Jenkins was born on a farm in South Africa. While Jenkins never intended to have a career in higher education, he did have an interest in veterinary medicine. Jenkins left South Africa for the United States, where he received a Ph.D. in veterinary medicine from the University of Missouri in Columbia in 1970. Jenkins practiced veterinary medicine for four years before joining the
Faculty at the
University of Pretoria, Jenkins was appointed Dean of the
Louisiana State University’s (LSU) School of Veterinary Medicine in 1988 and was named Provost in 1993. He served as Chancellor at LSU for three years before his appointment as President of the LSU System, a nearly $3 billion enterprise that includes five academic campuses, a law centre, and 10 public hospitals. Jenkins retired as the fourth President of the LSU System in 2007, and was later President Emeritus. Jenkins returned to LSU in 2012 to become interim President of the LSU System. Jenkins retired as interim President of the LSU System in 2013. == Awards and honours ==