e can all agree that a high school education is not enough to compete in today’s global economy. Yet by age 30, many Americans have not earned a college degree or certificate. Many obstacles keep them from realizing their dreams of success. At the LSUE Foundation, our mission is to increase the number of young adults who complete their postsecondary education, setting them up for future success in the workplace and in life. That mission is accomplished by providing assistance to students who face numerous challenges on the road to success. A college education is a long-term investment in motivation, time and money. It is important to ask: will that investment pay off? As you read through the success stories in this brochure, you will see examples of LSU Eunice students who found both the motivation and time to complete their educations and continue forward toward their dreams of success. Many other LSU Eunice alumni with similar success stories, have watched their dreams become reality because of long-term investments in the form of financial gifts made by people just like YOU. Some students arrive at the LSUE campus in need of a financial helping hand. Our scholarship program offers that, plus the power of a collective belief in their ability to succeed. Some students discover the seeds of a life’s work while attending classes; that seed is further nurtured through participation in programs that are underwritten by gifts to the LSUE Foundation. Other students find leadership opportunities through participation in campus organizations. Still others
change direction, even careers, based on positive experiences and guidance from dedicated and well-credentialed instructors. The LSUE Foundation uses all of its financial gifts to provide staff, faculty and student support through its various programs and projects. What these eight successful alumni profiles have in common is that these former students seized an opportunity for growth, learning and skill development at LSU Eunice. In a smaller, supportive setting where success is encouraged, they found their ability to think critically; identify, analyze and solve complex problems; and assume leadership roles. They each sought, and found, the personal empowerment it takes to succeed in a wide variety of fields. Today, there are almost 3,000 students on the LSUE campus, each seeking this same opportunity for success. The LSUE Foundation depends upon the continuing altruism and compassion of a giving community to keep this opportunity alive for every student who arrives here seeking to build a successful foundation in their post-secondary school careers. Altruism is defined as the unselfish concern for the welfare and well being of others; compassion is the desire to enhance the welfare of someone in need. Your gift to the LSUE Foundation is an active display of both of these qualities. Your gift becomes part of the foundation of success. It helps YOU, the giver, to express genuine caring and generosity for a new generation of successful alumni at LSU Eunice.
ost people will remember LSU Eunice alum Leroy Burney, III as “Pete,” a nickname given to him by his grandfather since there were three Leroys around the house when he was growing up. Pete graduated from Eunice High School in 1982 where he was active in sports, drama, band and served as Student Council president. After graduation, he decided to attend LSU Eunice so that he could remain closer to home for a few more years to be of assistance to his elderly grandmother. His father stressed that he could get a great start on his college education at a great price before transferring to the main campus in Baton Rouge in two years. Pete took his father’s advice, majoring in secondary education (English) while serving as a tutor and peer counselor. He was also elected President of the ACES club (Awareness of Culture, Education and Society). He transferred to LSU Baton Rouge in 1984, entered the Army ROTC program and served as cadet commander of the LSU Corps of Cadets. He graduated in 1986 and then entered the U.S.Army Signal Corps as a 2nd Lieutenant, serving in the 82nd Airborne division for 4 years before leaving the army to join Hallmark Cards in 1990. While at Hallmark, Pete earned an MBA at the University of MassachusettsAmherst during a 3-year assignment as a plant manager in New England. Pete Burney currently holds the position of Senior Vice-President of Supply Chain and Business Enablement for Hallmark Cards in Kansas City, Missouri. Pete says that Hallmark prides itself on being a family-owned company with a strong commitment to community and service. As a corporate officer, he is afforded the opportunity to donate to an educational institution of his choice; his contributions are matched at a designated level by Hallmark. Therefore, over six years ago, Pete began contributing toward an LSUE endowed scholarship in his father’s memory. Mr. Leroy Burney, Jr., a life-long educator in St. Landry Parish, was the one who encouraged Pete to choose LSU Eunice first. “LSUE is a great asset to Acadiana. I was fortunate to receive a scholarship named after Mr. Jack Hobgood during my second year at LSUE and it was tremendously helpful to me at the time. Now I simply want to help others seize the day and achieve their goals as well.”
