Cornerstone Summer and Fall 2015

LSU FOUNDATION SUMMER FALL 2015

Cornerstone

Membership Profile

EDITORS Lauren Brown Sara Crow ART DIRECTOR Victoria DiPascal LSU Alumna, Graphic Design CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Ernie Ballard Tobie Blanchard Michelle Hardy Liz Torrey CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Darlene Aguillard Andrea Laborde Barbier Josh Duplechain Shane Falgout Steve Franz Sarah Keller Bret Lovetro Eddy Perez Jim Zietz PRINTING Emprint/Moran Printing, Inc. To share feedback, please contact Sara Crow at scrow@lsufoundation.org or 225-578-8164. www.lsufoundation.org www.facebook.com/ lsufoundation www.twitter.com/ lsu_foundation

Cheryl Fasullo and Peter Fasullo

High school sweethearts Peter and Cheryl Fasullo know the importance of education and, as LSU Foundation members and scholarship donors, are committed to supporting it.

Unlike Cheryl and the couple’s oldest son, Thomas, Peter never attended LSU, but as an active supporter of his alma mater, Rice University, he appreciates the role of fundraising in a school’s success.

Cheryl explained that they give to LSU to help defray the costs of education.

“We’re all better off when we have an educated society,” the retired professor said. “It’s our responsibility to open those doors for the next generation to follow because, as costs increase, they’re not going to be able to fund it on their own.

We’ve got to step up to the plate and help.”

The couple met, as Peter remembers, on March 21, 1970. Though they dated in high school, their relationship took a break when Cheryl left Houston for another love: LSU. Even with out-of-state tuition, attending LSU would have cost Cheryl about the same as University of Texas. “Of course, it was a no-brainer for me. I fell in love with LSU,” she said. “But, falling in love or not, I wouldn’t be able to afford it nowadays. So, my husband and I funded a scholarship for students out-of-state.”

In addition to establishing a scholarship in the College of Humanities & Social Sciences, the couple supports LSU through their LSU Foundation membership.

“I really believe in what the Foundation does and how they do it,” Cheryl shared.

“Everything about them is raising money for faculty and students. They spend a very little amount of money on the side. The Foundation, I think, has a laser focus on raising funds, and then putting as much money as possible that they raise into supporting students and the academic pursuits of faculty.”

While Peter is involved with multiple energy industry organizations and is a co-founder of management consulting company En*Vantage, Cheryl’s career and community commitments have always revolved around education. Having taught at the college level for 28 years, she currently serves on numerous advisory and alumni boards for LSU and the University of Houston and was the Humanities & Social Sciences representative on the Forever LSU Campaign steering committee.

She shared, “I’m totally committed to the work that the Foundation does.”

On the Cover

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Cornerstone | Summer and Fall 2015 | LSU Foundation

New LSU Foundation President and CEO (and LSU alumnus) Stephen Moret and his family joined us on a drizzly April morning for photos in LSU’s iconic Quad. Shown with Moret on the cover is his wife, Heather. At left are sons Jackson, Samuel and Benjamin. Turn to page 6 for an introduction to Moret and more photos from that day.

INSIDE CORNERSTONE Summer and Fall 2015 • Volume 27, Number 1

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INTEGRITY | TRANSPARENCY | DONOR-CENTERED DEVELOPMENT | STEWARDSHIP 4

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WELCOME G. Lee Griffin BOARD OF DIRECTORS Cass Gaiennie COVER STORY Welcome Home

10 TRANSFORMATIONAL GIFTS

Honorable Mention

An Industry Turner

26 SCHOLARSHIPS A Commitment to Service Thank You

32 PLANNED GIVING

Integrating Philanthropy 33 DEAN’S CIRCLES AND COUNCILS

28 FACULTY AND STUDENT SUPPORT

Community Remembers Kean Miller

Founder Geology on Ice

Leading the Way

Holding Court

34 COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS

Hitting the Books

Reclaiming a Legacy 35 COLLEAGUE MILESTONES

18 HONORING LOVED ONES Bleeding Purple and Gold The Family That Gives Together Historical Recognition 21 CROSS-CAMPUS SUPPORT

Providing a Brighter Future Family Ties It’s Pretty Easy Being Green 24 MATCHING GIFTS

In the Name of Saying Thank You Strength in Numbers

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THE LSU FOUNDATION INSPIRES AND SHEPHERDS PHILANTHROPIC GIVING TO LSU AND BUILDS LONG-LASTING RELATIONSHIPS WITH DONORS WHO BRING LIFE TO CURRENT AND EMERGING UNIVERSITY PRIORITIES. Cornerstone | Summer and Fall 2015 | LSU Foundation

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The LSU Foundation Board of Directors, whose philanthropic support has made possible construction of the LSU Foundation Center for Philanthropy, joined employees, the campus community and LSU Foundation members March 6 for a ceremonial groundbreaking at the corner of Nicholson and Skip Bertman drives. The center is part of the transformation of the Nicholson Drive corridor, which will turn what has been the back of the campus into an exciting new gateway district.

Dear Friends, As I conclude my last week as president and CEO of the LSU Foundation, I feel a great sense of excitement about the future of fundraising at LSU. My successor, Stephen Moret, is uniquely qualified to achieve the crux of our mission: build long-lasting relationships with donors who bring life to current and emerging university priorities. Stephen’s diverse leadership experience in both the public and private sectors, coupled with his strong passion for LSU, perfectly complements our goal of increasing philanthropic support of LSU while ensuring more efficient and effective fundraising efforts. I’ve known Stephen since he was president of LSU Student Government, more than 20 years ago, and my confidence in his abilities is absolute.

Declining public support for higher education intensifies the importance of your generosity. We are just a few weeks away from formally starting construction on the LSU Foundation Center for Philanthropy—a permanent reflection of the vital role of academic fundraising to LSU’s future. Without question, more robust, year-after-year giving by alumni, friends and corporations is requisite to LSU’s long-term success.

LSU has celebrated many fundraising milestones thanks to you and your peers. This issue features the university’s largest ever endowed gift (p. 6) and its largest planned gift (p. 21). Roger Houston Ogden announced in December a $12 million investment in what is now the LSU Roger Hadfield Ogden Honors College, honoring his late father and his son. In January, an anonymous donor made a $40 million planned gift commitment that will ultimately fund scholarships in the LSU College of Engineering’s Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering and scholarships and facilities supported by the Tiger Athletic Foundation.

What started out as a six-month interim role for me back in July 2011 has evolved into four years of service to my alma mater, and I can think of no better way to have concluded my professional career. Now, as I retire (again!), I look forward to enjoying more time with my wife, Barrie, and our children and grandchildren. I’m honored to have the opportunity, too, to return to the LSU Foundation’s Board of Directors.

Your engagement, generosity and support have been very meaningful to me as president and CEO. I am truly grateful for and humbled by your commitment to LSU and your selflessness in advancing this exemplary university.

Forever LSU,

G. Lee Griffin (MS Business, 1962)

The LSU Foundation team thanks our colleague and friend Lee Griffin for his passionate determination, selfless leadership and immeasurable contributions over the last four years. We will dearly miss your seemingly limitless energy, contagious optimism and deep compassion for us as professionals and individuals. Our very best wishes as you enjoy retirement with your family. Forever LSU! From left, LSU Foundation employees Steven Covington, senior director of development for the College of Engineering (8 years with the LSU Foundation); Monica Derozan, gift processing manager (11 years); Emi Gilbert, director of development for the College of Science (11 years); Gwen Fairchild, director of planned giving (18 years); and Ann Marie Marmande, vice president of development (16 years) at the Business Education Complex. Griffin was a volunteer co-chair of fundraising efforts for the BEC, which celebrated its ribbon-cutting in March 2012.

Changing Hands, Sharing Visions

Board of Directors

Since Cass Gaiennie took over as chair of the LSU Foundation Board of Directors in January, one word keeps ringing out to him like a mantra: transformation. It’s a word that also resonated with his predecessor, Gary Laborde, who helped lead the Board and the LSU Foundation in implementing a four-year strategic plan designed to double annual fundraising and grow the endowment.

“We have a critical role to play in establishing a stable, growing base of philanthropic support for LSU,” Gaiennie explained. “I’m looking forward to continuing Gary’s work to engage the Board more fully in those efforts.”

Over the past year, the Board has worked with a consultant from the Association of Governing Boards, the industry leader in board development for higher education. Subcommittees have explored how to integrate the recommendations of the consultant (a former foundation president and CEO); conducted extensive research on peer foundations; and developed a plan to measure their own success as a board.

“The Board of Directors has been, and continues to be, paramount to the LSU Foundation’s success in raising funds for LSU,” Gaiennie shared. “It’s growing in number, strength and diversity by recruiting passionate LSU alumni and friends with a wide range of knowledge and expertise. We’re also redefining the board’s role in achieving fundraising and heightening our engagement in that area.”

Gaiennie noted the important role Lee Griffin has played in his four years as president and CEO, and that he will continue to play as he returns to the Board of Directors. “Lee has truly transformed the LSU Foundation,” Gaiennie said. “It’s his leadership and vision that are to thank for our success doubling annual fundraising, growing our development team, bringing structure to our development efforts, making our Center for Philanthropy a reality, and achieving significant headway in benchmarking our efforts against those of our most successful peers.”

Griffin recently returned to the Board of Directors after welcoming Stephen Moret, former secretary of Louisiana Economic Development, as his successor.

Gaiennie said, “It will be a tremendous asset to us to continue to have Lee’s expertise, but now as a Board member. It’s a unique opportunity to have a president and CEO join the Board, and we’re grateful for it.”

