Planted with Purpose: How One Family’s Legacy is Growing Research at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette

Vernon Langlinais once said of his garden: “To see a little plant coming up from the seed – what a great personal feeling.”

He was describing his vegetable patch. But, that same spirit is still alive today in the Ray P. Authement College of Sciences, where two funds – established by a family member in honor of Vernon and Ruby Langlinais – are helping to shape the next generation of students. Vernon and Ruby were both 1949 graduates of the University when it was named SLII, majoring in Chemistry and Education, respectively.

The Vernon and Ruby Langlinais Endowed and Non-Endowed Research Funds in Sciences were created to do exactly what Vernon’s garden did: take something small and full of potential, nourish it with care, and watch it grow. The gift provides early-stage funding for research projects that are driving new discoveries and stimulating a strong pipeline of R1 related exploration – with a focus on championing interdisciplinary and collaborative work that has the potential to attract additional funding from the National Science Foundation and other federal and state resources.

These intentions are already bearing fruit across disciplines, institutions, and borders.

For instance, Ph.D. student Niloofar Heidarikohol is using virtual reality and biofeedback to study how to build emotional resilience, exploring how different audio, visual, and haptic modes affect a person’s ability to manage stress. Her work has drawn collaborators from three countries, including one of the world’s leading labs in empathic computing at the University of Auckland. What began as two foundational survey papers has now grown into a full experimental study, with stress-response testing on the horizon.

In another lab, Dr. Ritwij Kulkarni is undertaking research with direct clinical implications. He is investigating the roles of obesity, diabetes, and sex in the development of urinary tract infections. This work has supported three graduate student researchers and provided critical supplies and equipment that would otherwise be out of reach. One of his research advisees, Derrick Petry, successfully defended his master’s thesis in August 2025 and has since joined the University of Arkansas as a laboratory technician.

In the School of Geosciences, two undergraduate students developed research hypotheses and presented original findings on stable isotopes – work not typically attempted until graduate school. That kind of early, hands-on research experience shapes academic and career trajectories, and was made possible by donor support.