Oceanography & Coastal Sciences Directory

Department Administration | Faculty | Emeritus Faculty | Adjunct Faculty | Post-docs and Researchers

Department Chair

Dr. Kanchan Maiti Kanchan Maiti
Chair and Shell Professor of Oceanography
225-578-4531
kmaiti@lsu.edu
Research Interests: Carbon cycle across land-ocean continuum

Dana Sanders
Assistant to the Chair
225-578-6308
danasanders@lsu.edu

Sharon Butler
Coordinator
225-578-6455
sbutler@lsu.edu

Faculty (A-Z)

Amanda Achberger
Assistant Professor
amanda.achberger@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Microbial ecology, environmental microbiology, biogeochemical cycling, seafloor ecosystems

Sibel Bargu Ates
CC&E and Shell Professor in Oceanography/Wetland Studies
225-578-3334
sbargu@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Freshwater, estuarine and marine phytoplankton ecology, Harmful Algal Blooms

Nazla Bushra
Assistant Professor - Research
nbushr2@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Climate science, natural hazards, extreme hazard risk analysis, environmental sustainability, geo-spatial analysis, big data, Geographic Information Systems, remote sensing, statistical modeling, machine learning and AI

Helen Connelly
Instructor
hconne10@lsu.edu
Research Interests: Wetland community structure, barium toxicology, metals sediment biogeochemistry, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon toxicology, fish and shellfish population studies

Michael Dance
Associate Professor
225-578-1243
mdance1@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Movement ecology, fisheries science, population connectivity, stock assessment, seascape ecology

Ross Dixon
Assistant Professor
Ross.Dixon@lsu.edu
Research Interests: Atmospheric Modeling, Tropical Meteorology (Monsoons, ITCZ), Land-Atmosphere Coupling, Regional Climate Change

Eurico D'Sa Eurico J. D'Sa
Professor
225-578-0212
ejdsa@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Aquatic remote sensing, coastal biogeochemical processes, water quality

Cassie Glaspie Cassandra Glaspie
Associate Professor
cglaspie1@lsu.edu
225-578-0379
Research Interests:
Ecological interactions, environmental change, coastal ecosystems estuaries, benthic organisms

Cheryl Harrison
Assistant Professor
cherylharrison@lsu.edu
225-578-6425
Research Interests:
Physical, biogeochemical and ocean ecosystem modeling, marine ecology, climate impacts, climate intervention

Matt Hiatt Matthew Hiatt
Associate Professor
225-578-6092
mhiatt1@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Coastal hydrology

Haosheng Huang
Associate Professor
225-578-5117
hhuang7@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Physical oceanography, coastal and estuarine circulation dynamics, bio-physical interaction

Dubravko Justic
Texaco Distinguished Professor
225-578-6394
djusti1@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Ecosystem modeling, biological oceanography, coastal eutrophication, hypoxia, impacts of climate change on coastal ecosystems

Chunyan Li
Professor and Mobil Distinguished Professor of Marine Geology
225-578-3619
cli@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Geophysical fluid dynamics, exchange flows/transport, storm surges, weather systems

Wengui Liang
Assistant Professor
wengui.liang@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Extreme precipitation, climate extremes, climate dynamics, hydrological cycle, atmospheric general circulation

Kanchan Maiti
Department Chair and Shell Professor in Oceanography/Wetland Studies
225-578-4531
kmaiti@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Carbon and climate

Giulio Mariotti
Professor
gmariotti@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Coastal processes, ecomorphodynamics, sediment transport

Steve Midway Stephen Midway
Professor
225-578-6458
smidway@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Fisheries ecology, data visualization, science writing

Paul Miller
Associate Professor
225-578-2734
pmiller1@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Coastal meteorology; Hydroclimatology; Mesoscale climate science; Weakly forced thunderstorms; Land-atmosphere interactions; Hazardous weather impacts

Dr. Tracy Quirk Tracy Quirk
Associate Professor
225-578-6426
tquirk@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Wetland plant ecology, soil biogeochemistry

Dr. Nancy Rabalais Nancy Rabalais
Professor and Shell Endowed Chair in Oceanography and Wetland Studies
225-578-8531
nrabal@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Biological oceanography, benthic ecology, river-ocean interactions, northern Gulf of Mexico

Victor Rivera Victor H. Rivera-Monroy
Professor
225-578-2745
vhrivera@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Biogeochemistry of wetlands; ecosystem models; mangrove forest rehabilitation/restoration; climate change and variability

Bob Rohli Robert V. Rohli
Professor
225-578-6346
rohli@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Coastal weather, atmospheric circulation variability, weather hazard risk assessment

Robert Twilley
Professor
225-578-6710
rtwilley@lsu.edu

Nan Walker Nan D. Walker
Professor and James P. Morgan Distinguished Professor of Coastal Studies; Director, Earth Scan Laboratory
225-252-0338
nwalker@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Physical oceanography, Satellite oceanography, Estuarine-shelf exchange processes, Air-sea interactions and tropical cyclone intensity, Gulf of Mexico Loop Current and eddy circulations, Physical-biological interactions, Physical processes affecting coral reef health

John White John R. White
John and Catherine Day Professor and Associate Dean of Research of the College of the Coast & Environment
225-578-8792
jrwhite@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Our research focuses on biogeochemical cycling of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus in aquatic systems including coastal and freshwater wetlands, estuaries and lake sediments, treatment performance of constructed wetlands for nutrients and pharmaceuticals removal, dynamics of internal nutrient loading, microbial-mediated nutrient transformations, plant-nutrient-soil dynamics. We provide critical research in helping coastal restoration managers to make informed decisions.