The LSU Foundation’s fundraising efforts began in earnest 25 years ago, compared to many successful universityrelated foundations that have been engaged in major gift fundraising for several decades longer. “But that only makes us even more excited about what we can accomplish for LSU in the years ahead,” Gaiennie shared, adding that he’s confident in Moret’s ability to continue the transformation Griffin began.

“Stephen brings a unique blend of cross-sector experience, coupled with a strong passion for LSU that he has channeled into leadership roles since serving as Student Government president 20 years ago,” Gaiennie explained. “The Board is excited to work closely with him as we move toward a transformational level of philanthropic support for LSU.”

OFFICERS T. Cass Gaienne • Shreveport, LA Chairperson of the Board & Director Robert M. Stuart Jr. • Baton Rouge, LA Chairperson-Elect of the Board & Director Stephen Moret • Baton Rouge, LA President and CEO & Ex Officio Director William L. Silvia Jr. • Baton Rouge, LA Corporate Secretary & Ex Officio Director Clarence P. Cazalot Jr. • Houston, TX Corporate Treasurer & Director

DIRECTORS Mark K. Anderson • Monroe, LA J. Herbert Boydstun • Baton Rouge, LA J. Terrell Brown • Baton Rouge, LA Robert H. Crosby III • New Orleans, LA Laura L. Dauzat • Marksville, LA William T. Firesheets II • Baton Rouge, LA G. Lee Griffin • Baton Rouge, LA Frank W. “Billy” Harrison III • Houston, TX Gary L. Laborde • New Orleans, LA Charles A. Landry • Baton Rouge, LA Laura A. Leach • Lake Charles, LA David B. Means III • Mansfield, LA W. Henson Moore III • Baton Rouge, LA James R. Peltier • Thibodaux, LA D. Martin Phillips • Houston, TX Sean E. Reilly • Baton Rouge, LA John F. Shackelford III • Bonita, LA Jeffrey N. Springmeyer • Houston, TX Sue W. Turner • Baton Rouge, LA Burton D. Weaver • Flora, LA Felix R. Weill • Baton Rouge, LA

EX OFFICIO F. King Alexander President and Chancellor LSU William B. Richardson Vice President of Agriculture and Dean of the LSU College of Agriculture Jack Weiss Chancellor LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center

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COVER STORY

Stephen Moret and youngest child Mary Katherine, 18 months, stroll through LSU’s Quad.

Welcome Home Stephen Moret Named President and CEO In the fall of 1990, as G. Lee Griffin was wrapping his term as president of the Board of Directors, a young trumpet player from Mississippi experienced his first LSU football game—by lining up in the end zone for the Golden Band from Tigerland’s pregame show in Tiger Stadium.

“I still get tingles every time I think about it,” Stephen Moret recalled of looking up to a sea of Tiger fans. “The moment I stepped out onto that field, played those four notes, and felt the roar from the fans was the beginning of a very special relationship between LSU and me.”

Just months earlier, his trumpet teacher (a proud LSU alumnus) suggested that Moret pursue a band scholarship at LSU. After asking the teacher what “LSU” stood for, Moret soon found himself Baton Rouge-bound with his mother to audition. “I had no ties to this wonderful state I now call home … I remember us hitting the intersection of Dalrymple and Highland, and seeing the beautiful oak trees that are a signature of the LSU campus,” he shared.

Moret was awarded a full scholarship, which he accepted at the urging of his parents. “I grew up the son of a single mother in Mississippi. Money was tight. The scholarship I received to attend LSU made a big difference in making college affordable, as well as positioning me financially to be able to take out the student loans necessary to later attend Harvard Business School.”

For more than two decades, Moret has been a champion for LSU and has committed himself personally

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and professionally to its success. As a student, he became immersed in both his mechanical engineering curriculum and a host of student activities. Moret’s loyalty to the university and motivation to improve it led him to run for president of what is now known as Student Government.

Recognizing his innate leadership skills, Moret’s peers elected him to the post.

“I thought it needed to refocus its efforts on issues of importance to students, such as creating a dead week before exams, bringing back the Gumbo yearbook, and encouraging the university to give more consideration to teaching effectiveness when making tenure decisions,” he explained.

“I wanted the SGA to become a more worthwhile contributor to campus governance and student life, including working more closely with the administration and Faculty Senate.”

It was that experience that would first connect Moret with Griffin, though neither could anticipate that each would one day serve at the helm of the LSU Foundation.

“Serving as student body president at LSU was an amazing experience that cemented my desire to stay in Louisiana following graduation,” Moret shared. “While I had pursued the role to improve the effectiveness of Student Government, the experience also opened my eyes to the broad, fascinating scope of a large, public research university. By virtue of my position, I had an opportunity to serve on a state-government reform commission, chaired

by Lee Griffin, that was considering comprehensive policy

reforms to position Louisiana for a more prosperous future.

The combination of those two experiences kindled in me a growing interest in higher education leadership, as well as a belief that Louisiana’s future economic development would be strongly linked with the advancement of LSU and other postsecondary education institutions in Louisiana.”

A few years after graduation in 1995, Moret worked as assistant to Chancellor William Jenkins. He described the experience as “one of the highlights of my life.” When Jenkins was promoted to president of the LSU System, Moret decided the time was right to continue his education, this time at Harvard Business School. “Shortly after I was accepted to Harvard Business School, Mark Emmert was named the next LSU chancellor and asked me to stay on and work with him, possibly in a joint position also serving Dr. Jenkins. While I would have loved to do that, Harvard was unwilling to grant me an admission deferral, and I feared if I didn’t go that I might miss out on having that amazing experience.”

While earning his MBA, Moret met a special person who shared his commitment to education: his now wife of 12 years, Heather. Having earned a BSJ from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University and an MPA from the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University, Heather would ultimately share alma maters with Stephen when she earned an EdD from the Harvard Graduate School of Education in 2009.

Stephen and Heather had hoped to raise their family here, so they were excited for him to return to lead the Baton Rouge Area Chamber. Shifting from his work as a consultant for McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm, Moret led BRAC to become a national-caliber regional economic development organization. He left the post in 2008, when he was appointed secretary of Louisiana Economic Development. As he had done with so many projects before, Moret set out to make LED not just good, but the best—all for the betterment of his new home state. Over the next seven years, he spearheaded efforts that have made it one of the U.S.’s top-performing state economic development agencies.

It’s fitting, then, that his next role would place him in a leadership position for what he considers to be Louisiana’s strongest economic asset: LSU. The opportunity to return to LSU to take on the critical task of increasing philanthropic support—and enabling many more students to have the kind

Left: Mary Katherine and her oldest brother, Jackson Below: Stephen and Heather Moret’s children check out the fountain in front of Dodson Hall.

of transformational LSU experience he had—is the perfect bridge between his personal passion and his professional and intellectual strengths.

“I can’t imagine any professional endeavor about which I would be more passionate than working to advance this very special university,” Moret said, adding, “I am most excited about helping connect the priorities and aspirations of LSU with the inspirations and passions of our donors. The more we succeed in doing that, the more opportunities there will be to expand support for LSU faculty and students. It will be a privilege to work every day to help build stronger philanthropic support for LSU’s outstanding faculty, students and staff.”

While Moret will work closely with colleagues at the LSU Foundation and across campus to shape a long-term vision and pathway for fundraising success, a fundamental piece of that vision is already clear to him. “Our single biggest opportunity will be building a strong culture of giving at LSU, which does not broadly exist today. When someone says they deeply love LSU, they should see regular giving to LSU as part of that relationship. Many other institutions have accomplished this. With all the love and passion that exists for LSU, I’m optimistic that we can do so, as well.”

For more on Moret’s LSU experience and his vision for the LSU Foundation, visit www.lsufoundation.org/moret.

Clockwise from left: Jackson (10), Benjamin (6), Mary Katherine (18 months) and Samuel (8) Moret enjoy exploring LSU’s stately oaks and the Dodson Hall fountain in the campus Quad.

Facing page, bottom left: Jackson and Samuel share a sweet moment with mom Heather.

• Career & Educational Milestones

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Under Moret’s leadership as secretary of Louisiana Economic Development from 2008-15, LED became a fast, creative and solution-oriented partner for corporate executives and site selection consultants. Since 2008, LED has secured a diverse array of projects with leading companies, such as Bell Helicopter, Benteler, ConAgra, CSC, EA, GE Capital and IBM—and has been recognized repeatedly as one of the top-performing state economic development agencies in the U.S.

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Moret served as president and CEO of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber from 2004-08. During that time, BRAC grew into a national-caliber regional economic development organization.

Revenues tripled, following the launch of “The Campaign for

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a Greater Baton Rouge,” a five-year, $15 million economic development initiative for the nine-parish Capital Region.

Moret was a management consultant with McKinsey & Company, where he specialized in service operations, including acute-care hospitals, Medicaid systems, pharmacy benefit managers, and Internet service providers. He also worked as a project supervisor with Trinity Consultants, advising large industrial facilities on environmental issues related to major plant expansions.

Moret served as assistant to the chancellor of LSU, an independent consultant to Harvard University and a public policy fellow with the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana. His research at PAR on restructuring Louisiana’s higher education system earned the Most Distinguished Research Award from the national Governmental Research Association.

Moret earned a BS in mechanical engineering from LSU (1995), where he was elected president of the student body, and an MBA from Harvard Business School (2001), where he was elected copresident of the student body and received the Dean’s Award for exceptional leadership and service. He is a doctoral candidate in higher education management at the University of Pennsylvania, where his research focuses on linkages between postsecondary education and the labor market.

