John Luther Crain is president

President

A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...

 of Southeastern Louisiana University

Southeastern Louisiana University

Southeastern Louisiana University is a state-funded public university in Hammond, Louisiana, United States. It was founded in 1925 by Linus A. Sims, the principal of Hammond High School, as Hammond Junior College, located in a wing of the high school building. Sims succeeded in getting the campus...

 at Hammond

Hammond, Louisiana

Hammond is the largest city in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 20,049 at the 2009 census. It is home to Southeastern Louisiana University...

, having been appointed to the position on 2009 February 17 by the Board of Supervisors of the University of Louisiana System

University of Louisiana System

The University of Louisiana System is one of four public university systems in the U.S. state of Louisiana. Its headquarters are in the Claiborne Building in Baton Rouge.-History and diversification:...

. He succeeded Randy Moffett

Randy Moffett

Micheal Randy Moffett was named president of the University of Louisiana System on 2008 July 25.From 2001 July to 2008 June he served as president of Southeastern Louisiana University at Hammond. He was succeeded there by John L. Crain...

.

Education

Crain holds B.S.

Bachelor of Science

A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...

 and MBA degrees from Southeastern and received a Ph.D.

Ph.D.

A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...

 in accountancy from the University of Mississippi

University of Mississippi

The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the...

. He is an inactive CPA

Certified Public Accountant

Certified Public Accountant is the statutory title of qualified accountants in the United States who have passed the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination and have met additional state education and experience requirements for certification as a CPA...

 and an accomplished pianist

Pianist

A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...

.

Researcher & administrator

Crain previously served as interim

Interim

Interim is an album by British rock band The Fall, compiled from live and studio material and released in 2004. It features the first officially released versions of "Clasp Hands", "Blindness" and "What About Us?" — all of which were later included on the band's next studio album Fall Heads Roll —...

 president, provost

Provost (education)

A provost is the senior academic administrator at many institutions of higher education in the United States, Canada and Australia, the equivalent of a pro-vice-chancellor at some institutions in the United Kingdom and Ireland....

, vice president

Vice president

A vice president is an officer in government or business who is below a president in rank. The name comes from the Latin vice meaning 'in place of'. In some countries, the vice president is called the deputy president...

 for academic affairs, accounting department

Academic department

An academic department is a division of a university or school faculty devoted to a particular academic discipline. This article covers United States usage at the university level....

 head, president of the Faculty Senate, and tenure

Tenure

Tenure commonly refers to life tenure in a job and specifically to a senior academic's contractual right not to have his or her position terminated without just cause.-19th century:...

d professor of accounting. He began full-time employment as an assistant professor of accounting at Southeastern in 1987 and held his first administrative position as interim director of the University's Small Business Development Center. In 1992 Crain received the Southeastern President's Award for Excellence in Research

Research

Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...

; by 2009, on being named president, he had authored 63 refereed journal articles.

Praise

At the time of Crain's appointment as president of Southeastern, retired

Retirement

Retirement is the point where a person stops employment completely. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours.Many people choose to retire when they are eligible for private or public pension benefits, although some are forced to retire when physical conditions don't allow the person to...

 professor of chemistry

Chemistry

Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....

 Larry Holmes, who had in the 1970s awarded Crain a blue ribbon

Blue ribbon

The blue ribbon is a term used to describe or symbolize something of high quality. The usage came from The Blue Riband, a prize awarded for the fastest crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by passenger liners—and prior to that from Cordon Bleu which referred to the blue ribbon worn by a particular order...

 for a high school

High school

High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....

 science

Science fair

A science fair is generally a competition where contestants present their science project results in the form of a report, display board, and models that they have created. Science fairs allow students in grade schools and high schools to compete in science and/or technology activities...

 project, commented: "That's very nice. It makes me feel good." Roman Heleniak, professor emeritus

Emeritus

Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...

 of history

History

History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...

 at Southeastern, commented in a congratulatory column

Critic

A critic is anyone who expresses a value judgement. Informally, criticism is a common aspect of all human expression and need not necessarily imply skilled or accurate expressions of judgement. Critical judgements, good or bad, may be positive , negative , or balanced...

 that "John is intelligent, down to earth, and more than fair." At the outset of his presidency Crain publicly emphasized an "involved citizenry" as being vital to Southeastern. Crain said:

I started as a member of the faculty

Faculty (university)

A faculty is a division within a university comprising one subject area, or a number of related subject areas...

, working directly with students[,] and I keep that in mind in every decision that I make.

The neighbouring Saint Tammany Parish School Board congratulated Crain on his appointment, with superintendent Gayle Sloan commenting,

We are really looking forward to continuing what was already a strong relationship with you at Southeastern.

Crain was designated the 2009 outstanding alumnus

Alumnus

An alumnus , according to the American Heritage Dictionary, is "a graduate of a school, college, or university." An alumnus can also be a former member, employee, contributor or inmate as well as a former student. In addition, an alumna is "a female graduate or former student of a school, college,...

 of Southeastern's College of Business.

Challenges

Crain's accounting background appeared well matched to the challenges he soon faced as president, in that Louisiana's public institutions of higher education confronted unprecedented budget cuts and looming budget cuts. In an article in the student newspaper, Crain announced mid-academic year eliminations of 35 positions; expecting "even deeper cuts in the future," Crain said:

These changes would almost certainly involve the elimination of programs, including academic programs, and the termination of some tenured faculty. Despite the challenges we have dealt with and may still face, we remain absolutely committed to the success of our students and the ongoing viabillity of the university, albeit in what may be a smaller scope and scale.

Crain is involved in Southeastern's fundraising

Fundraising

Fundraising or fund raising is the process of soliciting and gathering voluntary contributions as money or other resources, by requesting donations from individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies...

.