I had the opportunity to travel to Oakdale this week to speak with Oakdale Rotary and meet a number of students and counselors from Oakdale High. It is always great to see a strong contingent of Tech alumni and friends at these kinds of events. I believe that it is very important for us to continue to spread the great message about Louisiana Tech all around the region, so my team and I have made that a priority this year. It was a particular pleasure for me to go to Oakdale since this is where I lived for a couple of years when I was in elementary school.  Joining me for a picture were Rotary President Steven Sumbler, several Oakdale High School Students and Mrs. Black, Guidance Counselor.

I was pleased to welcome students and parents at the Who’s Who Banquet on Wednesday night where 22 students were recognized for their achievements. The leadership demonstrated by these and other Tech students is one of the factors that distinguishes Tech. Congratulations to all of the recipients! Hilary Reeves and Jayde Hughes asked me to join them for a picture afterwards. Special thanks to Jessica Johnson, SGA, and the Division of Student Affairs for organizing the event.

I also had the opportunity to visit with several prospective students in my office this week. When my schedule allows, I like to give students a personal tour to show them different facilities and activities on campus. This helps me stay in touch with what is going on and I always seem to run into something or someone new and exciting. When I took some prospective students through University Hall this week, the “Thingery” was buzzing with students and faculty from all parts of campus. The Thingery is one of the special environments on campus that has been developed to support interdisciplinary collaboration and creativity. I will plan to write more about the Thingery in the future.

This week, it was announced that I had been appointed to serve as the Chair of the Louisiana Innovation Council.  I have been involved in that Council since its inception, and was particularly honored to be invited to serve as Chair by Secretary of Economic Development Stephen Moret and Governor Bobby Jindal. This Council has an important role to play in elevating and sustaining innovation in the State with the goal of enhancing our long-term economic competitiveness.  More information can be found in the press release: http://news.latech.edu/2014/02/03/governor-jindal-appoints-guice-to-chair-louisiana-innovation-council/.

On Thursday evening, I attended the North Louisiana Economic Partnership’s annual meeting in Monroe.  NLEP consists of business and community leaders from across North Louisiana.  The organization plays a key role in advancing economic growth in the region through marketing of our assets globally.  I was able to attend this meeting for a while and then make it back to Ruston to see the Tech men’s basketball team win a thriller against Tulsa.  This game was a White Out game with great student and fan participation.  Thanks to the team and fans for making this a special season!

I also congratulate Coach Skip Holtz and his football staff for the tremendous work they did in signing Tech’s 2014 class of freshmen. It is an impressive array of talent that will have an impact on our team both near term and long term.  These student athletes will be great additions to our student body.  More details on the signees can be found at: http://www.latechsports.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/020514aaa.html