My LSU: Q&A Favorite campus restaurant? The Chimes Favorite place to study as a student? A secluded spot on one of the upper floors of Middleton Library Your Student Government campaign slogan?

Cooperation, Service, Integrity Favorite professor and why? Shirley Mundt, who taught me argumentative writing in my freshman year, because she cared so much and because I learned so much.

Favorite LSU memory? I was student body president during the 1993 football season, when LSU started off with two wins and five losses, including a 58-3 shellacking at home

by Florida. As a student leader, I fervently believed that we should support all of our athletic teams, especially when they were struggling. I called up Coach Curley Hallman and asked him if I could bring a group of students to come speak with the team. He invited us to attend a practice during which we gave the team a pep talk, letting them know we would support them no matter what. One of the players asked Coach Hallman if I could lead them in their team cheer. They gathered around me, and I started it off. It was just awesome.

I felt like Rudy getting to play a down with Notre Dame!

The team would go on to win its next three games, including an amazing, 17-13 victory at defending national champion

Alabama, which ended Alabama’s 31-game unbeaten streak.

I don’t know whether our visit made any difference, but the memory always makes me smile.

Funniest LSU memory? By far, it was seeing former LSU President Bill Jenkins acting in a Baton Rouge Area Chamber skit dressed up as a Conehead, like in the famous Saturday Night Live sketch.

Favorite LSU tradition? I love LSU’s alma mater, which I have sung by heart for many years. The first part speaks to the beauty of LSU and the love so many have for it. I particularly like the special charge implied by the final verse: “Our worth in life will be thy worth, we pray to keep it true; and may thy spirit live in us forever, L-S-U.” I have endeavored to live up to that charge in my own life.

Best LSU event you’ve attended? The LSU vs. Florida football game in October 1997. Playing at home, LSU beat #1-ranked Florida, 28-21. Amazing game.

Biggest change you notice on campus? The academic caliber of the student body today is very impressive. I became a freshman soon after LSU introduced admission standards, which have risen over time.

Best campus spots to visit with your family?

Tiger Stadium and Mike the Tiger’s Habitat How would you sum up LSU in five words?

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TRANSFORMATIONAL GIFTS

Honorable Mention Roger Houston Ogden didn’t grow up in an LSU family, but he has ensured his family is permanently connected to the university.

The alumnus recently announced a $12 million investment in honor of his father, the late Roger Hadfield Ogden, and son, Dr. Roger Hadfield “Field” Ogden II, an orthopedic surgeon in New Orleans. The gift is the largest unrestricted endowed gift in LSU’s history, and is recognized through the naming of the LSU Roger Hadfield Ogden Honors College.

“In considering investing in the future of Louisiana, LSU comes front and center to mind,” Ogden shared of his decision to give. “Every state that has made great strides has done so by prioritizing and investing in a flagship university to drive the state forward.”

Ogden, owner of Ogden Development and Investments and co-founder of Stirling Properties, is a recognized civic leader and philanthropist. He has been a resident of New Orleans for more than 45 years and has remained closely connected to LSU as both a volunteer and donor. He is a former chair of the LSU Board of Supervisors, on which he served for 14 years, and led launching the Flagship Agenda that helped LSU rise to the “Top Tier” of U.S. public universities. While a student at LSU, he served as president of Student Government and was a member of Kappa Sigma fraternity before graduating second in his class from the E. J. Ourso College of Business in 1968. Ogden was named to the LSU Alumni Hall of Distinction in 1998.

Though he was born in Denver and grew up in Shreveport and Lafayette, with no familial connections to LSU, Ogden said he “became enthralled with the mystique” of LSU as a child and considers himself to be an “honorary Cajun.” He is deeply committed to attracting high-caliber students to LSU and retaining them in Louisiana, and he views the Ogden Honors College as one of the foremost strategies in doing so.

In 2010, Ogden established the Roger Hadfield Ogden Deanship in honor of his son. A portion of that gift created the Roger Hadfield Ogden Leaders Program, which provides up to five $5,000 scholarships annually to Ogden Honors College students to fund the pursuit of self-guided projects, proposed by Ogden Honors College students, with significance to the state of Louisiana. The 2014 Ogden Leader was Kurt Ristroph, an Honors College junior from Baton Rouge.

“Were it not for the combined vision of the Honors College and Mr. Ogden in offering the Ogden Leaders Fellowship, I certainly would never have thought to design the literacy service project that I did,” Ristroph said.

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“Because the opportunity was there, though, I was inspired to help Louisiana.”

The award funded his VOLUMEN Project, which provides local elementary and middle school students with access to East Baton Rouge Parish Library electronic resources, such as e-books, online homework tutoring and educational games.

“Thanks to Mr. Ogden’s generosity, future generations of students will enjoy the bountiful opportunities—study abroad options, funds for travel to research conferences, help with unpaid internships and more—of a top tier honors college,” Ristroph said, adding, “as a result, Louisiana will see her LSU Ogden Honors graduates, fully equipped with the strong education that accompanies such opportunities, contribute to their communities in innovative ways. I am excited to see what the Ogden Honors College’s students, empowered by Mr. Ogden’s investment, will do in the future.”

In addition to his longtime support of the Ogden Honors College, Ogden has given generously to the LSU Museum of Art, including through service on its board, and to the College of Art & Design, E. J. Ourso College of Business and LSU Press.

“Thanks to LSU alumnus Roger Ogden for his generous $12 million gift, allowing us to usher in a new age of opportunity and success for LSU’s Roger Hadfield Ogden Honors College and its high-achieving, high-performing student population,” LSU President and Chancellor F. King Alexander said. “Over the last 10 years, students from this college have received more than 90 national awards, including Goldwater and Truman Scholarships. With this new level of commitment, our students’ competitiveness will know no bounds.”

The Ogden Honors College, established in 1992, is a vibrant, diverse and prestigious community located at the heart of LSU. The college typically admits the top 10 percent of incoming LSU freshmen and provides students with rigorous seminar classes, as well as opportunities for undergraduate research, culminating in the Ogden Honors Thesis. Its focus on community service, study abroad, internships and independent research helps today’s highachieving students become tomorrow’s leaders.

“This gift will be transformational for the students of the Ogden Honors College,” said LSU Roger Hadfield Ogden Honors College Dean Jonathan Earle. “Roger’s generosity will exponentially increase opportunities for Honors students to study abroad, conduct path-breaking research, present their work at conferences, and explore new internships and career paths.”

(Right) Roger Houston Ogden in the French House, at the reception celebrating his gift

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Roger Houston Ogden’s family, from left, Ken Barnes, Ann Ogden, Preston Ogden (held by father Field Ogden), and Michelle Ogden (holding son Miles)

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Ogden said, “I believe the Honors College at LSU is the single best vehicle to keep our best and brightest in Louisiana, and to attract the best and brightest from other states to consider LSU for their undergraduate education.

This year’s entering Honors College freshman class has an average ACT of 31.2, which means these students virtually had their choice of universities. With a program that emphasizes ‘the whole person,’ Honors College students have strong leadership skills, extracurricular involvement, special talent and a track record of community service. The Ogden family believes that an investment in LSU and in the Honors College will reap great dividends for generations of exceptional students and leaders. And they, in turn, will hopefully apply their considerable skills to building the future of this very special and unique state.”

As an endowed gift, Ogden’s investment will provide

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perpetual funding, helping to ensure the Ogden Honors College’s vitality for generations to come. Ogden has provided the flexibility for the funds to be used as the college determines is most meaningful, such as supporting areas of greatest need and special initiatives that might not otherwise be possible.

“Roger is a longtime friend of mine, LSU and the LSU Foundation, and I have personally been privileged to know him,” said G. Lee Griffin, former president and CEO of the LSU Foundation. “Endowed funds are a critical source of stable, perpetual funding. Roger’s foresight in giving in a way that provides for the future is especially meaningful. He is hopeful, as are we, that it will set an example for others considering gifts to the university. We are honored that Roger has chosen LSU to recognize his father and his son in this unique, impactful way.”

Highlights

• Ogden and his family were honored in December at a reception hosted by Alexander and Earle in the Grand Salon of the LSU French House, home to the Ogden Honors College. At the announcement celebration, Ogden Honors College student and Olmstead Scholar Erin Percevault and Student Government President Clay Tufts unveiled the college’s new logo, celebrating Ogden’s generosity and permanently recognizing his late father and his son at Ogden’s beloved alma mater.

The French House, constructed in the 1930s in the style of a French chateau, is currently undergoing an extensive interior renovation made possible by state capital outlay funding. Renovations will modernize and expand the usable space in the building, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. honors.lsu.edu

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From 2014 to 2015, applications to the Ogden Honors College increased by 70 percent, admitted students had higher average ACT scores and GPAs, and the number of out-of-state and minority students admitted grew.

In the last 10 years, Ogden Honors College students have received more than 100 prestigious national and international fellowships.

Earlier this year, senior Zachary Fitzpatrick became the first ever LSU student to receive the coveted Gates Cambridge Scholarship.

The college’s curriculum culminates in a long-term independent research thesis. Ogden Honors students’ theses are often published in scholarly journals, presented at conferences and awarded in competitions. Recent graduate Edward Lo’s Ogden Honors Thesis research on coastal erosion abatement techniques was published in Geo-Marine Letters, a prestigious marine geology journal. Lo’s thesis research led him to apply for and receive a Fulbright Fellowship to study wetland growth patterns in Brazil, and his findings will help Louisiana accelerate rates of planned land building as outlined in the state’s Master Plan for Coastal Sustainability.

