Gaytha Langlois, Ph.D., Professor of Science and Technology, is the new president of the International Society of Protistologists, an association of scientists who conduct research on single-celled eukaryotic organisms called protists. She will serve on the Executive Committee until 2021.

"I feel honored to be able to provide leadership and guidance to emerging research scholars within this worldwide Society.”

"Protists are often making headlines… both good and bad," the organization's website notes. Some types are responsible for "costly and sometimes deadly outbreaks called harmful algal blooms in coastal waters around the world." Other types "play fundamental ecological roles in virtually all terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems," and some species "are the cause of an enormous amount of human disease, suffering and death."

Coral reef protists are among Langlois' research interests. Her additional scholarly pursuits include microbial communities associated with grasslands and oil-stressed ecosystems, the effects of climate change on Arctic ecosystems, and protection strategies for endangered Metasequoia redwoods in China. She also has extensive experience crafting municipal and statewide environmental policies.

The courses Langlois teaches focus on broad policy implications, system challenges, innovative technology solutions, and sustainable business practices. Formerly Chair of the Department of Science and Technology from 2008-2014 and again in 2017-2018, Langlois helped to create new academic programs in Environmental Science and Biology, and collaborated with colleagues to envision new laboratory facilities, research programs, and faculty recruitment needs.

“I feel honored to be able to provide leadership and guidance to emerging research scholars within this worldwide Society,” Langlois says.