arrel J. Papillion, a 1988 student at LSU Eunice, is now part of a successful law firm in Baton Rouge. While at LSU Eunice, he held the distinction of being the first African-American SGA President. Darrel credits former LSUE Chancellor Anthony Mumphrey and Dr. John Couvillion, former Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, for helping him to secure a scholarship to LSU-Baton Rouge where he finished in 1990 before attending LSU law school from 1991 to 1994. “LSUE allowed me to begin my college education at a first-rate, low-cost institution just a few miles away from home. Its small, nurturing environment gave me an opportunity to grow academically without the cost, pressure, and distraction I would have faced at a larger university, far from home. Professors James Ware, John Couvillion, and many others gave me the confidence to know I would succeed at LSU’s main campus. I will never forget, and will always be grateful to LSUE because it played a tremendous role in my success.” Today, Darrel Papillion is actively involved in the Louisiana legal community. He has served as either President or as a board member of numerous professional and civic organizations, among them are his memberships in the Board of Governors of the Louisiana State Bar Association, the Board of Directors of the Baton Rouge Bar Association, and the Board of Directors of the Louisiana Bar Foundation. He served as President of the Wex Malone Chapter of the American Inns of Court, is a former member of the Louisiana State Bar Association House of Delegates, and the Board of Governors of the Louisiana Association for Justice. He currently serves as Co-Chair of the Louisiana State Bar Association Continuing Legal Education Committee. Mr. Papillion remains dedicated to educating future lawyers, serving as an adjunct law professor at the LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center for nearly 10 years. He has also served as an adjunct professor of law at Southern University Law Center where he taught courses in pretrial litigation and trial advocacy. Papillion has been published in the Louisiana Law Review, the Louisiana Bar Journal; in 2005, he received the Louisiana State Bar Association’s Michaelle Pitard Wynn Professionalism Award.
ayla Fontenot graduated from St. Edmund Catholic High School in Eunice, LA in 2001. She began her pre-medical curriculum that same summer at LSU Eunice. In August of 2003, she transferred to LSU in Baton Rouge in pursuit of her Bachelor’s Degree in Biological Sciences, which she obtained May 2005. She graduated from LSU Health Science Center School of Medicine in New Orleans in May 2010, and is currently in her second year in the OBGYN Residency Program at Earl K Long Medical Center in Baton Rouge. Kayla says she greatly appreciated her time at LSU Eunice, which provided a firm foundation for all of her future medical studies. She fondly remembered her time here, which included tutoring with the Student Services tutoring program. “Dr. Al Roques became one of my favorite teachers because he was always available to answer any questions I had about Algebra and Calculus. Dr. Couvillion’s Organic Chemistry class and Mr. Williams’ Comparative Anatomy class were two of the most challenging classes I ever have taken.” Another favorite teacher was Dr. Renee Robichaux. “She was an amazing instructor who went over and beyond the call of duty to instruct me in the field of Cell Biology. It was in her class that I first learned about electrophoresis, as well as how to use Microsoft PowerPoint!” “LSUE was a superb foundation for my fundamental knowledge in my studies of Biological Studies. It was the one-on-one teacher-student interaction that made LSUE so special for me. There is no other place that I’ve studied which honors the ‘open-door’ policy as well as LSUE and its teachers do!”