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Bert Turner receives an honorary doctorate from the LSU College of Science in 1996.

An Industry Turner The Turner Industries gift of $5 million to support LSU’s Breaking New Ground campaign and the LSU College of Engineering’s Department of Construction Management was made possible through the generosity of Turner Industries and the family members of its founder and CEO, Bert S. Turner, who passed away in 2008. Bert’s wife, Sue Turner, and their children, Robert, Susan, Thomas, Mary and John, along with current CEO Roland Toups and the executive management staff, strongly support the direction the school has taken under the leadership of Dean Rick Koubek. All agreed that this gift is an excellent way to honor Bert for his many contributions to industry in Louisiana and, in particular, his support for higher education and LSU. At the same time, it is an excellent investment, as it will support and expand opportunities for LSU’s future construction management students—who are Turner’s future employees.

Bert Turner was born in Elizabeth, Louisiana, in 1921.

With his parents, Grover and Margaret Turner, Bert lived in a number of small towns as his father traveled to various communities installing sawmills and producing timber.

When Bert was only 8, and as the Great Depression dawned, his father passed away. Recognizing that the loss of his father, coupled with economic hardships associated with the depression, posed substantial obstacles to Bert’s development and ultimate success, his mother did everything within her power to ensure that her son would grow up to be a man who could provide for himself and his family.

Margaret’s efforts to provide her son with an opportunity for success included investing Bert with an appreciation for the importance of higher education. Following Grover’s death, Margaret and Bert had moved to Grandin, Missouri, to be closer to her family, and where Margaret could find employment as a grade school teacher. When Bert was a senior in high school, Margaret moved the family from Missouri to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, so Bert could attend the College of Engineering at LSU. By all accounts, Bert’s devotion to his schoolwork was intense. Former LSU schoolmates tell of a young man who often eschewed the diversions enjoyed by typical college boys in favor of studying.

Just three and a half years after beginning his studies, Bert earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.

Though his time at LSU was brief, he always looked upon that period as his coming of age. As a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity, he established long-lasting friendships and met the woman with whom he’d spend the rest of his life. His involvement in the campus military program culminated with his appointment as cadet colonel for the

ROTC engineers, a key development in his evolution as a leader. Bert also worked 24 hours a week while attending school, binding and repairing books and proofreading theses and dissertations for LSU’s bindery. In addition, he learned to fly an airplane and served as president of the College of Engineering.

Upon graduation, Bert went to Fort Belvoir in Virginia.

He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army Corps of Engineers and served in a battalion that was attached to the Air Force in the Pacific during World War II. His time at war was mostly free of danger—the battalion with which he served was only fired upon once, though three of Bert’s closest friends were killed in other battles. After the surrenders of the Axis forces in the Pacific and in Europe, Bert spent six months commanding a battalion that built or rebuilt barracks, hospitals and roads in Japan for civilians and troops.

After serving in the Army Corps of Engineers, Bert began working for the Louisiana Division of Esso Standard Oil Company on the advice and with the assistance of Professor George Matthes, head of mechanical engineering at LSU from 1947-61. While at Esso, Bert earned an Esso Teagle Foundation Scholarship to attend the Harvard Business School, where he received a master’s degree in business administration, graduating with distinction.

Following graduation, Bert returned to work for Esso in Baton Rouge, where he benefited from involvement in a variety of engineering and management assignments within several departments.

In 1957, Bert left Esso to become assistant to Bob Nichols, the president of Nichols Construction Company, Inc. Nichols passed away unexpectedly, and in 1959, Nichols Construction was acquired by YUBA Consolidated Industries, Inc. of California. Soon thereafter, YUBA experienced financial difficulties and declared bankruptcy.

Bert purchased the assets of Nichols out of bankruptcy and embarked on a path that would see a small, local company transformed into an industry leader. In the ensuing years, the company experienced steady growth associated with the acquisition or founding of multiple subsidiaries and related companies that have enabled Turner Industries to offer a single-vendor solution in heavy industrial construction, maintenance and turnarounds, pipe and module fabrication, equipment, rigging and specialized transportation, and related specialty services to the refining, petro-chemical, paper, power and other industries.

Throughout his career, Bert credited his family and his time at LSU as providing him with the framework for his Cornerstone | Summer and Fall 2015 | LSU Foundation

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growth and success as an individual and as a professional.

This framework for success included basic values—hard work, honesty, dedication to excellence and self-sacrifice— instilled in him by his mother and reinforced at LSU, along with a solid formal education that stressed not only individual achievement, but also the ability to work in a collaborative environment where the skills of all participants are understood, appreciated and used to their fullest.

Bert was unquestionably the inspiration and driving force behind the transformation of Nichols Construction Company (a small local contractor with assets consisting of only a 1,200-square-foot office, a couple of pickup trucks and what would be considered a few really small flatbed trucks today) into Turner Industries, an industry leader in heavy construction. “Bert would have been the first to have noted that his personal success and the success of Turner Industries would not have been possible without the talent and dedication of Turner’s management team, as well as Sue and Bert Turner at their home in Baton Rouge

the thousands of Turner professionals, craftsmen laborers and other employees,” said Thomas Turner, Bert’s son and Turner Industries’ president.

“Bert’s spirit, and his understanding that the success of Turner Industries would mean little if the communities in which Turner employees lived and worked did not share in that success, were clearly the foundations for the culture of giving and community involvement that in many respects defined Bert, and continues to define his family, the company and its employees,” noted Roland Toups, CEO of Turner Industries.

Members of Bert’s family, Turner’s management team and Turner employees have honored and continued Bert’s legacy of giving not only through financial contributions, but also through leadership and involvement on the governing and advisory boards of numerous institutions, including the Louisiana State Board of Regents, the LSU Board of Supervisors, the LSU Department of Mechanical

Engineering Advisory Board, the LSU Construction Industry Advisory Council, the LSU Foundation, the LSU Alumni Association, the Tulane Graduate School of Business Administration Advisory Council, the Public Affairs Research Council, Baton Rouge Area United Way, the Salvation Army, YMCA, Boy Scouts of America, the Louisiana State Museum, Team Turner and the Baton Rouge Area Foundation.

Indeed, Sue Turner’s own record of philanthropic involvement demonstrates her shared passion and commitment to charitable organizations and higher education in particular. Following Bert’s passing in 2008, Sue served out the remainder of his term as a member of the Board of Directors of the LSU Foundation and was elected to serve a second term in 2012. Sue has also served on boards and has generously supported numerous organizations, such as the LSU Museum of Art, the LSU Band Hall campaign (in honor of Bert’s status as former member of the LSU Drum and Bugle Corps), LSU’s E. J. Ourso College of Business,

LSU’s College of Art & Design, LSU’s Hilltop Arboretum and the BREC Foundation, which supports conservation and preservation of green spaces, recreational programs and park facilities in East Baton Rouge Parish.

The tradition of involvement and financial support for programs designed to build communities and enhance quality higher education institutions has earned Turner a reputation that goes beyond its performance in the field.

There’s a soul to Turner Industries. Bert Turner instilled not only a passion for success, but a spirit and dedication to the community. Turner Industries, its employees and the family of Bert Turner are proud to have made a significant financial contribution to the Bert S. Turner Department of Construction Management at LSU, as an enduring monument to the founder of Turner Industries, and as an inspiration to others to support LSU, Louisiana’s flagship higher education institution. eng.lsu.edu

HONORING LOVED ONES

Bleeding Purple and Gold With a father from Homer and a mother from Marksville, Jake Miller has always had a deep connection to Louisiana, even though he is a native of Baltimore.

“All of our roots are in Louisiana,” he said. “I kiss the ground when I get off the plane.”

Miller’s parents, Fred and Charlene, met during their time at LSU, at a party Charlene’s father threw for Fred’s fellow teammates on the football team then-dubbed “The Chinese Bandits.” He fell in love at first sight with the southern belle.

Jake shared that his father, who went on to play for the Baltimore Colts, is a humble man of few words who taught him how to be a loving father and devoted husband. “I don’t know anyone with the character he has.”

The father of two “theatre nut” daughters, Jake created the Fred Miller Family Fund in the Department of Theatre.

Having pledged to donate $1,000 annually over the next 10 years, Jake includes a giving link in his email signatures to encourage his family and friends to also give.

Established in 1928, LSU’s theatre department is one of few programs nationwide that is aligned with a professional theatre (i.e., Swine Palace), allowing its students to work

alongside leading industry professionals. Jake, senior vice president of Entertainment Consulting International, said many people don’t know how robust or important the program is. “Without that type of art in our lives, it’s a pretty dull place,” he shared, adding that certain cultural elements are otherwise lost.

The Fred Miller Family Fund provides unrestricted support to the department to address the greatest needs at the time, which could include scholarships, equipment or a host of other opportunities.

Though he grew up in Maryland, LSU was as much a part of Jake’s childhood as of any bayou baby. “LSU is in my blood,” he said, adding that Fred would drive Jake and his three brothers hours into the mountains to pick up the AM radio signal for games. “It’s always been bigger than just a sport, bigger than just a football team,” he explained. “It’s been part of my family.”

“It’s not a lot,” he shared of his gift, “but it’s a way for me to say ‘thank you’ to the LSU community for what an incredible part of my life it’s been.” www.lsufoundation.org/fredmiller cmda.lsu.edu

From left, Eric Reid Sr., representing the LSU National L Club; Terrie Sterling, representing game sponsor Our Lady of the Lake; Richard Granier, 1964 football MVP and guest captain; David Miller; Fred Miller, guest captain; and Jake Miller at the 2014 LSU football game against Kentucky.

