dooley`s dawgs - Louisiana Tech Alumni

Transcription

N o. 1 7
During his 26-year tenure at Louisiana Tech, head football coach Joe Aillet amassed a career record of 151 wins. In 1946, his sixth year at Tech,
Aillet posted 3 and 1 in Louisiana Intercollegiate games and 3 and 2 in other football records. Today, members of that team (pictured) recall their
beloved coach as a man of integrity, intellect and charm. (From Left to Right)
Front Row: John Hay, Buddy Fallin, Jimmie Gilbert, W.O. Lynch, A.C. Schiro, Eddie Harelson, Pearce Didier, Tony Salvaggio, Carrell Dowies
Second Row: James Perry, Revis Youngblood, Chester Wojecki, Raymond Peace, Leonard Olsen, Odelle Rigdon, Charlie Newman, Buddie
Greene, Jack Kelly
Third Row: Fred Crump, Walter Alexander, Conrad Jarmon, Rudolph Smith, John Williamson, A.C. Anderson, Lindsey Aucoin, Roy Collins, Bob
Horneman
Fourth Row: Calvin Adkins, George Dulaney, Charlie Crouch, Hollis Jones, Ed Jolly, Mike Reed, Glen Moncrief, Maurice Rawls, Jack Brittain
Fifth Row: Clem Henderson, Robert Dalrymple, Charles Johnson, John Holm, Edward Dean, Gene Patterson, J.E. Tripp, Sid Sedlock
Sixth Row: Lloyd Jones, Leo Reinsch, Joe Lynch, Billy Bowles, Joe Michael, Leo Beasley
| winter 2007
dooley’s dawgs
Derek Dooley lays down the law as
Tech’s new head football coach
homecoming 2006
Alumnus of the Year: John D. Caruthers
“miss ruth” honored
Ruth Johnson receives honorary doctorate
Louisiana Tech University
Division of University Advancement
P.O. Box 3183
Ruston, LA 71272-0001
nonprofit org.
u.s. postage
pa i d
alice in reality tv-land
“Design Star” launches Tech alumna to national spotlight
permit no. 1028
liberty, Mo
Louisiana Tech University
www.latech.edu
contents
Alumn i A s s o c iat i o n
Of f i c e r s
Kenny Guillot
– President
John Allen
– Vice President
Russ Nolan
– Treasurer
Tim King
– Past President
2 | From the 16th Floor
Daniel D. Reneau
– Ex-Officio
Envisioning Tomorrow’s Tech
Boa r d o f d i r e c t o rs
Bobby Aillet, Dr. John Areno,
Lyn Bankston, Paige Baughman,
Chris Bentley, Ayres Bradford,
Allison Bushnell, Audis Byrd, Mark Colwick, John Denny,
Lee Denny, Brennan Easley,
Wayne Fleming, Chris Hammons,
Jeff Hawley, Justin Hinckley,
Marsha Jabour, Chris Jordan,
Dr. John Maxwell, Dawn McDaniel,
Cliff Merritt, Lomax Napper,
Jeff Parker, Robert Prestridge,
Richard Simmons, Stephanie Sisemore,
Markus Snowden, Michael Stephens,
Barry Stevens
Alu m n i a s s o c iat i on staff
Corre Stegall
– Vice President for University Advancement
Ryan Richard
– Director of Alumni Relations
Jackie Stevens
– Coordinator of Advancement Programs
Barbara Swart
– Administrative Coordinator
E ditori a l a n d
Design Te a m
Dave Guerin
– Director, Marketing and Public Relations
Magin McKenna
– Senior Writer/Editor
Mark Coleman
– Designer
Donny Crowe
– Photographer
Eddie Blick, Sallie Hollis, O.K. Davis,
Rebekah Ray, Judith Roberts, Corre Stegall,
Anna de Tiege
– Contributing Writers
Louisiana Tech Magazine is published
semiannually by the Louisiana Tech Alumni
Association. We welcome your letters:
Louisiana Tech Magazine
P.O. Box 3183 | Ruston LA 71272
www.latechalumni.org
4 | Alumnus of the Year: John D. Caruthers
Moved by the Spirit
A Word from the
Alumni Director
What an exciting time it is at Louisiana Tech University. At the recent meeting
of the Board of Directors of the Louisiana Tech Alumni Association, Tech President
Daniel Reneau spoke about the ambitious new strategic plan for the University.
It’s a vision of what the University can be by the year 2020, and the future looks
promising. You’ll be hearing more about this plan in the months to come, and I
believe you’ll share my enthusiasm and pride as Tech positions itself to become one
of the nation’s top research universities.
With the recent hiring of Derek Dooley as Tech’s head football coach, expectations
are high for new excellence in our football program. The cover story about Coach
Dooley should give you ample reason to plan now to be in the stands this fall. You’ll
want to watch Dooley’s Dawgs in action. The Alumni Association will work with the
Athletic Department to plan events in various regions, so that alumni and friends
can meet Coach Dooley, an outstanding addition to our Tech Family.
