News Release Distributed 10/28/15
BATON ROUGE, La. – The LSU AgCenter and LSU College of Agriculture have named Michael Salassi head of the Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness. Salassi has served on the faculty of the department for 21 years and is the J. Nelson Fairbanks Endowed Professor for Agricultural Economics.
He replaces Gail Cramer, who retired in July.
Salassi received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from LSU and a doctorate from Mississippi State University. He worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service in Washington, D.C., for nine years before returning to LSU as an associate professor in 1994. He became a full professor in 2002.
Salassi also served as the assistant director of the Louisiana Agricultural Experiment Station, the AgCenter’s research division. His main focus during his career has been production economics and farm management.
“My research program has been directed toward analyzing farm management and production decisions involving the production of rice, sugarcane and other crops in Louisiana from an economic point of view,” Salassi said.
The Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness has 13 faculty members, 80 undergraduate students and 30 graduate students.
The department has three equally important missions: teaching, research and extension, Salassi said.
“We need to do relevant research, which we can communicate to our stakeholders, while also educating the next leaders in agricultural business,” he said.
While the department faces budgetary challenges like the rest of the university, Salassi said he sees ways to use resources in an efficient and beneficial manner.
The appointment is effective November 1.
Tobie Blanchard