An LSU Human Sciences & Education student works with elementary students.

The Family That Gives Together Richard Walker finds his parents to be particularly difficult to shop for. So, when he wanted to find a special way to celebrate their retirement, he was stumped.

Walker reached out to his siblings, Russ and Charlotte, for help. Together with their spouses, the three Walker children decided to establish a scholarship at LSU in their parents’ honor.

“We reap a number of the benefits of his success,” Richard said of their father, Steve. “One of those benefits was the opportunity to receive a quality education. For us, it made sense to continue that legacy and pass on that gift to others and provide similar opportunities.”

The Steve and Nancy Walker Endowed Scholarship was half-funded when they presented it to their parents last Thanksgiving. Touched by the gift, and eager to help students, Steve and Nancy matched their contributions. The now fully funded scholarship will benefit students studying business or education—a reflection of Steve’s and Nancy’s respective LSU degrees.

“At first, we were shocked and taken aback by it because we really didn’t expect anything,” Steve said, sharing that he and Nancy instilled the value of education in each of their children. “It was the confirmation that what we had done had been important. They recognized it was a commitment we believed in.”

The couple wanted their children to be able to earn college degrees and graduate debt free. “Our kids really appreciated that,” Nancy said. “The gift of education was something we felt very strongly about. [The scholarship] is a way to continue to give to people to help them defray the cost of education.”

Steve shared that their emphasis on education stems from the opportunities an LSU education has provided them.

“I think it’s only right that you turn around and help the institution that helped you.”

Nancy added that LSU “was such an important part of our life, and we want to continue that same spirit for future generations of Tigers.”

Richard is looking forward to deepening the family’s relationship with LSU through the scholarship and meeting future recipients, aspirations that Steve and Nancy share.

“The connection to that generation and to those people, a small involvement in their life, is something that I look forward to,” Steve explained. “I was able to do that through my own children. Now that they’re adults, we don’t really have that contact, and our grandchildren aren’t there yet.

So, this gives us that avenue that I look forward to.” bus.lsu.edu chse.lsu.edu

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Historical Recognition In his 35 years as a professor at LSU, the late Dr. Burl Noggle achieved an impressive body of accomplishments. He became one of the nation’s leading historians on America during the 1920s and 1930s; published four books—Teapot Dome: Oil and Politics in the 1920s, Into the Twenties: From Armistice to Normalcy, Working with History, and The Fleming Lectures, 1937-1990—and directed and inspired more than 75 master’s and doctoral students, as well as countless undergraduates.

“To know Dr. Burl Noggle was to be in the company of someone who treasured words, phrases and books as pearls of wisdom,” shared former student Dr. Roselyn Boneno. “His passion for collecting passages, ideas and knowledge was infectious, often challenging students to think deeper with a mere glance over those precariously perched glasses.”

He taught large sections of U.S. history surveys, specialized courses to advanced undergraduates, and narrowly tailored seminars for honor students. “In every case, he engaged his trademark intellectual curiosity and enlivened the classroom, even, on occasion, bursting into song,” his obituary read. “He challenged students to think, but he also never stopped thinking himself, redesigning his courses from one year to the next, adding new interpretations, new methods and new ideas.”

His former students revered him, and many collaborated

in early 2014 to establish the Burl L. Noggle Award for Graduate Research. Fully endowed with more than $20,000 in contributions, the memorial award will be used to support travel to historical archives or to purchase needed printed sources. Noggle’s students, colleagues and family chose to honor him in this way because he was ardently supportive of graduate students, their research and their success.

“I can think of no better place to give than to the fund in Dr. Noggle’s memory that will provide graduate students in history funds to conduct their research,” shared Dr. Janice Williams Rutherford, another former student of Noggle’s.

Boneno made the first contribution to the fund, and donations began pouring in. One former student anonymously offered to match the first $3,000 in gifts. On the anniversary of his death in November, Noggle’s widow, Kathleen Randall, mailed in a gift, quoting Professor Victor Stater: “The award is a most fitting way to honor Burl’s memory. His care for his graduate students was legendary. Now, with this award … that care will continue in perpetuity.”

“For those of us who had the good fortune of working under Dr. Noggle’s careful eye, it was a blessing,” Boneno said. “For those who come later, it is our hope his influence will prevail through this award.” hss.lsu.edu

Dr. Burl Noggle

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Cornerstone | Summer and Fall 2015 | LSU Foundation

CROSS-CAMPUS SUPPORT

An engineering student works at the PERTT Lab.

Providing a Brighter Future LSU has received one of the largest gifts in the university’s history—a $40 million planned gift that will benefit both athletics and academics. This marks the largest planned gift ever made to LSU. “This is a significant gift to LSU in so many ways,” said LSU President and Chancellor F. King Alexander. “When realized, it will ensure that our future engineering students and student-athletes will have the resources they need for even greater educational success. Planned giving is essential for the future of LSU, providing a solid foundation of future support for growth and innovation.”

A planned gift supporting LSU is any donation that directs a portion of a donor’s estate to the university. A planned gift is committed during a donor’s lifetime and realized upon his or her death.

The $40 million donation, given by an alumnus and lifelong supporter of LSU athletics, will provide $20 million to the Tiger Athletic Foundation with the intent of benefiting student-athlete scholarships and facilities, and $20 million to the LSU Foundation in support of student scholarships in the LSU College of Engineering’s Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering.

As the largest department in LSU’s College of Engineering, the Department

of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering cultivates the attributes of the “LSU Engineer” by providing mechanical and industrial engineering students with unique learning opportunities, including a holistic, real-life engineering Capstone Design experience, pioneered by the department more than 30 years ago.

“This gift of $20 million dollars is the largest single planned gift to a department at LSU,” said Rick Koubek, Bert S. Turner Chair and dean of LSU’s College of Engineering.

“Once realized, it will make a transformational difference for our students studying mechanical and industrial engineering.”

Founded in 1908, the LSU College of Engineering offers 11 undergraduate degree programs and confers approximately 650 bachelor’s degrees per year, ranking it in the top 10 percent nationally for graduates. In 2013, it became the largest academic college on an LSU campus and the fifth fastest growing engineering college in the nation. One hundred thirty-five faculty members engage in education, research and commercialization, with a strategic focus on research indigenous to Louisiana: energy and environmental sustainability, and natural and built infrastructure.

“This hallmark gift exemplifies the generous spirit that characterizes our Tiger community,” said G. Lee Griffin, former president and CEO of the LSU Foundation. “We are humbled by this donor’s desire to impact the lives of our students in a way that will extend far beyond the donor’s own life. A gift of such magnitude establishes a lasting legacy that celebrates the LSU experience and demonstrates the immense positive impact of philanthropic support of our university.” eng.lsu.edu www.lsufoundation.org/plannedgiving

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Textiles, Apparel Design and Merchandising student Ashley Andrews pins fabric to a dress form.

Family Ties After serving in World War II, Thomas Shockley came to LSU to pursue an engineering degree. It was just one stop, decades ago, in his long career in academia, but the 91-year-old retired professor’s fond memories of LSU remain.

“I knew a lot of people there,” Shockley said. “My wife and I had classes together in math and physics.”

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Cornerstone | Summer and Fall 2015 | LSU Foundation

Shockley is giving back to the university that educated him, his late wife, his sister and other family members through a memorial scholarship honoring his wife’s aunt.

The Myrtle Austin Scholarship will help a student studying in the LSU College of Agriculture’s Department of Textiles, Apparel Design and Merchandising.

“Her aunt was the supervisor of the sewing room at the state hospital in Jackson for 40 years,” he said, adding that a scholarship aligned with her career seemed an appropriate way to honor her.

Shockley earned his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from LSU in 1950, followed by a master’s degree in 1952. After serving as an instructor here for a year, he pursued his PhD at the University of Oklahoma.

There, he was on the mechanical engineering faculty before moving to Memphis State University, where he helped establish a mechanical engineering department.

Shockley now calls Germantown, Tennessee home.

The Myrtle Austin Scholarship is the fourth endowed scholarship Shockley has established at LSU, each in memory of family members, and each of the first three benefiting women in STEM—science, technology, engineering and math—disciplines. The Willie Belle Shockley Scholarship was the first, named in memory of his wife and providing aid to high-achieving math and physics students.

Within the same year, Shockley honored his parents. The Inez and Tom Shockley Scholarship supports women studying electrical engineering, while math and physics students benefit from Shockley’s generosity through both the scholarship honoring his wife and through the Anna and Willie Austin Scholarship, named in memory of Inez’s parents.

“I hope they get a good education,” Shockley said of the students who will be supported because of his generosity.

“My mother and father and in-laws helped me with my education, and maybe I’ll help someone else.” coa.lsu.edu

A student plants flowers during Spring Greening Day 2015.

It’s Pretty Easy Being Green Since legendary LSU landscape designer Steele Burden first began planting live oaks, crepe myrtles and azaleas in 1932, the iconic campus greenery has become as recognizable as the Quad’s arches.

The LSU campus is now one of the most beautiful in the nation, having been listed among the 20 best campuses in America in Thomas Gaines’ The Campus as a Work of Art, and thrice named a Tree Campus USA by the Arbor Day Foundation. The prestigious reputation is maintained by LSU Landscape Services, which annually partners with LSU Campus Life to give the grounds a fresh face.

Spring Greening Day is an annual half-day service project to beautify the campus in preparation for commencement, as well as an opportunity for students, faculty and staff to learn about sustainability and personal practices to support the environment. Materials are purchased through the LSU Foundation’s Campus Beautification Fund.