It’s truly an honor to recognize Tech alumni who excel in their professions and
who give back to their communities. This issue of the magazine recognizes the 2006
Tech Alumnus of the Year, the Young Alumnus of the Year and the distinguished
alumni of each college. Tech honored these alumni during homecoming activities
this past October, and their stories will inspire you. Make plans to join other
alumni and friends for Homecoming 2007. We’ll set the date after the WAC
football schedule is finalized in March. Watch for an announcement on the Alumni
Association’s Web site, www.latechalumni.org. Make plans to return to campus to
see friends, to honor your fellow alumni, and to cheer on the Dawgs while you see
firsthand the exciting developments happening at Tech.
Please visit the campus whenever you can. Along with other members of the staff,
I truly enjoy visiting with Tech alumni and friends. Plan to stop by the Marbury
Alumni Center, the “living room” of the University. We would enjoy seeing you, and
we’ll be pleased to make any arrangements you might need for a campus visit or tour.
Thanks for your loyalty and support!
Sincerely,
6 | Young Alumnus of the Year: Brandon Phillips
Following His Dream
7 | Distinguished College Alumni
Rufus Estis, Bobby Neill, Jason Owen, Robert
Upchurch and Karen Gordon
12 | Homecoming 2006
Scrapbooking Memories
14 | Laying Down the Law
Derek Dooley accepts position of Head Football
Coach
18 | Alice in Reality TV-Land
Alice Fakier Earns Second Place on HGTV’s “Design
Star”
20 | “Miss Ruth” Honored
14
Tech Awards Ruth Johnson an Honorary Doctorate
22 | Family Ties
Jackie Stevens takes her seat as Marbury Alumni
Center’s Coordinator of Advancement Programs
4
12
18
23 | News Around Campus
Students and Faculty Persevere
Ryan W. Richard
P.S. Stay connected between issues of the Louisiana Tech Magazine by visiting the
Alumni Association Web site www.latechalumni.org. You can read the latest campus
stories, update your alumni information and even plan your next vacation.
About the Cover
Derek Dooley is shown standing on the new field turf of Joe Aillet Stadium, where
he plans to lead Tech’s Bulldogs to victory.
26 | Foundation Spotlight
Taking Tech Athletics to the Top
30 | News About You
We Share Your Milestones
from the 16th floor
“At Tech, dreams are becoming realities; so much of the progress couldn’t have happened
Recently, I logged more miles than an airline pilot to find
the man who could lead this University’s football program
to a greater level of excellence. Each mile was well worth
the journey, because in December – amid a flurry of media
excitement – we welcomed that new head coach, Derek
Dooley, into the Tech family. He and his family come to
Ruston from Miami, where he coached with the Miami
Dolphins. He also coached with Nick Saban at Louisiana State
University. We’re impressed by what he can do on the field,
and we admire his insistence on high academic standards for
his players. Tech’s new coach is a graduate of the University of
Virginia and an attorney who holds a juris doctorate degree
from the University of Georgia. Our hiring of Coach Dooley
is a direct response to the University’s strategic plan – Tech
2020, Tomorrow’s Tech Today. It’s an American tradition that
top public universities have great athletic programs, and Coach
Dooley is just one of the many people who can lead Tech to
the top.
Indeed, we are living in exciting times here at Tech. The
Institute for Micromanufacturing (IfM) celebrated its crystal
anniversary in November. Next door to the IfM, our new
Biomedical Engineering Building is gearing up to open later
this spring. The new Student Achievement Center has opened
to a bustle of activity in Wyly Tower. At Tech, dreams are
becoming realities; so much of the progress couldn’t have
happened without the generous support of our alumni.
Louisiana Tech is truly blessed to have the loyalty and
generosity of its alumni and friends.
As always, this magazine includes stories of alumni
achievements. One alumna who continues to amaze me
is our beloved Ruth Johnson, or “Miss Ruth,” as many of
us know her. Linda and I had the honor of being a part of
the celebration of her 100th birthday in October at a gala
party hosted by her friends and former students. The highest
moment of all came in November when I awarded Miss Ruth
an honorary doctorate during fall commencement. She is the
24th person upon whom Tech has conferred an honorary
doctorate, and Miss Ruth truly exemplifies Tech’s tenets of
caring, leadership and integrity. Only a dozen years younger
than the University itself, she has watched Tech become a
driving force behind educational and economic development in
our region and state.
Yes, we’ve come a long way since Miss Ruth entered Tech in
1925. In 2007, we’ve set our sights on taking this University
to new heights of achievement. Today, we’re moving quickly
toward developing a Research Park that will draw businesses
to our community and state and sustain them once they’re
here. The next few years will see our commitment to economic
growth deepen as the Research Park becomes a reality.
Successful alumni who are living their dreams provide us
with great examples to follow. Tech’s own Brandon Phillips,
young alumnus of the year, defied a serious heart condition to
realize his lifelong dream of becoming a physician. And John
D. Caruthers, Tech’s 2006 alumnus of the year, has a lifetime of
accomplishments in business and civic endeavors. He dreamed
of beautifying Spirit Park, a focal point of that area of the
campus; the park was established by a gift of the Class of 1950
to commemorate the class’s 50th anniversary. His plans call
for adding four sculptures and a fountain to create a beautiful,
contemplative space for our students and faculty who work and
study on that side of the campus.