t the age of three, Louisiana State Fire Marshall H. “Butch” Browning was seriously burned in a home fire. This accident prompted his father to join his community’s volunteer fire department. Butch soon followed in his father’s footsteps. He recalled that he “grew up in the fire station,” where he served as a junior fireman, as well as taking fire and rescue classes while still in high school. Following graduation from Redemptorist High School in Baton Rouge in 1986, he began his “official” career in the fire service in East Baton Rouge Fire District #6. He soon climbed the ranks to fire chief and in 2001, he was named fire chief of the City of Gonzales. In 2008 Governor Bobby Jindal named him the 24th Louisiana State Fire Marshal. “I knew at a young age that the fire service was my calling and I took advantage of any and every opportunity to educate myself. LSU Eunice was a leader in our state, providing fire service degrees. They made the program so accommodating to me, as I worked fulltime in the fire department while completing my studies. My advisor, David Fultz, treated me like a son and mentored me to complete my degree plan and earn my fire science degree!” Browning’s other accomplishments include being an Eagle Scout, Past President of the Louisiana State Fireman’s Association, Past President of the Louisiana Arson and Fire Prevention Association, Graduate of the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer Program, serving on the Commission on Professional Credentialing Chief Fire Officer, and being a certified Emergency Medical Technician. He holds certifications in fire administration, fire suppression and fire prevention, as well as fire education levels at the National Fire Academy and Oklahoma State University. As Louisiana’s State Fire Marshall, Browning oversees the operation of building construction plan reviews, fire code enforcement, fire education, and fire/arson investigation. He also coordinates with local fire and emergency service organizations to provide assistance with assets in time of disaster.
ike many single mothers, Maria Alvarado Papillion had a dream to better herself so she could provide a higher quality of life for her family. By chance, a boxed ad in a tossed-out newspaper in the summer of 1994 caught her eye; Maria found the lifeline she needed to turn her dreams into reality. The ad announced that LSU Eunice was starting its new “Single Parent and Displaced Homemaker Program.” As a surgical tech, Maria knew she needed more education and skills to advance in the medical job market. The ad said that Orientation was scheduled for the next day. Maria realized if she missed it, it would be a year before the opportunity would present itself again. Maria remembered that time: “I had no idea where Eunice was, but I was determined to get there from Opelousas. I talked my girlfriend into watching my two children who were then both under three.” At the time, Maria was also doing translation work for a local attorney who offered to drive her to Eunice. When he failed to show up, Maria started walking. She’d made it to the community of Swords before he finally caught up with her. Though apologetic for being late, he was quite amazed at her determination to start out on foot. Still, by the time she arrived at LSUE, the program was half over. “The lady in charge, Ms. Savoynne Ewell, told me I could stay, but she couldn’t go back over the program just for me. I told my ride to go back to Opelousas without me.” Alvarado stayed, eventually scrapping up enough money to purchase a “5th or 6th-hand car” for her daily commute. By 1995, she’d received her Associate degree in Art and was accepted into the Nursing program at LSUE. Today she teaches Practical Nursing at Acadiana Technical College. In spring 2012, she will receive her Bachelors in Nursing from Southeastern Louisiana University. Following that, she will enter graduate school for her Masters in Nursing. Along the way, Maria met and married David Papillion. Along with his support and the other “very, very good people that God put in my pathway,” she admits that she was blessed by the first educational opportunity she received at LSU Eunice.
yla Joubert attended LSUE from summer of 2005 until the spring of 2007 and graduated with an Associate of Science degree. She transferred to LSU Baton Rouge and upon graduation with a Bachelor’s in Biology, moved on to LSU Medical School in Shreveport where she is currently studying. During her time at LSU Eunice, she majored in biology, worked as a lab technician, tutored, and participated in microbiology research. She also participated in the 2007 URSI program, completing her summer research project with faculty mentor, Dr. Jameel Al-Dujaili. The two examined how the presence of iron leads to an increase in the growth of E-coli contamination in drinking water. “Through the rigorous courses in biology, chemistry and mathematics, I learned to be diligent and to manage my time wisely,” notes Kyla. “As a lab technician, I came to understand what it really means to ‘try and try again.’ While tutoring, I became aware of how gratifying it is to play a part in someone’s education and to never take mine for granted. And finally, while participating in research, I realized the value of organization and preparation.” Some of Kyla’s most memorable moments came when she was the recipient of the “Outstanding Student Award” in both her freshman and sophomore years at LSU Eunice: “I remember how I had thought of previous recipients of this award as role models. Many had also pursued a career in medicine. I will always consider the time that I spent at LSUE as one of my favorite experiences. I was able to truly connect with my professors and peers. I continue to consult my former teachers for advice and have made friends that have been with me ever since. It is the support and encouragement that I received while at LSUE that set the foundation for my continuing education.”
