Annis D Tarver

Annis Dowden Tarver, a retired educator and former employee of the Louisiana Department of Education, passed away on Saturday, October 4, 2025, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She was born on December 26, 1938, and grew up in Peason, a rural community near Florien, Louisiana, in Sabine Parish. She graduated as valedictorian from Mount Carmel High School in 1956 and earned a B.S. degree in chemistry in 1959 from Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana. While at Northwestern, she was a member of Pi Kappa Sigma sorority and Phi Kappa Phi honor society. After several years of working for private industry and the federal government, she returned to college, graduating with a B.S. degree in science education from LSU in 1972 and an M.Ed. degree in educational administration and supervision from Northwestern State University in 1979. She earned a Ph.D in education from LSU in 1987. After teaching science at Florien High School in Sabine Parish and Scotlandville Magnet High School in Baton Rouge, she worked at the Louisiana Department of Education. She was a member of First Baptist Church of Baton Rouge.

She is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Elizabeth and Robert Landry, her grandchildren, Reed and Paul Landry, and her sisters, Gwenda McKenzie and Mary McCollough (Thomas), as well as her nephews, nieces, and cousins.

She is preceded in death by her husband John Reed Tarver, her son John Mark Tarver, and her parents Tom W. Dowden and Virginia Gelee Cummings Dowden. A private family burial will be held at a later date.

Donations may be made in her name to The Hospice of Baton Rouge, 3600 Florida Boulevard, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70806, (225) 767-4673.