Seeing our alumni return to Tech always delights. This
homecoming, I had the privilege of meeting with our
distinguished alumni of 2006: Robert Upchurch (College of
Engineering and Science), Bobby Neill (College of Applied
and Natural Sciences), Rufus Estis (College of Business), Jason
Owen (College of Education) and Karen Gordon (College of
Liberal Arts). Read more about their achievements in the pages
following this letter.
Nationally and internationally, our alumni are making
big names for themselves and for Tech. Alice Fakier spent
her summer becoming a reality television star on HGTV’s
“Design Star,” where she finished in second place. She shares
the secrets of her success in this magazine. And Matt Dunigan,
who surpassed many of Terry Bradshaw’s records while starring
at Louisiana Tech, was a 2006 inductee into the Canadian
Football League Hall of Fame. The CFL hails him as one of its
all-time most successful players. This issue includes the story of
his Hall of Fame induction.
There’s no limit to the achievements of our alumni. At
Tech, we know that our successes today provide the tools for
tomorrow’s growth. Therefore, our future, backed by alumni
support, has never looked brighter. I have no doubt that the
year 2020 will see Louisiana Tech as one of this nation’s top
research universities. I deeply appreciate your interest, loyalty
and support as Louisiana Tech moves rapidly toward greater
and greater achievement. I’ve never been more enthusiastic!
without the generous support of our alumni. Louisiana Tech is truly blessed to have the loyalty
and generosity of its alumni and friends.”
- Daniel D. Reneau, president
2 | Louisiana Tech Magazine
www.latech.edu | 3
ALUMnus OF THE YEAR
john d. caruthers: ‘50
moved by the spirit
By the time he earned
a bachelor’s degree in
political science in 1950,
Caruthers had patched
an amazing quilt of
college experiences:
Lambda Chi Alpha;
President, Student Body;
Wesley Foundation;
Omicron Delta Kappa;
Who’s Who, Junior
Representative; Student
Senate Chairman;
Freshman Rules
Committee; Vice
President, French Club;
Worship Chairman,
Wesley Foundation;
President, Sophomore
Class; President,
Freshman Class.
Among John D. Caruthers’
many contributions to Tech is a
plan to enlarge and enhance
Spirit Park, a focal point of the
new Biomedical Engineering
building.
John D. Caruthers had already packed his bags for
New Orleans’ Tulane University when the rush party invitation
bearing tales of a beer and shrimp party on Lake Pontchartrain
arrived.
His parents, who did not drink, greeted the invitation with
dismay. Then they packed the car and drove from Shreveport
to New Orleans for a meeting with Tulane’s law school dean.
Caruthers was slated to attend Tulane’s law school the following
week and had spent the summer looking forward to his move
to the Crescent City. His parents had other plans when they
arrived in the dean’s office.
“My father asked him, ‘Can this boy get as good a pre-law
degree in Ruston as he can in New Orleans?’” recalls Caruthers,
77, seated behind the desk of his Shreveport office. “And the
dean said, ‘Of course he can.’”
The next day, Caruthers found himself back in Shreveport
packing the car again – this time for Ruston. And that, he
says, is how the “most bizarre twist” of his life came to be. “It
all worked out for the best,” says Caruthers, laughing softly. It
certainly did. Now Tech is honoring Caruthers with the best
accolade of all: Alumnus of the Year.
By the time he earned a bachelor’s degree in political
science in 1950, Caruthers had patched an amazing quilt of
college experiences: Lambda Chi Alpha; President, Student
Body; Wesley Foundation; Omicron Delta Kappa; Who’s Who,
Junior Representative; Student Senate Chairman; Freshman Rules
Committee; Vice President, French Club; Worship Chairman,
Wesley Foundation; President, Sophomore Class; President,
Freshman Class.
His devotion to Tech grew after graduation. In 1961,
Caruthers became an incorporating member of the Louisiana
Tech Alumni Foundation and served as its first president. A
former president of the Louisiana Tech Alumni Association, he
now serves as a privileged director of the organization. Most
recently, Caruthers spearheaded the Class of 1950’s efforts
to create Spirit Park as a focal point of the new Biomedical
Engineering Building and Davison Hall.
He plans to enlarge and enhance the park to include the
addition of a fountain and busts of French Enlightenment
Philosopher Francois Marie Arouet de Voltaire, Holocaust
diarist Anne Frank, civil rights leader the Rev. Martin Luther
King, Jr., and physicist Albert Einstein. They are thinkers
whose thoughts Caruthers greatly admires.
“They represent ideals that are important for college
students to sit and meditate on,” he says.
Caruthers Hall, named for the Caruthers family, honors the
many contributions they have made to Tech. For Caruthers,
the dorm’s name brings to mind an irony that still evokes
laughter. He arrived at Tech as a freshman with no place to live
because the fated fraternity invitation that led him to campus
had arrived the last week of summer.
“It was 1946. All the spots on campus were taken by
veterans,” Caruthers says. “I got a place on 306 S. Trenton
Street and I’ll never forget it.”
He eventually moved to campus. And despite a tumultuous
beginning, Caruthers fell in love with the camaraderie shared
among students. His father, J.D., had graduated from Tech
in 1927. In many ways, attending the University felt like a
family tradition. On weekends, Caruthers horsed around with
roommates, one time accidentally sinking an engineering
professor’s boat in a pond. That time, says Caruthers, his
father’s alumnus status came in handy: “I’m happy to say the
professor was willing to overlook our error of judgment.”
