New Institutes Established 10/30/01

The approval of two new institutes on the LSUS campus will support the university’s efforts to offer new programs which reflect its expanded role as the regional university serving Northwest Louisiana.

The new Sports Science Institute and the Red River Watershed Management Institute will significantly enhance the academic and research opportunities on campus.

The Sports Science Institute, which received approval from the Board of Regents this summer, is a collaboration between LSUS and the LSU Health Sciences Center in research, service and education in a broad spectrum of activities related to sport and exercise science.

In addition to providing interdisciplinary research, the Institute will serve as an educational outreach unit and will offer academic programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

“This is a significant partnership between LSUS and the Health Sciences Center,” said Chancellor Vincent J. Marsala. “The Institute will bring important visibility to Louisiana in the burgeoning field of sport and exercise science.”
The Institute’s model will go beyond traditional sports activities to include a wide range of exercise, conditioning, rehabilitation and recreational activity. Dr. Tim Winter, chair in the Department of Kinesology and Health Science, will serve as director of the Institute.

The LSUS Board of Supervisors approved the New Red River Watershed Management Institute at its July meeting held on the LSUS campus. The Board of Regents gave it approval in September.

This new Institute will significantly expand the university's efforts to become a major resource for watershed management studies for the Red River Basin, which stretches from New Mexico to Louisiana and covers almost 100,000 square miles.

The Institute’s director is Gary Hanson, assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry and Physics, and will include a consortium of scientists from LSUS working in cooperation with local, state and federal government agencies and other partners to collaborate in research, education and community service/outreach related to watershed management.

The Institute will take advantage of LSUS’s unique location next to the Red River and the newly created LSUS Red River Education and Research Park in the 600 acre C. Bickham Dickson Park wetlands area adjacent to the university.

The Research Park was formed through a partnership between LSUS and the City of Shreveport with the goal of creating a world-class site for education and research while protecting the wetlands area through local community involvement to maintain a pristine ecological environment.

To help fund the Institute, LSUS has already received more than $1 million in grants from various governmental agencies. Research projects receiving funding include water quality/water management projects and watershed restoration action strategy studies funded by the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality and other agencies.

LSUS faculty are also currently conducting several biodiversity studies to determine the effect of environmental factors, including pollution and habitat changes, in the Red River Watershed. This research will help design strategies for better management practices for the Red River Basin's ecosystem.