“LSU Spring Greening Day is a wonderful opportunity for students and other LSU family to work and see the immediate gratification of plants going in the ground,” said Fred Fellner, assistant director of landscape services with LSU Facility Services. “We are focused mostly on sustainable planting that frames and enhances the campus’s

largest and most prevalent green plants, the storied live oaks. To this end, we plant ground cover, place sod or spread mulch under the trees to beautify the grounds, control erosion and improve the ecosystem.”

April 24 marked the sixth year Tigers have donned gardening gloves and picked up shovels to nurse the campus they love. Despite a rainy forecast, 103 volunteers planted more than 4,700 plants and flowers, including an LSU AgCenter “Super Plant” variety called Serena angelonia.

“Spring Greening Day is important because it gets students to have fun while being involved making their surroundings more beautiful,” said Yaser Suleiman, one of the event’s student planners. “It made me have a deeper appreciation for the campus and all the hard work it takes to keep LSU one of the most beautiful campuses in America.”

Consistently sponsored by Albemarle, the event supports the Green Tiger Project, which aims to integrate campus beautification with campus sustainability, and supports the Campus Beautification Fund. The fund offers alumni, friends and fans a way to contribute to the university’s campus enhancement efforts, like Spring Greening Day and the living LSU Christmas Tree, a Little Gem Magnolia planted in 2014. lsu.edu/campuslife Cornerstone | Summer and Fall 2015 | LSU Foundation

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MATCHING GIFTS

In the Name of Saying Thank You Ronnie and Allyson Morris know hard work.

Before they ever dreamed of laying the flooring in the beautiful Baton Rouge home they built themselves, each worked their way through LSU— Allyson maintaining a perfect GPA while balancing multiple jobs, and Ronnie raising two children as a single father who worked full time and was a full-time engineering student.

“When I reflect back on getting through that season in my life, my daughters were a huge inspiration.

But I think it was my faith, financial support from scholarships, and friends from The Chapel on the Campus that really encouraged me throughout that time,” Ronnie shared. “Thank God it all worked out well beyond my imagination.”

He received an LSU Board of Supervisors Scholarship two consecutive years after writing Rolfe McCollister Sr. to explain his situation.

Now 19 years into his career as an engineer at ExxonMobil, Ronnie and Allyson, a supervisor at the company, are passing along the opportunity to students in the College of Human Sciences & Education.

“The scholarship that was provided for me was a life-changing experience.

We wanted to express our appreciation to the family that helped us, and we wanted to provide similar opportunities for other people,” Ronnie said, adding that they wanted the award to benefit future teachers because, “I have a lot of appreciation for those pursuing this career path and the need for quality educators. I wanted to make a difference in our community, and I am confident these folks are impacting lives in a very positive way.”

In 2001, Ronnie took advantage of ExxonMobil’s 3-to-1 matching gift program to create the Dot and Rolfe McCollister Sr. Leadership Award, Ronnie’s expression of gratitude to the people who helped him. The endowed scholarship currently supports three

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students each academic year. Once they have completed their pledge, it will be the largest endowed scholarship in the college’s history and will provide full tuition for four students every year.

“It seems like most of the students come from difficult backgrounds, or have had to work to put themselves through school,” Allyson shared. “But they’re deserving. That’s the kind of person I want to see get it.”

Ronnie and Allyson explained that the scholarship is based on need, leadership qualities and character, validated through a pastoral reference. “I think we honor God by trusting the pastors in our community to recognize the character and leadership skills that will inspire our kids in the classroom to be the best they can be,” Ronnie explained.

Every year, Ronnie and Allyson invite the scholarship recipients to their home. Ronnie shared, “[We] have heard some heartwarming stories. The scholarships have encouraged some great kids in pursuit of their teaching careers, and now they are teachers making a big difference in the classrooms of our community. You really feel like you’re making a difference.” chse.lsu.edu Allyson and Ronnie Morris brought their LSU spirit on a ski trip in northern Italy, where they met a canine friend. Behind them is the Matterhorn, bordering Zermatt and Cervinia.

Cornerstone | Summer and Fall 2015 | LSU Foundation

Dr. Brian Wolshon, civil and environmental engineering professor, instructs a student.

Strength in Numbers At just 26 years old, Ralph Sinno has begun a successful career and found a way to unite his passions in a way that will “pay it forward” for his fellow Tigers.

The 2011 LSU engineering graduate loves his alma mater and his profession, both honored through his recent establishment of the Ralph R. Sinno Civil and Petroleum Engineering Scholarship.

“Engineering is a great tool to equip young people to make advances for not only themselves, but for society as well,” he explained. “Working for a multi-national company whose fingers are in over 80 countries across the globe, one begins to understand what it takes to compete on the international level.”

Leveraging Halliburton’s employee matching gift program, Sinno created the $1,500 scholarship last year with hopes to eventually endow the gift. “Education is one of the best investments you’ll ever make in your life and has the highest potential for return,” he said, adding that he recognizes many people aren’t afforded the opportunity for higher education. “This is a way to make sure certain people

who would otherwise drop out or didn’t have the means to do it on their own can still stay in school and graduate.”

Both of his parents work in education, and Sinno’s passion was ignited in the structural engineering research labs at Mississippi State University, where he would assist his father, an LSU alumnus, before he retired as the distinguished Hearrin-Hess Professor in engineering. “I have a tremendous amount of passion and pride for where I went to school,” Sinno shared of walking in his father’s footsteps at Louisiana’s flagship.

His passion grew with the mentorship of Dr. Brian Wolshon, civil and environmental engineering professor. “I owe him more than he will ever know,” Sinno said. “He gave me humility and ambition.” He added that Wolshon brought civil engineering to life by engaging students and pushing them to achieve. “He made learning fun, which it is and how it should be.”

Sinno has high hopes that the scholarship recipients will further strengthen the university and engineering and, in turn, the U.S. “The only way we’re going to continue our reputation in the world is if we invest in our people, and this is my little way of doing that on a very small scale.” eng.lsu.edu Cornerstone | Summer and Fall 2015 | LSU Foundation

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SCHOLARSHIPS

A Commitment to Service There are several milestone birthdays for young adults.

At 13, you’re finally a teenager. At 16, you get your heart’s desire—a driver’s license. At 18, you leave home. But it’s not until you turn 22 that you’re truly independent: you’ve just graduated from college.

Or, in Gerry Lane’s case, you’ve left your father’s farm in Oklahoma to make it on your own in San Diego.

Sixty-two years after Lane made that fateful move, the late Baton Rouge legend’s car dealership is not only strong— it is thriving. Now led by Lane’s son, Eric, Gerry Lane Enterprises gives back to the community that has supported it for three decades.

“We’ve always believed in supporting the community,” Eric shared. “Since we’re in business, we thought the business school was the perfect place to do something in my dad’s name. So we started scholarships.”

The Lane family created the Gerry Lane Scholars Fund in the E. J. Ourso College of Business to support five students each year for the next five years. “Education is a very important part of the community,” Eric said. Although Gerry never had the opportunity to attend college, “all of his children were required to get a degree in business management. He felt that, no matter what you do in life, if

you don’t know how to manage your money, you’re not going to make anything.”

The Gerry Lane Scholars Fund is the only scholarship in the college that requires recipients to conduct community service. “I’m proud of that,” Eric said. “Because we’ve always believed in helping the community, I just felt my dad would want community service to be part of the scholarship.”

The first scholarship recipients have their own dreams of helping the community. Among them are improving nursing homes; coaching children through extracurricular sports; and, for one student, supporting the foster care system that supported him for four years.

One recipient shared that this scholarship had perfect timing for her. “As a soon-to-be mother, I worried about financial troubles entering into the next semester,” explained marketing senior Meaghan Randle-Hanks. She added that, without the scholarship, “I would have struggled financially and would have had to make very hard decisions when considering both my daughter and finishing school. This has given me more of an opportunity to provide a secure life for my daughter and me.” bus.lsu.edu

From left, Gerry Lane Scholars Michael Cuzanza and Brook Martin; Eric Lane and his mother, Faye Lane; Kim Patton and husband Cedric Patton, business partner of Eric; and Gerry Lane Scholars Rhiannon Ballard and Ryan Hodgins meet at a scholarship luncheon. Not pictured is Meaghan Randle-Hanks.

Thank You Dear Mr. and Mrs. Lane, I am honored and grateful for your support of LSU students. I, Meaghan Randle-Hanks, am a 2015-16 recipient of the Gerry Lane Scholars Fund Scholarship.

As a recipient of your scholarship, I want to better inform you of who I am. I am a firstgeneration college student from Houston, TX. In high school, I was highly recognized for my academic performance and leadership characteristics. I was a member of the National Honor Society, Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) organization, and served as mentor to new students. I also served as the 2010-11 Historian for the Business Professionals of America organization. I knew that I wanted to further my education in business once entering college, so I made sure I stayed focused and finished strong. This attitude allowed me to graduate with honors in the top 10 percent of Westside High School’s graduating class of 2011.

Choosing a college to attend was very simple because I always knew that LSU was the Meaghan Randle-Hanks school for me. I was able to visit the campus quite often as a child, and my initial campus experience was unforgettable. I was highly influenced by my best friend’s aunt, who attended LSU to become a nurse. Although my major would be completely different, I was still intrigued by the opportunity and experiences LSU offered to her. Now that I am here as an E. J. Ourso College of Business student, I know that I could not have made a better decision.

I am currently a senior working toward a marketing degree. If everything goes accordingly, I will be graduating in the fall of 2015. I am especially interested in improving and implementing new marketing strategies and communications for established businesses struggling to adapt to the changes in today’s marketing. I plan to return to Houston and secure a position with a company that will allow me to exhibit all of my knowledge and skills that I have acquired here at LSU.