His best memories remain in the dining hall, where students
sat around tables after dinner, trading stories and gossip. In
good weather – a typical occurrence in Ruston – they would
trickle out of the dining hall and spend hours lingering on the
Quad in conversation.
“There was a lot of entertaining yourself,” says Caruthers.
“The kids played bridge and drank Coke.”
Like many college students, Caruthers entered the University
with a good idea of where he wanted to spend his professional
life. In high school he had discovered an interest in law. And at
Tech, Caruthers gravitated toward political science and French,
two components of the University’s pre-law program.
His father, who had kept the family afloat during the
Depression by making syrup in the garage, remained a constant
inspiration. At the Depression’s end, J.D. Caruthers left a WPA
job for the oil business. “Like me, he was a self-made man,”
says Caruthers. “That’s always admirable.”
When his father died unexpectedly during a cruise to
Europe, Caruthers stepped up to the reins of the family’s
oil business. Without hesitation, he left his law practice and
forfeited a race for a Shreveport city judge’s seat.
He proved an overwhelming success at business. In 1996,
The Shreveport Times named Caruthers Shreveport’s Business
Leader of the Year. Today he serves as president of the sevenstate I-69 Mid-Continent Highway Coalition. For the past 15
years, Caruthers has worked tirelessly to coordinate local and
state efforts to define 1-69 through northwest Louisiana. It’s a
dream, he sighs, on the verge of realization.
Instead of retirement, he works banker’s hours, making it a
point to squeeze a daily racquetball game into his day. Recently
Caruthers began to write a novel. He refuses to divulge the
plot, but says his tale promises intrigue. “It is something I’ve
always wanted to do,” says Caruthers, through a confident grin.
“I figured now was a good time to start.”
www.latech.edu | 5
d i st i n g u i s h e d c o l l e g e a l u m n i o f t h e y e a r
young ALUMnus OF THE YEAR
brandon phillips: ‘00
following his dream
When he met the cast of “Growing Pains,” Brandon Phillips
learned that dreams do come true. Today, he works as a doctor
– the fulfillment of his lifelong dream.
Dr. Brandon Phillips, 29, is living his lifelong dream
of working as a doctor at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston.
And he doesn’t want to wake up.
“For a long as I can remember, I’ve wanted to be a doctor,”
Phillips says, cheerily. “I can remember being five years old,
riding in a car, passing a hospital and telling my parents, ‘I’m
going to be a doctor.’”
It didn’t matter that Phillips didn’t know any doctors, or that
he failed kindergarten. It didn’t matter that he had open heart
surgery at age two, or that teachers had tested him for special
education in first grade.
“I knew that’s what I was going to do. I was the first person
in my family to go to college,” says Phillips, who was raised by
his mother, a prison guard.
Now Tech is honoring him as young alumnus of the
year. Phillips defied odds when he graduated from Tulane
University’s School of Medicine in 2004. Today he works 30hour shifts as a resident in the pediatric intensive care unit at
Texas Children’s Hospital and cares for children who battle
grave illnesses. Phillips knows the perils of being a sick kid all
too well. And that, he says, infuses his work with compassion.
“For some cardiology patients it’s helpful. I can tell them
(after surgeries), Yes, it’s going to hurt to cough. Sneezing will
be far worse,” he says. “They look at me like, ‘How do you
know that?’”
Phillips knows because he’s lain in those hospital beds, too.
Rural living characterized his childhood outside of Jena, as
did a congenital heart condition known as tetrology of Fallot.
Born with two holes in his heart, Phillips also had a defective
pulmonary valve. And like the patients he treats today, he was a
patient at Texas Children’s Hospital.
For his small patients, Phillips provides a living example of a
hope-filled future. Last summer he worked as a counselor at a
Texas camp for children with chronic illnesses. Two of the boys
in his cabin had heart conditions.
“They were absolutely amazed that I was their counselor and
that I had been in the hospital as a kid,” Phillips says.
By age 11, Phillips had learned that dreams could come true.
That’s when the Starlight Starbright Children’s Foundation
granted his wish to meet actor Jeremy Miller, who played
Ben Seaver on the 1980s sitcom “Growing Pains.” As a child,
Phillips struggled with schoolwork. Meeting “Growing Pains”
actors marked a turning point in his academic career: “I didn’t
start to do well in school until after I got my wish,” he says.
That studiousness paid off. Dr. Thomas Vargo – the doctor
who cared for Phillips when he was a child – hooded Phillips
as he walked across the stage at his graduation from Tulane. At
Texas Children’s, Phillips now works alongside Vargo (another
manifestation of a lifelong goal). “As a child, I thought he was
the greatest,” Phillips says. “Now that I work with him, I think
he’s even greater.”
He attributes his success to the academic support he received
at Tech. Phillips came to Tech because the University offered
him a generous scholarship. He pushed himself hard to earn
top grades. But lethargy eroded his energy.
At the time, Phillips didn’t know that doctors had removed
his pulmonary valve during his first open-heart surgery at age
two. A kindly medical school professor urged him to have
open-heart surgery in 2003 that replaced the pulmonary valve.
Phillips agreed on one condition: he could watch the surgery.
Later that year he traveled to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota to
undergo the operation.
