lau•re•ate adj.
1. Worthy of the greatest honor or distinction.
2. Crowned with laurel as a mark of honor.

The LSU Foundation is pleased to introduce the LSU Foundation Laureate Society.

In November 2006, at the LSU Foundation Annual Membership meeting, the LSU Foundation unveiled the new LSU Foundation Laureate Society.

The LSU Foundation Laureate Society grew out of the President’s Award for Lifetime Support recognition. The President’s Award acknowledged cumulative giving to the LSU Foundation, the Tiger Athletic Foundation and the LSU Alumni Association. Over time, we realized we were duplicating efforts as both the Alumni Association and Tiger Athletic Foundation have their own donor recognition programs. The duplication was not a wise use of resources and often caused confusion with donors.

With the recommendation and endorsement of the LSU Foundation Board of Directors, the LSU Foundation Laureate Society was created to recognize individual, couple and organizational lifetime giving to the academic enterprise of LSU exclusively through the LSU Foundation. As a donor recognition program, the President’s Award for Lifetime Support has been retired.

For the inaugural year, the LSU Foundation Laureate Society will induct charter members based on cumulative giving through June 30, 2007. In the fall of 2007, the LSU Foundation will host the inaugural induction ceremony for the Laureate Society for those who accept the invitation to participate.

The Laureate Society levels are named after those who are historically important to Louisiana State University. Their contributions laid the groundwork of the successes we enjoy today.

George Mason Graham Laureate recognizing cumulative giving $100-249,000 George Mason Graham, often called the “Father of LSU,” was the first Chairman of the board of trustees of the fledgling Louisiana State Seminary of Learning, the forerunner of Louisiana State University. He was one of the primary molders of the new school and it was said that “beyond family and intimate private affairs there was nothing closer to his heart than Louisiana State Seminary of Learning.”
R. Olivia Davis Laureate recognizing cumulative giving $250,000-500,000 In 1905, she was the first woman to receive a degree from LSU – a master’s degree in mathematics. The next year, 31 women enrolled at LSU.
Steele Burden Laureate recognizing cumulative giving $500,000-999,000 A master landscaper and arborist, Steele designed and facilitated much of Baton Rouge's green spaces and his mark upon this city can still be seen today. The LSU campus is a testament to his love for the land. During the 1930s, many of LSU's live oaks and magnolia trees were planted by Steele Burden, and the live oak trees on LSU's campus have been valued at $36 million.
Troy H. Middleton Laureate recognizing cumulative giving $1,000,000 - 4,999,999 Middleton was a key to restoring LSU’s financial and academic reputation after a series of scandals in the 1930s. During Middleton’s tenure, the coveted Boyd Professorships were created. Despite a stellar military career, Middleton called his time at LSU “his most satisfying and rewarding,” and believed his efforts to restore fiscal solvency were his greatest contribution to LSU.
T. Harry Williams Laureate recognizing cumulative giving $5,000,000 - 10,000,000 History professor T. Harry Williams brought international attention to LSU academics when in 1970 he won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award for his book Huey Long. A lecturer extraordinaire, Williams was a Civil War expert, but his book on Long took him into the world of Louisiana politics. The eloquent Williams served on the LSU faculty for 38 years.
John M. Parker Laureate recognizing cumulative giving $10,000,000+ Governor of Louisiana from 1920-1924, Parker began the “Greater University” movement that lead to the foundation of the present day campus and passed a two percent severance tax to support education in Louisiana. He assisted in moving LSU from north Baton Rouge to its present location.
Thomas Boyd Laureate recognizing cumulative giving $25,000,000+ Boyd created LSU’s modern college system and was known as “the Grand Old Man of LSU.” Though considered small in stature and shy by nature, he, at the age of 42, finally accepted the presidency after turning down the offer three times. Boyd was a progressive person who envisioned LSU as a great institution of higher learning. His presidency would prove to the most dynamic in LSU’s history.

The LSU Foundation Laureate Society Charter Members will be recognized for cumulative giving through June 30, 2007.

How LSU Foundation Laureate Society recognition totals are calculated.

• Cumulative cash, pledge payments and gifts-in-kind are totaled. Outstanding pledge balances are not included.
• Personal corporate matching is counted.
• Planned gifts such as wills and bequests (revocable gifts) are recognized through The 1860 Society, and not counted in Laureate Society totals.
• Gifts only to the LSU Foundation are calculated. Gifts to the Tiger Athletic Foundation and the LSU Alumni Association are recognized by these organizations. Does not include gifts given directly to LSU, or gifts received by the LSU Foundation and ownership is transferred to another entity, such as LSU.
• Gifts from a donor asset base over which the donor has authority are counted. Examples include, but are not limited to, personal family foundations, donor advised funds (e.g. Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund, OppenheimerFunds Legacy Program, Schwab Fund for Charitable Giving, Vanguard Charitable Endowment), and community foundation accounts (e.g. Baton Rouge Area Foundation, Central Louisiana Community Foundation).
• One does not receive personal or recognition gift credit for assisting with a cash gift or gift-in-kind from a publicly-traded company or a company in which the facilitator has no primary ownership. For example, a graduate who works for a large publicly-traded petrochemical company and helps to steer a gift from the company to the LSU Foundation does not receive personal credit for that gift. That gift came from company assets, not his or her personal assets.
• One does not receive personal or recognition gift credit for assisting with a cash gift or gift-in-kind from another individual(s). For example, a volunteer who has assisted in directing a gift to LSU from another individual, while greatly appreciated, does not receive personal credit for that gift, since the gift came from another’s assets, not the volunteer’s personal assets.
• State matching funds are not counted. These are the funds the state provides to match a donor’s gift to establish an endowed professorship or chair. The donor’s personal portion is counted in Laureate Society totals.
• Laureate Society invitations are directed to living persons, including surviving spouses, and to organizations that are still in existence.

A complete listing of Laureate Society Charter Members will be published after the Laureate Society Gala in November 2007.