NEWS RELEASE

Contact: David West (west@nsula.edu )
News Bureau
Northwestern State University
Natchitoches, LA 71497
(318) 357-6466

10/01/2004

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NATCHITOCHES- Jimmy D. Long of Natchitoches and the late Sen. Leopold Caspari of Natchitoches have been selected as the 2004 recipients of the President's Distinguished Service Award at Northwestern State University.

"I am extremely honored to recognize both of these exceptional men," said NSU President Dr. Randall J. Webb. "Each of them played a significant role in the growth and development of Northwestern State University. Sen. Caspari and Rep. Long both understood the importance of education to the state of Louisiana. They also set an example by giving of themselves through public service."

Long was a member of the Louisiana Legislature for 32 years serving in the House of Representatives from 1968-2000. In his eight terms in the legislature, Long became recognized as one of the leading authorities on education in the South.

He worked to establish the Louisiana School for Math, Science and the Arts and the Louisiana Scholars' College, the state's designated honors college in the arts and sciences. Long assisted Northwestern in developing progressive, innovative programs and was instrumental in the appropriations of millions of dollars for programs and projects at the university.

Long has served as a member of the Board of the Southern Regional Education Board, vice president of the Southwest Education Development Lab and as the Louisiana delegate to the Education Commission of the States.

During his tenure in the legislature, Long was cited by the state's press corps as being among the top 10 percent of Louisiana legislators in effectiveness. He has been a member of the NSU Foundation Board of Directors and has received honorary memberships in the Blue Key International Honor Society and Graduate 'N' Club. A government major at Northwestern, he was inducted into the NSU Hall of Distinction, the Long Purple Line in 1993. Long has been a member of the Board of Supervisors for the University of Louisiana System since 2001.

Caspari, who was called "The Father of the Normal," was instrumental in the founding of the Louisiana State Normal School, now Northwestern State, and its placement in Natchitoches.

A native of France, Caspari immigrated to the United States in 1848 and settled in Cloutierville. He became a successful farmer and businessman and moved to Natchitoches in 1858.

In 1884, Caspari was elected to the Louisiana Legislature as a state representative from the district including Natchitoches, DeSoto and Sabine parishes. He was later elected to the State Senate, spending nearly 30 years in the legislature. In his first year in the legislature, Caspari was a strong supporter of legislation creating the Louisiana State Normal School. He later made a strong presentation to the State Board of Education to convince them to place the school in Natchitoches.

Caspari helped lead a drive to raise $5,000 to purchase The Convent of the Sacred Heart, a 95-acre site that made up the early Normal School campus. As president of the Natchitoches Land and Railway Company, Caspari helped gain a railway connection to Natchitoches, which made the Normal School accessible to students from throughout Louisiana.

Caspari died in 1915. Caspari Hall and Caspari Street, which runs through NSU's campus, are named for him.

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