“I would describe my health as very good today,” Phillips
says. “I can do what I want and I don’t take any medications.”
college of business
Rufus estis:
‘73
accounting superstar
Growing up in Ferriday, Rufus Estis knew all
about Jerry Lee Lewis, Jimmy Lee Swaggart and Mickey
Gilley. He didn’t know about accountants.
“I didn’t even know what the word meant. I had never
met an accountant,” he says.
Blame irony, then, that the College of Business is now
honoring Estis as a distinguished alumnus. Today he works
as vice president and chief financial officer for Maritech
Resources, Inc.
But it was at Tech where he discovered his passion for
accountancy. During a homecoming visit to campus, Estis
likened himself to the lovable fictitious character Forrest
Gump as he shared how the University placed him on an
unforgettable career track. “I had no idea what was before
me when I started out in the accounting program,” he said.
“Since then, I have had lunch with the Queen of England,
met Ronald Reagan and visited the pyramids.”
Estis is not your typical CPA. For starters, he’s traveled to
40 countries on the company dime, lived in three different
nations and survived political riots. He never planned
this life. Estis entered the College of Business as a finance
student, but declared a major in accounting after taking
two classes in the subject.
Yet, he says he should have known he was destined for a
career in accounting. For instance, whenever friends went
bowling, Estis volunteered to serve as the team’s statistician.
His personality just fit the mold, he says, with a smile: “I
like things orderly. I like things neat.”
Perhaps that’s true. Certainly, his career has proved
anything but traditional, with Estis living and working in
Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates and Kazakhstan.
Prior to his Houston gig, Estis lived in Jakarta, Indonesia
for five years. There he worked as vice president of finance
for Santa Fe Energy Resources and immersed himself in all
things Indonesian.
“Indonesians are the most polite, most generous,
friendliest people I have met anywhere in the world,” he
says, when recalling the adventure. “They will take the
shirts off their backs for you.”
The sweet life turned terrifying in 1998 when Jakarta
erupted in riots. What had begun as peaceful student-led
demonstrations turned to violence after four students from
Trisakti University were shot dead. From the balcony of his
home, Estis watched plumes of black smoke roll across the
city.
Then he got to work managing security and setting
up safe houses for employees. By the crisis’ end, Estis
had evacuated 120 people, including his wife (and high
school sweetheart) Brenda. The couple married when Estis
graduated from Tech in 1973.
Rufus Estis (center) receives his award from President Reneau
and Dean Shirley Reagan.
Yet Estis remained in Jakarta. “The business,” he says,
“had to keep running.”
He found himself rolling with the punches – advice he
passes on to Tech students today – and emerged unscathed.
He attributes his success abroad to cultivating an open
mind and keeping cultural judgments at a minimum. His
southern heritage played a big part, too. “When you grow
up not meeting strangers, it makes you more receptive. I
enjoy meeting new people and experiencing other cultures,”
he says.
If he had not become an accountant, Estis says he’d be
a musician – true to his Ferriday rearing. Way back before
he entertained the notion of accountancy, Estis enrolled in
Tech with dreams of a career in music and played the tuba
in the University band. But the College of Business changed
those ideas. “I made straight As in accounting,” Estis
says. “Even on tests, I never earned less than a 95. I didn’t
understand why everyone else was having problems.”
Still, his love for music hasn’t died. Jerry Lee Lewis
remains a favorite crooner. Estis likes to joke that he is one
of the few CFOs he knows who rocks out to rap and hiphop when driving.
And he tries to get back home once in awhile, too. His
family moved to Ferriday when Estis was five years old. His
father worked on an oil rig.
During his Tech days, Estis learned he could accomplish
his goals as long as he put in the time and effort.
“The thing I liked about college was that it was an
equalizer,” he says. “They didn’t care about what your
Daddy did or how much money he had. You’re accountable
on your own merits.”
www.latech.edu | 7
college of applied and natural sciences
college of education
bobby neill:
‘58
faith in the forest
jason owen:
Bobby Neill never liked the confinement of an
office. He preferred the forest to a fax machine and spent
countless afternoons bemoaning the sunset that signaled a
day’s end.
“Being outside is what interested me,” says Neill, 72.
“On Sundays, I couldn’t wait for Monday to begin.”
Now retired, it has been years since Neill – radio in
one hand and a dog trotting by his side – walked across a
forest to count timber. The distinguished alumnus from the
College of Applied and Natural Sciences, Neill divides his
time between homes in Magnolia, Ark., Hot Springs, Ark.,
and Orange Beach, Ala. He graduated from Tech in 1958
with a degree in forestry.
Then he earned his master’s degree in Forest
Management in 1959 from Yale University. In New Haven,
Conn., Neill’s south Arkansas twang amused his peers.
Unexpectedly, he learned he had an edge over them when it
came to managing timber.
“They knew their math and statistics, but they didn’t
know trees,” he says. “By the time I got there, I had already
worked in the woods for three summers.”
In Magnolia, Neill and his wife of 50 years, Laura, live
in the home where they raised their two daughters. Today
fish swarm through a pond that cusps the yard. Neill built
the home when his father grew concerned that developers
would fill in the pond to expand a subdivision. That same
year – 1966 – he launched his forestry firm, Neill Forestry
Consultants Inc., with $600, two babies and one client.
