La. Tech head to retire in 2013

Dan Reneau has held president’s post since 1987

Louisiana Tech University President Dan Reneau announced his retirement Tuesday after a 50-year association with the school as a student, educator and administrator.

Reneau’s retirement is effective June 30, bringing to a close 26 years as the university’s chief.

In a statement announcing his retirement, Reneau said he’ll continue to support the university through the establishment of a think-tank affiliated with the Louisiana Tech University Foundation.

The think tank will be advisory in nature and will help “support and advance” the university, Reneau said.

“I’m not going away. I have a deep passion for and commitment to Louisiana Tech, and will continue to work on its behalf,” Reneau said in the statement.

Reneau backed a failed initiative earlier this year to merge Louisiana Tech with LSU at Shreveport in a move he said would enrich the state’s northern parishes.

The proposal, which died for lack of support in the state Legislature, would have created a larger Louisiana Tech with Ruston and Shreveport campuses under the University of Louisiana System.

“It is important to understand that this proposal is not about simply merging two institutions to create a larger, singular entity,” Reneau said at the time. “It’s about people and organizations throughout north Louisiana that are no longer satisfied with the status quo and who seek to create new opportunities and a brighter future.”

Originally from Woodville, Miss., Reneau graduated from Louisiana Tech with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering in 1963 before earning a master’s degree in the same field a year later.

After living in South Carolina for a few years, he and his wife, Linda, returned to Louisiana Tech in 1967 after Reneau accepted a teaching position.

Five years later he established the university’s Department of Biomedical Engineering. Reneau became Louisiana Tech’s 13th president in 1987.

His retirement follows the departure of several of Louisiana’s top higher education administrators this year.

LSU President John Lombardi was fired by the system’s Board of Supervisors in April. Michael Martin, chancellor of LSU’s Baton Rouge campus, left last month to lead the Colorado State University System.

LSU-S Chancellor Vincent Marsala retired in June, and University of Louisiana System President Randy Moffett said he will step down later this month.