Louisiana State University
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Template:Infobox University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, or simply Louisiana State University (LSU) is a public, coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and the main campus of the Louisiana State University System. LSU currently includes 9 senior colleges and 3 schools, in addition to specialized centers, divisions, institutes, and offices. Enrollment stands at more than 30,000 students, and there are 1,300 full-time faculty members. LSU is one of only six American universities designated as a land-grant, sea-grant and space-grant research center.
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Campus
The LSU main campus occupies a 650-acre (2.6-km²) plateau on the banks of the Mississippi River; overall, LSU is located on 2,000 acres (8.1 km&sp2;) of land just south of downtown Baton Rouge. The campus boasts more than 250 principal buildings. Many of the buildings are built in Italian Renaissance style, which is marked by red pantile roofs, overhanging eaves, and honey-colored stucco. Thomas Gaines's The Campus as a Work of Art praises LSU's landscaping as "a botanical joy" in its listing among the 20 best campuses in America . The live oak trees on campus have been valued at $36 million. Through the LSU Foundation's "Endow an Oak" program, individuals or groups are able to endow live oaks across campus.
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History
In 1853 the Louisiana General Assembly passed legislation creating a state institution of higher education named The Seminary of Learning of the State of Louisiana (French translation: l'Universite' de l'Etat de la Louisiane) near Pineville. The institution's first building was completed in 1859, and classes began in 1860. In 1861, the school's name was changed to "Louisiana State Seminary of Learning & Military Academy" (French translation: le Lycee Scientifique et Militaire de l'Etat de la Louisiane).
When the American Civil War broke out later that year, the school, like the rest of the country, was deeply affected. Faculty, administration, and students alike left the school, most to join or support the Confederate Army, but the school's first president, William Tecumseh Sherman resigned from the university and accepted a commission as a colonel in the Union Army. Later that year, Louisiana seceded from the Union, and the school was closed.
The seminary re-opened for the spring session in 1862 only to close again less than a month later following military action by federal forces. The library's contents and many other items were destroyed, but the building was saved. The school remained closed until the conclusion of the war and reopened in the autumn of 1865. After the Pineville campus building burned down in 1865, classes resumed two weeks later at the "Institute for the Deaf, Dumb, and Blind" in Baton Rouge. In 1870, the seminary officially became "The Louisiana State University" (French translation: l'Universite' de l'Etat de la Louisiane).
Meanwhile, in 1874, the Louisiana State Agricultural & Mechanical College (later Louisiana A&M) opened as a separate school on the University of Louisiana campus in New Orleans. Classes were held there until the new campus in Chalmette, near New Orleans, was completed. This campus was racially integrated. Louisiana State University and Louisiana A&M College were combined in 1876 by the Louisiana Legislature, which prompted a title change to the current name. The legislature also made LSU the state's land-grant institution.
In 1886, the Department of the Interior transferred title of the Baton Rouge Arsenal, which had been seized by Louisiana militia during the Civil War, to the state of Louisiana. The former arsenal became the new campus. University President David F. Boyd paid for much of the repair and construction himself, without reimbursement.
Olivia Davis became LSU's first female student in 1901. She graduated in 1905.
Architect Theodore Link's campus plan was approved and construction of present buildings began in 1922.
In the fall of 1925, classes began on the Baton Rouge campus. It was dedicated the next year, and remains the primary campus of the University.
In 1978, LSU became a sea-grant institution.
LSU Today
Currently under revision.
Colleges and Schools
- College of Agriculture
- College of Art and Design
- College of Arts and Sciences
- College of Basic Sciences
- E.J. Ourso College of Business
- School of the Coast and Environment
- College of Education
- College of Engineering
- Honors College
- Manship School of Mass Communication
- College of Music and Dramatic Arts
- School of Veterinary Medicine
Athletics
LSU is a member of the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) and the Southeastern Conference. It fields teams in 14 varsity sports (5 men's, 7 women's, 2 coed). Its official team nickname is the Tigers and Lady Tigers and its school colors are purple and gold.
According to a study by LSU economics professor Loren Scott, the existence of LSU Athletics generates $131 million in sales for businesses in the Baton Rouge community, another $40 million in household earnings and supports over 2,100 jobs in the Baton Rouge area.
LSU fielded its first football team in 1893. In their first game, they lost to Tulane 34-0. LSU football is an important part of life in Baton Rouge during the fall. Every Saturday, the campus is mobbed by well over 100,000 fans for a day of festivities, tailgating, and debauchery. The games themselves are held usually at night in Tiger Stadium, a venue long-recognized as a fearsome place for opposing teams to play. LSU's traditional rivals include Tulane, Ole Miss, and Alabama; however, LSU recently has had more bitter matches with Southeastern Conference members Auburn, Georgia, and Florida. In 2003 LSU beat Oklahoma 21-14 for its first national title since the 1950s.