By year’s end, the company had earned $22,000. And
Neill decided to plant permanent roots in Magnolia, his
childhood home.
“We’ve been here ever since,” he says. “We grow and
sell timber. We perpetuate it. We make sure that it’s
sustainable.”
In the forest, Neill found peace. He worked alone, save
the company of his dog. Twelve hours could pass without
Neill knowing that sunset had streaked the sky in blazes of
orange and pink.
“I hated to see it get dark,” he says. “There was a peace, a
quietness, that didn’t exist any place else.”
On his vacations, Neill traveled the world with Laura.
And he has the coffee table books to prove it. Glossy
titles bearing the names of dozens of nations – Ireland,
Japan, Honduras – find a comfortable home in the Neills’
Magnolia living room. Active members of their church,
they went on mission trips to Honduras and El Salvador.
In his spare time, Neill sat on the board of Arkansas
Children’s Hospital and worked diligently to raise muchneeded funds. “It is a super place,” Neill says. “They do
much good.”
Growing up in Kilbourne, Jason Owen knew one
thing for certain. He didn’t want to farm.
His father, a cotton ginner, awoke at 5 a.m. to work
the fields. Owen helped out by milking cows and raising
chickens. He knew his interests lay in public speaking and
debating – not farming. By his senior year of high school,
Owen picked out a career: teaching.
“I always wanted to go to Tech because that’s where my
teachers and principal went,” says Owen, who started Tech
in 1941. “I knew they had received an excellent education.”
He admired the teachers who taught him at school. He
longed to follow in their footsteps. And he did.
Owen retired from a vibrant career in education in 1978.
He never expected that the College of Education would
name him as a distinguished alumnus. “I had been out of
education for so long, I didn’t think that they’d remember
me,” says Owen. But they did.
When Owen began his studies at Tech in September
1941, he could not foresee that war would dent his plans
to teach. Three months later – in December – Owen stood
in the choir room of Trinity United Methodist Church.
He sang Christmas carols as the choir rehearsed for its
holiday program. The music ended when a church member
interrupted with dire news: Japanese dive-bombers and
torpedo planes had attacked Pearl Harbor. More than 3,500
American servicemen and women lay dead or wounded.
“You always remember where you were at that moment,”
Owen, 82, says.
When he returned to campus, he found throngs of
students sitting in Howard Auditorium. Via radio, they
listened to President Roosevelt declare war on Japan. Owen
questioned his future.
“I wondered, am I going to be drafted or should I
volunteer?” he recalls. “I didn’t know if I would be able to
finish the semester.”
He did finish that semester and a handful following. The
U.S. Army didn’t draft Owen until 1943. At 21, he served
in a surface warning battery stationed in the South Pacific.
He remained until 1946. He kept focused on the future as
he traveled.
“I wanted to come back and finish my degree,” he says.
Owen always knew he would return to Ruston when the
war ended. Then, the University operated on a trimester
schedule which, Owen says, helped him quickly finish his
degree in education.
“I was in a hurry,” he says, “to start teaching.”
By then Owen already knew that God had called him
to teach. His high school principal, L.H. Willis, mentored
him through his years at Tech. “He was certainly a person I
admired,” Owen recalls.
‘47
called to teach
Bobby Neill found peace in the forest. Now, his faith sustains
him through the trials of leukemia.
Today Neill Forestry manages 150,000 acres of privately
owned timberland. The company employs six foresters and
serves more than 300 clients nationwide.
In the past five years, the Neills have traversed the
continents of Europe and Africa. Last spring they renewed
their wedding vows in Maui – a bittersweet celebration.
Three years ago, doctors diagnosed Neill with incurable
leukemia, after a mild heart attack sent him to the
emergency room.
“They told me my heart was fine, but my blood was
bad,” says Neill, who travels to Houston monthly for
treatment. “We have been fighting it ever since.”
As the four-year anniversary of his diagnosis approaches,
he says his robustness befuddles doctors: “People don’t
normally live with this for as long as I have. We have a
positive outlook and a lot of people praying for us. The
doctors are calling me their poster boy.”
He attributes his longevity to faith and prayer. Neill
reads the Bible every day. And he makes it a point to attend
church once a week, even when he is traveling. “Prayer
has always been a part of my life,” he says, simply. “People
can’t understand why we have such a positive outlook. It’s
because of our faith.”
Jason Owen always dreamed of being a teacher, but he never
imagined that Tech would honor him as a distinguished alumnus.
Upon graduation, he began his career as a fifth grade
teacher in Mansfield. There, the Desoto Parish Teacher’s
Association elected him as its president.
“I loved being in the classroom; my best teaching was
when I was more student oriented than subject oriented,”
says Owen.
After two years at Mansfield, Owen returned to Ruston,
to work as the seventh grade supervising teacher at A.E.
Phillips Laboratory School. It wasn’t long before he was
promoted to principal.
He spent 13 years overseeing the school. Under Owen’s
watch, A.E. Phillips instituted the first public kindergarten
in the state. Owen also oversaw construction of the school’s
present facilities and the adoption of its foreign language
program.
“I enjoyed enriching the curriculum. We had a lot of
resources, excellent teachers and involved parents,” he says.
At Tech, Owen – who earned a doctorate in education
from the University of Missouri – worked as a professor
of education. He taught reading, language arts and
administration courses.