ake Trahan studied Biological Sciences at LSU Eunice from 20062009. While a student here, he participated in many campus organizations, including LSUE Honors, Student Government Association, the Undergraduate Research Summer Institute and PreProfessional Health Majors Association. His participation in SGA included serving terms as Freshman Senator, Vice-President and President. He was also a participant in URSI; Professor Williams was his faculty-mentor. Together they explored the faunistics of small, ground dwelling vertebrates in a section of tall-grass prairie on campus. Jake’s job was to check traps for over six months to see which amphibians, mammals or reptiles had been lured to the prairie habitat. While Jake admitted he had a difficult time choosing just one favorite professor, he finally narrowed it down to Associate Professor of Biology, Avery Williams. “My favorite professor would have to be Mr. Williams because his personality was contagious. His classes were difficult but they provided his students with hands-on learning. That thoroughly prepared me to take on the higher level classes after I transferred to LSU in Baton Rouge.” Other fond LSUE memories included time spent studying and taking breaks with friends in the SGA office. SGA was responsible for many of the activities in the semester-end Bengal Bashes. Students always knew where to find Jake – students who arrive on campus from towns like Egan always seem to become the chief game-hunter cooks on campus; Jake was no exception. After LSU Eunice, Jake transferred to LSU where he received his Bachelors in Biological Sciences. In August 2011, he began medical school at LSU School of Medicine in New Orleans. He has not yet decided which field of medicine he will ultimately choose to pursue; however, he knows his decision to become a medical doctor is certain. “Looking back after having completed my undergraduate education, I credit LSU Eunice for my acceptance into medical school. Without the faculty and staff’s overall support, I may not be where I am today, and for that, I am grateful to all who have impacted my educational career while at LSU Eunice.”
s a child, Deana Knighten always dreamed of being a nurse. Her nurturing personality and desire to help others became the driving force behind her pursuit of a career in nursing. Her dream became a reality when she graduated with an Associated Degree in Nursing from LSU Eunice in 2006. Upon entering the profession, Deana discovered a passion for healthcare, which sparked a desire to continue her education in the field. In 2008,she returned to school, attending Northwestern State University to pursue her master’s degree in Nursing. In May 2012, she will graduate from NSU with a Family Nurse Practitioner degree. Although Deana admits the LSUE nursing program was challenging, she credits it for giving her the necessary skills to become a successful, skillful, caring nurse. She chose LSUE because of the reputation of its outstanding nursing program. “LSUE was a great educational experience. Its campus was small enough to make me feel comfortable, they offered classes that were feasible for students with busy schedules, and the faculty was extremely helpful in guiding me. The nursing program’s instructors were knowledgeable and fair; I really felt like they wanted all of us to succeed. When I graduated, I felt very prepared for my state examination and ready to enter the nursing profession with confidence.” “I have fond memories of many instructors, too many to mention individually. But I will say Dr. Renee Robichaux, who taught me Physiology, had an amazing way of helping me understand complicated physiological processes. Dr. Doug Narby had a passion for Psychology and Debra Vidrine was my first clinical nursing instructor. She helped me to feel at ease in the hospital environment. Jennifer Creswell used her nursing knowledge and unique sense of humor to teach me core nursing fundamentals in the hospital environment. The professors were great from my pre-requisite courses through my nursing courses. Reflecting back on my time at LSUE what I realize is that the professors I encountered at LSUE were passionate about their profession and that makes all the difference in an educational environment!”
More than 80 percent of all TOPS Honor recipients attending two-year schools choose LSU Eunice.
Students in LSU Eunice’s Undergraduate Research Summer Institute work on research normally found in a four-year institution. URSI students regularly present their work at regional and national conferences.
Percentage of faculty holding the highest degree in their field.
An award-winning program designed to give students a strong foundation for collegelevel work.
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SERVING LSU EUNICE FOR TWENTY YEARS
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