Yang Xiang
Assistant Professor
yxiang@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Marine particle biogeochemistry; Trace metal biogeochemistry; Biological carbon pump; Oxygen minimum zones

Dr. Kehui Xu Kehui (Kevin) Xu
Professor and Director, Coastal Studies Institute
225-578-0389
kxu@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Coastal restoration; sediment diversion; sediment dredging and management, geological oceanography, coastal morphodynamics, observation and numerical modeling of sediment transport, sedimentary geology, coastal processes

George Xue Zuo (George) Xue
Professor (joint appointment with the Center for Computation and Technology)
225-578-1118
zxue@lsu.edu (Contact me for graduate student opportunities)
Research Interests:
Coastal and Ocean Modeling, AI/ML for Earth and Coastal Systems, Climate and Coastal Hazards, Carbon Cycle & Ocean Biogeochemistry, Digital Twins & Real-Time Forecasting

Emeritus Faculty

Mark Benfield Mark C. Benfield
Emeritus Professor
225-578-6372
mbenfie@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Zooplankton ecology, optical and acoustic sensing of zooplankton, computer-based classification of zooplankton, acoustical telemetry studies of fish and invertebrates, application of industrial remotely operated vehicles (ROV) in biological observatories.

Chris D'Elia Christopher D'Elia
Emeritus Dean and Professor
225-578-7188
cdelia@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Nutrient dynamics in aquatic systems; estuarine ecology; coral reef ecology; algal/invertebrate symbiosis; science history and policy; math and science education; marine pollution; global climate change; analytical chemistry

Robert Carney Robert S. Carney
Emeritus Professor
225-578-6511
rcarne1@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Biological oceanography, research administration

John Day John W. Day, Jr.
Emeritus Professor
225-578-6508
johnday@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Estuarine Ecology, Systems Ecology, Wetland Ecology, Ecological Modeling, Effects of Humans on Natural Systems, Tropical Coastal Ecology, Energy, Sustainability, Urban Dynamics

Ronald DeLaune
Emeritus Professor
225-578-6421
rdelaun@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Biogeochemical cycling, Wetland Biogeochemistry, coastal processes, non-point source pollution, coastal restoration, soil-plant interactions, coastal marsh stability, sedimentation processes, wetland plant ecology, degradation and bioremediation of toxic organics, heavy metal chemistry, ecotoxicology, greenhouse gases.

Charles Lindau
Emeritus Professor
225-578-8766
clinda1@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Nitrogen transformations in flooded soils and sediments, stable isotopes, greenhouse gases, oil spill remediation, point and non-point pollution

Kam-biu Liu
George W. Barineau III Professor Emeritus
225-578-8203
kliu1@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Thematic: paleotempestology, coastal paleoecology, global environmental change, palynology and lake-sediments; Regional: U.S. Gulf coast and Atlantic coast, Caribbean region and Central America, South America (Andes and Amazon Basin), Tibetan Plateau, China

Irving Mendelssohn Irving A. Mendelssohn
Emeritus Professor
225-578-6425
imendel@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Wetland and barrier island plant ecology, plant physiological ecology

Richard Shaw Richard F. Shaw
Emeritus Professor
225-578-3334
rshaw@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Larval/juvenile fish habitat and ecology; biological/fisheries oceanography; transport and recruitment mechanisms and coastal-estuarine processes; age, growth and mortality analyses, fisheries and global climate change, research administration

R. Eugene Turner
Emeritus Boyd Professor
225-578-6454
euturne@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Biological oceanography, conservation, environmental management, estuarine ecology, fisheries ecology, restoration, sustainable systems, wetlands

Adjunct Faculty

Melissa Baustian Melissa M. Baustian
Adjunct Professor, College of the Coast & Environment, USGS Ecologist
337-266-8500
mbaustian@usgs.gov
Research Interests:
Assessing how pelagic, benthic, and vegetated habitats of coastal ecosystems support functions of nutrient cycling, trophic dynamics of food webs, and carbon sequestration; understanding how microphytobenthos are influenced by nutrient enrichment, climate change, and coastal restoration

Brian Roberts
Adjunct Professor, College of the Coast & Environment, LUMCON Executive Director and Chief Scientist
985-851-2801
broberts@lumcon.edu
Research Interests:
Ecosystem ecology and biogeochemistry, particularly focused on terrestrial-aquatic and community-ecosystem linkages along the aquatic continuum; human-induced environmental impacts on aquatic ecosystems; restoration ecology

Jacob Berkowitz
Adjunct Professor, College of the Coast & Environment, USACE Research Soil Scientist
601-529-3115
jberko@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Hydric soils, wetland assessment, restoration, biogeochemistry, forested wetlands, beneficial use of dredged sediments technology transfer

Junhong Liang
Adjunct Professor
225-578-7031
jliang@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Physical Oceanography; Ocean Biogeochemical Dynamics; Ocean modeling

Marcelo Cohen Marcelo Cancela Lisboa Cohen
Adjunct Professor
786-449-9749
mccohen@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
Holocene and Anthropocene history of mangrove dynamics on the Brazilian coast and Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean regions, remote sensing, fossil pollen, stable isotopes and sedimentary features to reconstruct environments impacted by sea-level fluctuations and climate changes

Dan Holstein
Adjunct Professor
dholstein1@lsu.edu
Research Interests:
My lab studies various aspects of seascape ecology, including invertebrate reproduction, larval dispersal, metapopulation modeling, and the spatial ecology of environmental change. We focus on tropical coral reefs, with a special interest in refuge environments - like deeper mesophotic reefs - and how these environments interact with others in the seascape.