It’s no surprise that Owen received lucrative offers
from schools outside of the state. But he always refused,
preferring instead to remain near his Tech roots: “This was
my home,” he says.
www.latech.edu | 9
college of engineering and science
college of liberal arts
robert upchurch:
karen gordon:
‘62
‘86
enlightened entrepreneur
engineering success
In 1989, when the oil tanker Exxon Valdez
struck Bligh Reef in Prince William Sound, Alaska, Robert
Upchurch never expected to find himself smack dab inside
the worst public relations crisis of his company’s history.
Yet, within months of that fateful accident, Upchurch
moved from Italy to Houston, Texas, and became Manager
of Public Affairs for Exxon USA.
An engineer by training and a business executive at heart,
he had no prior experience with public relations.
“It was a nightmare in terms of workload,” says
Upchurch, who still lives in Houston with his wife, a Tech
alumna, and their two children. “The Houston office had
primary responsibility for the cleanup and interfacing with
various authorities, including congressional hearings.”
In the midst of a national crisis, Upchurch drew on the
character-shaping lessons he had learned as a student in the
College of Engineering. “At Tech you’re exposed to people
who have high ethical standards,” he says. “That rubs off.”
In light of a lifetime of achievement, the College of
Engineering and Science is now honoring Upchurch as a
distinguished alumnus, welcome news to Upchurch.
“I’ve always had a warm spot for Tech. I had a wonderful
experience there,” he says.
In the oil spill’s wake, Upchurch’s staff responded to
every letter Exxon received from Americans who expressed
anger, concern and sadness at the accident. Upchurch also
oversaw the preparation of Exxon’s testimony to Congress.
The job, he says, contrasted starkly from the post he’d
left in Rome, where he had worked to improve efficiency
of Exxon’s operations in Italy. There, Upchurch rubbed
shoulders with government officials, lived in a Roman villa
and taught himself Italian by watching reruns of “The
Cosby Show.”
In Houston, he worked to challenge national perceptions
that vilified Exxon. And, he took a lone trip to Alaska to
visit the spill site.
“I drew on my experiences at Tech and my experiences at
Exxon,” Upchurch says. “It might be unbelievable to some
people, but Exxon expects you to be honest. They would
send managers like me to seminars, where we would be
told, ‘If there’s a practice going on and you’re not sure that
it’s ethical, think about a situation where you’d have to sit
down with your immediate family and pastor and tell them
about it.’”
As an undergraduate and graduate chemical engineering
student, Upchurch says he learned at Tech how to become
a problem solver. That skill served him well during a long
career at Exxon, which included stints in London and New
York City, in addition to Italy.
Surprisingly, some of Upchurch’s most formative
Robert Upchurch (center) receives his award from President
Reneau and Dean Stan Napper.
college experiences took place outside of the College of
Engineering and Science. As he sat in English classes and
listened to lectures by Robert Snyder, Upchurch grew into
his conservative skin, during a time when such ideologies
were unpopular. “He introduced me to ‘National Review’
when they had low circulation,” says Upchurch.
As a student, Upchurch lived at home and commuted
to Tech. Save one semester spent in a Pi Kappa Alpha
fraternity house, he never lived on campus. By his senior
year, he had grown wary of the fraternity, largely because a
portion of his brothers earned lackluster grades. He wanted
to quit, but his parents refused to entertain the notion.
“My folks would never let me quit anything I joined,”
says Upchurch, who sampled dorm-living in 1988, when he
participated in a mini-MBA program at Stanford University.
A father of four – Upchurch has two children from a
previous marriage – he rules his home with a lighter hand.
Now retired, he has fallen gracefully into the role of stayat-home dad and helps ferry his two younger children (ages
9 and 13) between school and extracurricular activities.
Between his family duties, Upchurch fits consulting work
and a three-mile run into his day. On occasion, he finds
himself day-dreaming about those demanding days at
Exxon.
“I miss the challenges of working on problems,”
Upchurch says. “I miss the camaraderie that exists among a
group of very opinionated, intelligent and nice people.”
Back in 1982, when Karen Gordon arrived at
Louisiana Tech, unsure of her calling, she fell in love with
the French courses offered by the College of Liberal Arts.
By her senior year, she declared a major in the romantic
language.
“I really didn’t have a plan,” says Gordon, distinguished
alumna from the College of Liberal Arts. “Although events
in my life may have seemed random at the time, they all
came together to create the company I have today.”
Enter GTCI, the company Gordon launched in 1996.
Privately held and woman-owned, GTCI employs a
non-traditional workforce of women walking the tight
rope between work and family. It’s a company that
thrives through supporting the unique needs of mothers.
“I started with a group of women who had been in
telecommunications, but were juggling their careers with
raising children,” says Gordon, a mother of four. “It was
important for them to have flexibility of schedule. It didn’t
matter if they worked 18 hours a day. They had to fit those
hours around what was convenient for them.”
Her achievements have won her the honor of being
named the distinguished alumna from the College of
Liberal Arts.
When she started GTCI, Gordon didn’t know that she
had a recipe for success on her hands. Within three years,
GTCI experienced 1,100 percent growth. And Gordon
needed to expand her workforce – fast. She turned to her
Tech roots for support. Gordon also earned her master’s
degree in English from Tech in 1994.