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National Titles
- Men's Basketball - 1935
- Boxing - 1949
- Football - 1958, 2003
- Men's Golf - 1940, 1942, 1947, 1955
- Men's Indoor Track - 2001, 2004
- Women's Indoor Track - 1987, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2002, 2003, 2004
- Men's Outdoor Track - 1933, 1989, 1990, 2002
- Women's Outdoor Track - 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996,1997, 2000, 2003
- Baseball - 1991, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000
SEC titles
- Baseball - 1939, 1943, 1946, 1961, 1975, 1986, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2003
- Men's Basketball - 1934-35, 1952-53, 1953-54, 1978-79, 1980-81, 1984-85, 1990-91, 1999-2000
- Football - 1935, 1936, 1958, 1961, 1970, 1986, 1988, 2001, 2003
- Men's Golf - 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1942, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1953, 1954, 1960, 1966, 1967, 1986, 1987
- Women's Basketball - 2003 earlier?
- Women's Golf - 1992
- Gymnastics - 1981
- Men's Swimming - 1988
- Men's Tennis - 1976, 1985, 1998, 1999
- Men's Indoor Track - 1957, 1963, 1989, 1990
- Women's Indoor Track - 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999
- Men's Outdoor Track - 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1943, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1951, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1963, 1988, 1989, 1990
- Women's Outdoor Track - 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1996
- Softball - 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004
- Volleyball - 1986, 1989, 1990, 1991
LSU adopted the tiger as the official mascot in 1896. LSU received its first live mascot, named "Little-Eat-'Em-Up", a black bobtailed tiger, in 1924 from an alumnus living in South America. Tulane and LSU played the first football game on the new campus on Thanksgiving Day of that year. LSU lost. The field was "temporarily" named Tiger Stadium. That name is still in use today.
In 1936, a live Bengal Tiger was purchased from the Little Rock Zoo for $750, with money contributed by the student body. The tiger's name was changed to Mike for Mike Chambers, LSU's athletic trainer when the mascot was purchased, who had been instrumental in organizing the drive to purchase the tiger. A permanent home was constructed near Tiger Stadium where all of the succeeding mascots have resided. It is currently under renovations to meet zoological standards, as well as to provide a more natural and hospitable habitat for the many Mike's of LSU. Mike I reigned for 20 years before dying of pneumonia. The current mascot is Mike V.
Source: LSUSports.net Athletics Information page (http://www.lsusports.net/ad/randomlink.cfm?pagecode=athletics)
Notable Alumni
Arts, Entertainment, and Humanities
- John Ed Bradley, novelist
- Bill Conti, Academy Award-winning composer
- Julie Giroux, Emmy Award-winning composer
- Rex Reed, New York author and film critic
- Joanne Woodward, Academy Award-winning actress
Business and Economics
- Lodwrick M. Cook, co-chairman of the Board of Global Crossing Inc.
- Reinosuke Hara, vice chairman of the Board of Seiko Instruments, Inc.
- Harry J. Longwell, Sr., vice-president of ExxonMobil U.S.A.
- Thomas Ryder, Chairman and CEO of Reader's Digest Magazine
- Clarence Cazalot, President and CEO of Marathon Oil Corporation
Government and Politics
- John Breaux, United States Senator
- James Carville, political strategist
- David Duke, candidate for governor of the state of Louisiana
- Edwin Edwards,former governor of the state of Louisiana
- Maxime Faget, Engineering & Development Director, NASA
- Carlos Roberto Flores, president of Honduras
- M.J. "Mike" Foster, Jr., former governor of the state of Louisiana
- Paul M. Hebert, Civilian Judge during Nuremberg War Trials
- Hubert Humphrey, 38th Vice President of the United States
- Mary Landrieu, United States Senator
- Russell B. Long, United States Senator
Military
- General Claire Chennault, Commander of World War II's "Flying Tigers"
- General John A. Lejeune, Namesake of Camp Lejeune North Carolina
Sports
- Mahmoud Abdur-Rauf, retired NBA player (formerly of the Denver Nuggets, the Sacramento Kings and the Vancouver Grizzlies)
- "Pistol" Pete Maravich, member of the Basketball Hall of Fame
- Shaquille O'Neal, NBA center, Miami Heat (formerly of the Los Angeles Lakers and Orlando Magic)
- David Toms, Professional Golfer
- Brandon Winey, NFL Tackle
- Rohan Davey, NFL Quarterback
- Bob Pettit, All-America (1952, 1953, 1954) NBA (1954-1965) NBA champion with St. Louis Hawks (1958); NBA MVP (1956, '59); 10-time All-NBA First Team (1955-64)
Miscellaneous
- Jimmy Andrews, M.D., founder of the American Sports Medicine Institute
- Dolores Spikes, president of the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore
Achievements
- The venerable Southern Review was first published by the university in 1935.
- Former Professor Robert Penn Warren won the Pulitzer Prize for his novel, All the King's Men in 1947.
- In 1970 LSU Professor T. Harry Williams won a Pulitzer Prize for his biography of Louisiana governor Huey Long.
- John Kennedy Toole posthumously won the Pulitzer Prize for his fictional work, A Confederacy of Dunces. (The book was published by LSU Press in 1980.)
See also
External links
- LSU Home Page (http://www.lsu.edu/) and assorted pages within that domain
- LSU Athletics (http://www.lsusports.net/)
- LSU Faculty Handbook (http://www.is.lsuhsc.edu/isvcs/fh/contents.htm)
- Louisiana Board Of Regents (http://www.regents.state.la.us/)
- The Daily Reveille (http://www.lsureveille.com/)