As a soon-to-be mother, I worried about financial troubles entering into the next semester. Without your scholarship, I would have struggled financially and would have had to make very hard decisions when considering both my daughter and finishing school. Again, I am very grateful to have been chosen as the new recipient of the Gerry Lane Scholars Fund Scholarship. This has given me more of an opportunity to provide a secure life for my daughter and me.

Once again, thank you for your support of LSU. Please realize my appreciation is to the highest degree.

Sincerely, Meaghan Randle-Hanks

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FACULTY AND STUDENT SUPPORT

Community Remembers Kean Miller Founder People who knew Ben Miller may think of several words to describe the late lawyer: quiet, philanthropic, solid, steady. When he passed away in December, many of his colleagues, friends and family members honored those admirable qualities by giving to LSU, the school he loved and served throughout his life.

Miller led what most would consider a highly successful life. Throughout his legal career, he was a law professor, helped found one of the largest law firms in Louisiana, and earned the respect and trust of those he encountered. And he attributed it all to his education.

“Ben felt his success was a result of his time at LSU— all of his time at LSU—at the Laboratory School, LSU undergraduate and LSU Law,” shared Bettsie Miller, Ben’s wife. “He felt it was important to give back to the early roots of his success.”

Ben wanted to support future generations of lawyers by ensuring LSU maintains its reputation for outstanding faculty and teaching, the seeds of his success. He established the Ben R. Miller Jr. Professorship through his will.

“He believed in excellence and education,” Bettsie explained. “He had great reverence for many of the professors that he had worked under and from which he learned. He thought this was a way he could give back and help future lawyers with integrity, growth and learning, by having the best professors possible. These sorts of endowments help do that.”

The couple has been philanthropic throughout their lives. Even in Ben’s career at Kean Miller, Bettsie said, he helped clients guide their wills toward philanthropy. “Ben

very much had a charitable spirit and lived it passionately through his life with his time, talent and treasure by being philanthropic and helping others be philanthropic, as well.”

Ben’s impact in the legal community and priorities in life were well known, evidenced by his clients’ and colleagues’ reactions to his passing. When Ben got sick, he and Bettsie agreed that instead of sending flowers in his memory, they would ask for donations to a number of causes.

The relationships Ben had forged in his legal career led to a number of contributions in support of the LSU Law Center.

“There was such an outpouring of support that there was enough to set up a separate scholarship,” Bettsie said. With especially significant gifts from Kean Miller and Ben’s major clients, including Lamar Companies, the Ben R. Miller Jr. Endowed Scholarship was established, marking the second endowment in his name at the law center.

“That was amazing and touching and humbling,” Bettsie shared. “It spoke to the depth of Ben’s integrity and the constancy of his life, and his importance to the law profession.”

“When he retired ... I presented him with a gold antique pocket watch and told him he was the best attorney I had ever had the pleasure of working alongside,” shared Keith Istre, CFO of Lamar, who first worked with Ben in 1978. “It wasn’t just something nice to say. It was the truth. Ben was my mentor, my friend and my trusted advisor.”

Though many benefitted from Ben’s kindness and integrity, Bettsie felt the impact of his gifts the most. “We shared a wonderful life together. He’s been a gift in my life.” law.lsu.edu

Glenn Morris, J. Dawson Gasquet Professor of Law and Vinson & Elkins Professor of Law, teaches a class at LSU Law.

Hydrogeologist Peter Doran at the LSU Lakes

Geology on Ice Peter Doran, PhD, believes there is life on other planets.

Quick to explain that he doesn’t mean little green men, the hydrogeologist theorizes that microorganisms likely exist every place there’s water, including the ice-covered lakes of Jupiter’s moon Europa.

“Everywhere there’s water on Earth, there’s life,” Doran said. “It seems reasonable that, if we look to a moon of Jupiter, and there’s water there, there could very well be life. It happened here.”

Doran is the first person to hold the John Franks Endowed Chair in the Department of Geology & Geophysics, a title he doesn’t hold lightly. The Franks chair honors the legacy of John Franks, a 1949 geology graduate and founder of Franks Petroleum Inc. A valued supporter of LSU and the geology program, Franks was a founding member of the LSU Geology Endowment, and a member of the LSU Foundation Board of Directors, LSU Board of Supervisors and Tiger Athletic Foundation Stadium Club.

“I see my job as being a science ambassador for the university,” Doran shared, adding that he views the position as an opportunity to raise the profile of LSU and

help build the “already really good” geology department.

In October, Doran will be an ambassador on the Ross Ice Shelf, a previously unresearched layer of ice over the Ross Sea in Antarctica.

This three-month-long research trip will be the first time he’s worn purple and gold on the continent, but it will mark his 16th visit since he began researching the area 20 years ago.

The professor specializes in studying lakes, particularly studying life in the ice-covered waters of polar regions like Antarctica.

“There are lakes on this planet that are in the coldest and driest environment you can find. Yet, there’s lakes and there’s life living in those lakes, and doing quite well actually,” Doran eagerly explained, adding, “There’s so much more to discover and learn. That’s what keeps me excited.

It’s a hard continent to research because it’s so vast, and it’s hard to get to, and there’s extreme weather.

There’s going to be a lot of work to be done for a long time.”

The research he and his colleagues will perform, like most of Doran’s research, gives the world a better understanding of what’s happened in the past, what happens now, and what will likely happen in the future.

Doran operates 15 climate stations in Antarctica that show climate change in the area.

“This work on the ice shelf, I see that as really important,” he said. “It’s defining a whole new ecosystem that’s completely unexplored and trying to figure out ‘What are the limits of life?’ and ‘What is possible in our universe?’

I find that a fascinating question.”

Though spending three months near the South Pole doesn’t sound glamorous, Doran says he didn’t choose this life—“It chose me. I’ve always loved the outdoors, so it was natural for me to get involved in studying the natural environment. I just kept wanting to get more and more remote and more and more extreme. I just do what I find to be interesting. That’s why I love my job.” science.lsu.edu

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Stafford Kendall teaches Career and Leadership Seminar attendees how to market themselves for their future careers.

Leading the Way Apple was created in a garage. Nordstrom began as a small shoe store. Wrigley started out selling soap.

And the Career and Leadership Seminar was born from a casual breakfast comment with the intent of giving LSU Humanities & Social Sciences students a launchpad for career success.

Steve Herbert was eating breakfast with fellow LSU100 nominees when he mentioned to Dr. Gaines Foster, former dean of the College of Humanities & Social Sciences, that HSS students make exceptional leaders because of their intrinsic communication, reasoning and critical thinking skills. It didn’t take long for the entire table to get involved, discussing how best to provide leadership and career training for these students.

“I believe in the fundamental premise that people with a background in humanities can be great leaders and make a real contribution,” Herbert said. “It doesn’t have to be someone starting a company. Leaders are needed everywhere.”

Herbert and his wife, Julie, both HSS alumni, quickly began working with the college to develop the seminar, funded through Steve’s company, USA Technologies.

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The Career and Leadership Seminar attracted more than 30 students who learned leadership skills, how to market themselves for their careers, and proper etiquette for business meals. Steve, who provided the seminar’s keynote address, joined fellow entrepreneurial HSS alumni Fred Dent, founder of Dent Asset Management, and Stafford Kendall, co-founder of Covalent Logic, as speakers. “I want students to know, ‘You can do whatever it is that you want to do,’” Steve said.

Steve also shared that he feels HSS students are underleveraged in the professional world. “I had a great experience at LSU, and so did Julie,” he said. “I’ve been lucky enough to have a successful career. I wanted to give back and was honored to contribute to the university in some way.”

Although the seminar was organized as a one-time summit, Steve shared that he wants to see the program not only continue, but expand beyond a one-day event. “We were happy to fund it and hope to continue to do so,” he said. “I hope we can reach an expanded number of students in the college and encourage them to be leaders, and leverage the education they’ve gotten.” hss.lsu.edu

Holding Court When Tom More Phillips first stepped into the LSU Law Center in 1949, he wasn’t just beginning his classes. He was beginning his legacy—a legacy that continues today through the establishment of the Tom Fore Phillips National Moot Court Team endowment at the LSU Law Center.

Phillips’ dedication to the moot court program began his senior year of law school when he and his teammates won the Law Center’s prestigious moot court trial competition.

Throughout his 50-year legal career at Taylor, Porter, Brooks & Phillips in Baton Rouge, he continued to participate in the moot court program as a volunteer judge.

After Phillips passed away in 2011, his friends and family rallied to donate more than $100,000 in his memory to establish the endowment to support and name the Tom Fore Phillips National Moot Court Team at the LSU Law Center. Their generosity will generate annual funds to help the team cover the costs of out-of-state competitions and traveling expenses.

“This generous gift is a recognition of the important role skills training plays in preparing law students to enter the practice of law,” shared Professor Jeff Brooks, Preis and Roy Director of Advocacy and Professional Practice. “Moot court gives law students the chance to hone their oral advocacy and legal writing skills, and develops students’ competence in the courtroom. The LSU Law Center’s moot court program has consistently been recognized as one of the top programs in the nation. The Phillips National Moot Court Team endowment will give some of our best advocates the ability to compete against other top schools.”

