus. There’s been increasing talk of splitting the two positions, especially now that University of New Orleans is re-joining the system.
It was something leaders also considered but ultimately decided against in 2020, the last time the university was between presidents before it hired former President William Tate IV.
As far as the breakdown of responsibilities, Faculty Senate President Daniel Tirone said he sees it as a change that’ll allow both Rousse and Dalton to do the jobs best suited for each individually, as well as one that faculty will appreciate.
“I think they came out with a structure that will play well to the strengths that each candidate brought in the search,” Tirone said. “It’s a structure that certainly seems to make sense given the talents that each candidate has.”
Tirone, who was on the presidential search committee that recommended finalists to the Board, said Rousse seemed to have administrative skills, while Dalton has more experience with academics and research.
“It’s not often, if ever, that during a presidential search, you get lucky enough to have two candidates with the same vision whose different backgrounds complement each other to the benefit of the entire university,” Board Chair Scott Ballard said.
Rousse spoke often during the search about revamping structure and streamlining things across the LSU system to make sure “everyone is pulling in the same direction.” However, he took criticism, particularly from faculty, for not having a research background.
Dalton, on the other hand, has a background in pharmaceuticals and drug discovery science. At his position at Alabama, he oversaw the university’s academics.
“I didn’t envision taking on the role,” Dalton said. “I can’t imagine a more perfect partnership.”
The sweeping changes will require a change of LSU bylaws, which the Board instructed General Counsel Trey Jones to do before its next meeting.
