2019 Regular Session ENROLLED
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 25
BY SENATOR CHABERT
A RESOLUTION
To commend Dr. Christopher F. D'Elia upon being named the first recipient of the Wes
Tunnell Lifetime Recognition for Gulf Science and Conservation by the Gulf of
Mexico University Research Collaborative.
WHEREAS, Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College
(LSU) has a coastal legacy dating back nearly a century and is at the forefront of coastal and
environmental discoveries and research on every continent; and
WHEREAS, more than two hundred faculty equip about one thousand graduates per
year with the multidisciplinary tools needed to solve vital coastal issues; and
WHEREAS, LSU is a globally-renowned leader in educating the coastal workforce
and provides a gold standard for coastal and environmental expertise; and
WHEREAS, LSU's College of the Coast and Environment is the only college within
the university in which the sole focus is the coast and environment, and in which its tenured
and tenure-track faculty have the highest per capita research funding at LSU; and
WHEREAS, the College of the Coast and Environment has the highest percentage
of undergraduates participating in mentored research within LSU; and
WHEREAS, the college's Coastal Environmental Science program reports that one
hundred percent of its undergraduates acquire employment or acceptance into graduate or
professional programs within two months of graduation; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Christopher F. D'Elia, the LSU's longest-serving dean, served as
professor and dean of the College of the Coast and Environment since 2009, and has brought
passion, experience, and leadership to his position; and
WHEREAS, during his tenure, Dr. D'Elia expanded the School of the Coast and
Environment into a college and established an award-winning outreach program for
underserved students from Scotlandville Magnet High School; and
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WHEREAS, he has performed outstanding community service in more than twenty
professional and outreach organizations, has held numerous research grants, and has
authored or coauthored more than sixty scientific publications on the nutrient dynamics of
estuaries and coral reefs, science policy and energy, and environment; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Christopher F. D'Elia was recently recognized for his lifetime of
dedication and achievement in support of a healthy and sustainable Gulf of Mexico
environment and economy by the Gulf of Mexico University Research Collaborative which
honored him as the first recipient of the Wes Tunnell Lifetime Recognition for Gulf Science
and Conservation.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
does hereby commend and congratulate Dr. Christopher F. D'Elia for his lifetime of
dedication and achievement in support of a healthy and sustainable Gulf of Mexico
environment and economy, and upon being named the first recipient of the Wes Tunnell
Lifetime Recognition for Gulf Science and Conservation by the Gulf of Mexico University
Research Collaborative.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to
LSU System President F. King Alexander and Dr. Christopher F. D'Elia.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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