Below: Professor Jeff Brooks, Preis and Roy Director of Advocacy and Professional Practice, with Phillips Moot Court team members Kirbie Watson, Ross Sims and Mary Tate, and faculty advisor Professor John Devlin

Phillips’ obituary noted that he was the consummate trial lawyer, “and, in fact, the consummate every kind of lawyer, practicing in any area to which his clients called for his services, and mastering them all. He practiced law with fierce devotion to his clients, while maintaining a professional and courteous demeanor, and was mentor to a collection of young lawyers too many to count.”

The gift continues Phillips’ legacy not only as a moot court champion, but also as an exceptional trial attorney by helping to prepare future attorneys and litigators. Because the fund is endowed, it will provide annual financial support in perpetuity for students following in Phillips’ footsteps.

Today, the law school has over 25 moot court teams, through which students travel to competitions that simulate court proceedings, including written and oral components. law.lsu.edu

Above: Named in honor of the former Dean Emeritus of the Law Center, the Robert Lee Tullis Moot Court Competition has been a tradition of honor at LSU Law since the 1930s.

PLANNED GIVING

Integrating Philanthropy When a couple is engaged, friends and family are prone to shower them with gifts of kitchen tools and bath accessories for the newlyweds’ new life together. Sue and Donald Crow received a German Shepherd.

While a dog may be a non-traditional wedding gift, it sparked a 45-year love of animals for the couple. Throughout the course of their marriage, Sue and Donald have said goodbye to many of their beloved dogs and cats as the animals’ quality of life deteriorated due to age or illness.

“There must be a better way,” Sue thought.

Sue has long been an advocate of using natural remedies in place of conventional medicine. A nurse herbalist by vocation, she taught integrative medicine at LSU Health in Shreveport. When her dog was diagnosed with anal cancer and the veterinarian suggested radiation, the herbalist knew she had to find an alternative.

“I would not do that to any animal,” Sue said. She took her dog, Hannah, to the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, where, through Dr. Larry McCaskill’s treatment plan, she received acupuncture and Chinese medicine. “We were so blessed, because our little girl lived two more precious years because of this treatment,” Sue shared.

After this experience, the Crows saw a need for integrative medicine at the school. With support from the school’s administration, they created the Integrative Medicine Support Fund.

Through the fund, integrative medicine veterinarians from across the nation have spoken at the school. In 2013,

Dr. Ronald Koh became the first integrative medicine veterinarian there. “Although his practice was slow to take off, it is now a thriving force at the vet school,” Sue shared.

“We think he is the best LSU could have found!”

Integrative medicine is a healing-oriented approach that combines conventional medicine and alternative treatments, such as acupuncture, nutritional supplements, chiropractic and other holistic techniques. Integrative techniques rarely provide cures, but are excellent preventive and supportive tools for healing animals.

In 2014, the couple added support for the program to their will, through the Donald and Sue Crow Chair for Companion Animal Integrative Veterinary Medicine, to ensure therapeutic treatments for animals continue for years to come. When the gift is realized, it will be used to grow the integrative medicine department by recruiting faculty or visiting professors; providing funding for salary supplements, research and equipment; and educating veterinary students, residents, fellows and other faculty.

“We do this in loving memory of the many animals that have brought us love,” Sue shared. “We think they’re angels.

They’re so full of grace and goodness and abundant love.

They’ve been our children all our lives.”

After taking these children to the SVM for years, their commitment and dedication have only solidified. “That’s why we support LSU,” Sue said, “because of a great experience.” www.vetmed.lsu.edu www.lsufoundation.org/plannedgiving

Sue and Donald Crow

DEAN’S CIRCLES AND COUNCILS serving on the Executive Committee.

This advisory council provides external insight to the dean, enhances interaction and understanding between the college and businesses, enriches educational and research programs, and promotes a culture of philanthropy among alumni and students.

Committee members represent each academic department in the college, as well as the Museum of Natural Science. science.lsu.edu

Beyond its Dean’s Circle, the E. J. Ourso College of Business has a Dean’s Advisory Council, a select group of accomplished professionals who donate their time, talents, expertise and resources to support Dean Richard White in his efforts to enhance and grow the college.

The “DAC” is currently working on four strategic initiatives that will bring From left, Dick Alario, Dean Richard White, Matt McCarroll, David Dismukes, Cornelius Dupré, Maynard Holt the college to an even higher level of achievement. Through the initiatives, Dean White would like to strengthen corporate relationships to provide job opportunities for students, and better prepare students for careers within the energy industry.

Matt McCarroll, president and It’s a given that LSU alumni love purple and live gold. But a smaller subset CEO of Fieldwood Energy, chairs the of these alumni and friends feel a passion for the university that leads them to DAC energy committee, which aims to consistently pursue opportunities to strengthen academics at LSU. raise $2 million to provide funds that Members of a dean’s circle or dean’s advisory council contribute philanthropic will enable the energy program to run and advisory support of a college, bridging financial investments and industry at full capacity. “The jobs, the revenues expertise with short- and long-term academic goals. While the nature and level and the wealth that the energy industry of involvement of dean’s circle members varies among colleges, a constant is the has created in this state are incredible,” ongoing, loyal support each member devotes to helping his associated college he shared. “LSU is a natural leader in achieve success. that area.”

Through this energy initiative, students from across campus are scheduling classes to earn a minor In the College of Science, Dean’s Circle members contribute $1,000 or more in energy or an MBA specialization annually in unrestricted gifts, or at least $250 annually for alumni who have in energy. “Energy is one of the most graduated in the last 10 years. Since 2007, Dean’s Circle donors have provided important industries in the country, but the working capital needed to fund student organizations, educational travel also one of the least understood,” White expenses, faculty recruitment and recognition activities, and development explained, sharing that the courses will initiatives to build alumni and community relations. better prepare students for multiple Within the circle, a diverse group of leaders in industry and academia industries. offers support and guidance to advance the college’s academics and research by bus.lsu.edu

Dean’s Circles and Dean’s Advisory Councils

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COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS

Hitting the Books Over the past several years, budget cuts to higher education have been an almost constant presence in local headlines. “It’s a critical issue right now,” said Shelby McKenzie, adding that “lack of adequate funding for higher education is not a new issue.”

The retired Baton Rouge attorney has long been associated with LSU, and his mother, Rosalind Beene McKenzie, was an early member of Friends of LSU Libraries.

This philanthropic volunteer group was created in 1962 to assist LSU Libraries in developing the Libraries’ resources.

“I’ve been acquainted with the Friends of the LSU Libraries from its beginning through my mother’s active participation in the leadership of the organization,” McKenzie shared. “My father, Leslie McKenzie, also enjoyed working with the Friends. I know that the Friends always have had a passionate desire to help the LSU Libraries with additional funding.”

In 1966, the Friends reevaluated their activities after realizing that, to truly drive LSU Libraries toward continued academic excellence, they needed to seek substantial assistance from private sources. They began raising money to fund a library endowment, intended to serve as the major resource for the LSU Libraries to obtain those items difficult to acquire within its regular budget.

Shelby McKenzie in front of Troy H. Middleton Library

The LSU Book Bazaar began as a small annual book sale in 1975, and has since become the Friends’ signature event. Funds raised have enabled the Friends to donate more than $2 million to support LSU Libraries over the years. The Friends’ contributions are recognized by their inclusion in the LSU Foundation’s Laureate Society—appropriately, as a Troy H. Middleton Laureate.

“In recent years, the primary, if only, focus has been the Book Bazaar,” Shelby said. He shared that the new LSU Libraries dean, Stanley Wilder, “has a good vision of expanding the role of the Friends of the LSU Libraries back to including assisting him with raising funds in other ways, beyond the Book Bazaar itself. He wants to create a dynamic for the Friends that provides wide support for the library.”

Continuing in his mother’s footsteps, Shelby is an active member of the group, previously serving as its president, and has volunteered to help Wilder with its reorganization.

Shelby’s parents instilled in him a love of books at a young age. “They were always very interested in academic things and made sure that I remained interested in them, even when other high school activities seemed more attractive. I appreciate everything they did for me, including their instilling in me their love of books.” lib.lsu.edu

Elise Grenier restores a mural in Allen Hall.

Reclaiming a Legacy Many who have wandered the halls of LSU have encountered the Allen Hall fresco murals. Painted in the 1930s by art students under the direction of one of LSU’s earliest art faculty members, Conrad Albrizio, the murals depict the industrial and agricultural development of Louisiana during that era. More than 60 years later, the paintings desperately needed a makeover. Thus began a decade-long restoration effort.

“I saw the merit in assisting with the conservation of the frescoes, because I viewed them as an unusual form of artistic expression and a link to the university’s early history,” shared LSU Foundation Board Member Sue Turner, who helped fund the restoration, upon the project’s completion. With the detailed and delicate project now complete, the murals are as beautiful and vibrant as they were when they first brought joy to LSU students. design.lsu.edu

LSU Foundation Colleague Milestones The LSU Foundation commits to excellence by prioritizing investment in our people. The following colleagues are celebrating milestones in their careers. We celebrate with them.

Lauren Brown, communications coordinator, received a Silver Award at the 2015 CASE IV Accolades Competition for her work on three feature articles in Cornerstone.

Gwen Fairchild, director of planned giving, has been elected president of the Baton Rouge Estate and Business Planning Council and is now a certified Chartered Advisor of Philanthropy.

Sara Courtney, director of development for the Manship School of Mass Communication, celebrates 10 years with the LSU Foundation.

André Greene, senior accountant, earned his MBA from the LSU E. J. Ourso College of Business.

Jane Henslee, associate director of planned giving, celebrates 20 years of service to the LSU Foundation and was awarded the 2014 Brother Donnan Berry Award from the Association of Fund Raising. This is the highest award that AFP-GBR bestows for chapter service.

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