DR. DAN RENEAU 2012 BULLDOG FOOTBALL
University President
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For over half a century, President Dan Reneau and Louisiana Tech University have shared a reputation for higher education excellence, leadership and performance that is unrivaled anywhere in the State of Louisiana. With a passion for service and a commitment to his University and its constituents, Dr. Reneau has become one of the most respected and admired educational leaders in the history of Louisiana higher education. Dr. Reneau’s many accomplishments at Louisiana Tech began with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering in 1963. He also earned a master’s degree from Tech in chemical engineering in 1964, followed by a doctorate from Clemson University in 1966. Dr. Reneau returned to Louisiana Tech in 1967 as an assistant professor of chemical engineering and quickly distinguished himself as a scholar and researcher. He has published over 80 technical papers in books and journals, edited five books, and attended over 100 international meetings and conferences. In 1972, Dr. Reneau was responsible for establishing Louisiana Tech’s Biomedical Engineering Department – one of the first of its kind in the United States. The department and its undergraduate curriculum became only the fifth program accredited in the nation. The Biomedical Engineering Ph.D. program was later awarded a Commendation of Excellence by the Louisiana Board of Regents. Dr. Reneau’s continued vision and leadership resulted in his appointment as Louisiana Tech’s Vice President of Academic Affairs in 1980. In this capacity, he served as chief academic officer to some 400 faculty housed in six colleges and three professional schools, offering 160 different degree programs. During his tenure, every major program with an accrediting agency was awarded accreditation. He was also instrumental in establishing Louisiana Tech’s Center for Biomedical Engineering and Rehabilitation Science. On February 20, 1987, the Board of Trustees for State Colleges and Universities selected Dr. Reneau as the 13th President of Louisiana Tech University. While accomplishments have been many during Dr. Reneau’s tenure as President of Louisiana Tech, some of the most notable include the implementation of selective admissions, achievement of Division I-A football status, establishment of the Institute for Micromanufacturing (IfM), construction of a new state-of-the-art Biomedical Engineering facility, attainment of the Carnegie Research University/High Research Activity classification, and the establishment of a 50-acre research park between the Tech campus and downtown Ruston called Enterprise Campus. In 1995, Dr. Reneau was awarded the Distinguished Arthur T. Prescott Professorship in Engineering. In 1999, the Clemson Alumni Association, in conjunction with Clemson University, installed Dr. Reneau as an inaugural Alumni Fellow of the University. The American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering selected Dr. Reneau as a 2000 AIMBE Fellow. In 2002, he was awarded the Newell Perry Award by the National
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Federation of the Blind – the highest honor that is given by the National Federation of the Blind. In recent years, Dr. Reneau has led Louisiana Tech to the University of Louisiana System’s (ULS) highest graduation rate, highest retention rate, highest average freshman ACT score, and fastest time-to-completion rate for first-time baccalaureates as well as achieving record graduate enrollment and doctoral graduates. Dr. Reneau has led Louisiana Tech to a Tier One “National University” ranking by U.S. News & World Report, as well as a designation as an SREB Doctoral Four-Year 2 Research University, a Carnegie Foundation Research University with High Research Activity (RU/H) and a “statewide university” as defined by the Louisiana Board of Regents. Louisiana Tech has been ranked in the nation’s top 10 for graduating students with the least amount of debt for three consecutive years by U.S. News & World Report (2010, 2011 and 2012) and was the highest ranked Louisiana public university in mid-career median pay for graduates, according to PayScale. com (2010). Tech was also north Louisiana’s only public university to make the 2010 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. As he enters his 26th year as Louisiana Tech President, Dr. Dan Reneau continues to share his vision for moving Louisiana Tech forward and strengthen his commitment to serving the students and alumni of his University. Through Dr. Reneau’s leadership, Louisiana Tech University has transformed itself from an aspiring regional university into one of the state’s premier research institutions. Dr. Reneau is a native of Woodville, Mississippi and is married to the former Linda Digby of Bernice, whom he met as a student at Louisiana Tech. They have two children, John and Dana, who are also both Louisiana Tech alumni. John currently lives in Las Vegas and Dana lives in Baton Rouge with her husband, Jim Bernhard, and their two sons, Michael and Ben.