BATON ROUGE — LSU has named Joseph P. Messina as its next senior vice chancellor and provost, the school announced Wednesday. 

Messina comes from the University of Alabama, where he has served as dean since 2019. At LSU, he will be responsible for academic affairs, faculty development, student achievement, research partnerships and strategic initiatives. 

“Messina emerged from an exceptionally strong national search as a leader uniquely equipped to help LSU build on its momentum and achieve its bold ambitions,” said LSU Chancellor Jim Dalton.

Before he was hired at Alabama, Messina worked in various roles at Michigan State University for nearly 20 years. 

"A nationally recognized scholar and professor of geography, Messina has authored more than 140 scholarly publications and built an international research portfolio supported by organizations including NASA, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health," LSU said in a news release.

Messina holds a Ph.D. in geography from the University of North Carolina, as well as a Master of Science in geographic and cartographic sciences and a Bachelor of Arts in biology from George Mason University.