About the Executive Vice President & Chancellor

Dr. Jim Dalton is a distinguished academic leader, researcher, and innovator whose career spans higher education, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical discovery. He joins LSU after serving as Executive Vice President and Provost at the University of Alabama since 2020, where he oversaw the academic, research, and service missions of 13 colleges and academic divisions, supporting more than 2,000 faculty, 4,500 staff, and 40,000 students with an annual academic budget exceeding $1.2 billion.

At Alabama, Dr. Dalton led major initiatives that strengthened student success, modernized academic programs, and significantly expanded research productivity. His leadership resulted in significant increases in sponsored research awards, the creation of the UA Teaching Academy, a redesigned general education core curriculum, and new structures to support teaching innovation and digital education. He also guided the university through successful reaffirmation of accreditation by SACSCOC.

Prior to Alabama, Dr. Dalton served as Dean of the College of Pharmacy at University of Michigan, where he elevated the college to a No. 3 national ranking, doubled research expenditures, launched new academic programs, and exceeded capital campaign goals with nearly $25 million raised for scholarships, endowments, and facilities.

Dr. Dalton’s career also includes significant leadership in the private sector. As Chief Scientific Officer and Vice President for Preclinical Research and Development at GTx, Inc., he directed teams developing selective androgen receptor modulators (SARMs) and other therapeutics in oncology and endocrinology. His pioneering work has resulted in more than 100 issued U.S. patents, over 500 international patents, and more than 21,000 research citations.

A fellow of both the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS), Dr. Dalton was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2019 and the National Academy of Inventors in 2025 in recognition of his contributions to biomedical research and academic leadership. His additional honors include the Nicholas Bodor Distinguished Lectureship, the Rho Chi Lecture Award, and distinguished alumni awards from Ohio State University and University of Cincinnati.

Dr. Dalton earned his BS in pharmacy (Magna Cum Laude) from University of Cincinnati and his PhD in pharmaceutics and pharmaceutical chemistry from Ohio State University, where he also completed a postdoctoral fellowship.