She soon realized that she couldn’t have made a better
decision. “I knew of the caliber of individuals Tech had
coming through the program,” she says. “That support I
was given at Tech was phenomenal. Most universities don’t
welcome you with open arms.”
Tech graduates came to work armed with can-do
attitudes. They carried a passion that Gordon says proved
refreshing: “There was an eagerness to be part of a team and
contribute to a team.”
Gordon gives back to that team, too. GTCI keeps an
office at the Tech Enterprise Center. And she likes to keep
her eyes peeled for new recruits. During a homecoming
visit to campus, Gordon encouraged College of Liberal Arts
students to send in their resumes.
When she learned that the College of Liberal Arts
had named her as a distinguished alumna, Gordon was
surprised. As a Tech student, she recalls being studious to
the point of nerdiness – she only learned recently where the
University’s fraternity houses are located when her daughter
pointed them out during a campus visit.
“My first thought was, ‘What would they remember
Karen Gordon helps mothers balance career with family
through her company GTCI.
from my college days?’” she says. “I was either working out
or studying.”
At Tech, Gordon joined the Karate team and won a
national championship for form and sparring. After she
earned her undergraduate degree in French, she moved
to North Carolina and spent an humbling year delivering
pizzas and selling vacuum cleaners.
She put herself through graduate school at Tech by
working fulltime as a French teacher at Quitman High
School. As a graduate student, Gordon also became a
mother for the first time and learned the importance of
balancing work with family. Today that lesson trickles down
to her employees.
“If people aren’t happy in their family lives,” she says,
“they’re not happy in their work lives.” Despite hectic
work and civic schedules – Gordon sits on the board of
the Foundation for Lovejoy School – she makes time to
attend every one of her four children’s sporting events and
band concerts (even if that means getting five hours of sleep
nightly). Like the mothers she employs, Gordon’s schedule
revolves around her family.
“I put in a lot of hours, but mine may be at 10 p.m. or
11 p.m. after I’ve put the kids to bed,” she says, then adds:
“I do my best when I’m being challenged.”
As for those French classes? They came in handy when
company assignments sent Gordon on extended visits to
France.
www.latech.edu | 11
Homecoming
2006
1. L ouisiana Tech President
Daniel Reneau hands John
D. Caruthers the highest
homecoming honor, that of
Tech’s Alumnus of the Year.
2. B
ulldogs wore their blue
pride like a second skin
pre-Homecoming. And, as
always, their spirit trickled
down to the field.
3
3. No matter how far they
had to travel, alumni from
across the country returned
to Ruston for a spirited
weekend made dearer by
reunions with old friends.
7
2
4. T ech fans wear their pride
from head to toe, so it’s
never too early to show
blue-and-red roots from the
stands during the big game.
1
5. W
hen Tech fans waved
signs in the stands, their
support spelled “P-R-I-D-E”
bigtime.
6. P
atrick Johnson scores one
of his seven touchdowns
of the year against
homecoming foe Idaho.
4
7. C
ourtney McGuffee from
Harrisonburg was elected
Homecoming Queen, and
SGA President Caleb Smith
of Gilbert was elected Top
Escort by Tech students.
8
6
8. A
lumni found the best place
to fill their plates with downhome Louisiana cooking
was at the Alumni & Friends
Homecoming Barbecue
– the perfect spot, indeed,
for a pre-game fueling.
5
www.latech.edu | 13
“One thing that would make me proud is if my teams played the way my dad’s teams played, and if
my program is run the way his was run.”
Derek Dooley left the courtroom to follow his
dream of coaching football. Years later, he
landed his dream job of head coach. With his
wife Allison at his side, Dooley greets the Tech
family at a December press conference.
laying down the law
Derek Dooley knows the pressure’s on; that doesn’t
mean it’s getting him down. He’s a man of faith. And so is
Tech President Dr. Daniel Reneau, who at a December press
conference, introduced a grinning Dooley to a throng of
reporters and camera crews as “the man who is going to lead
us with honor and integrity, from the Atlantic Ocean to the
Hawaiian isles.” Applause sounded. Flashes fired. And Dooley
wore his confidence like a uniform. Later, he said that as he
approached the podium he felt a mix of emotions – a rush
of excitement coupled with humility – and “a tremendous
responsibility not to let anybody down.” The audience saw one
thing in Dooley: the head coach in which Tech could place
new hope.
The story of how Dooley arrived at Tech spans years of
soul-searching. He began his career as an Atlanta lawyer, not
a coach. And at the time Tech hired him, Dooley had a pretty
good gig coaching with the Miami Dolphins for the National
Football League. Nevertheless, it was a mere two days after
New Year’s Eve 2006 that the Dooleys – Derek, wife Allison,
and their three children – left Miami for Ruston, another
college town roughly 600 miles from where Dooley grew up
in the shadow of the University of Georgia. There he had
watched Vince Dooley become a legend. (For Derek Dooley,
Vince Dooley just goes by the name of “Dad”). While other
kids followed their fathers to the office, Dooley followed his
father to the playing field where he tossed the ball with football
players after school.
These days he’s dreaming about his children – John Taylor,
Peyton and Julianna – replicating those childhood memories in
Ruston. Visitors to Tech football practices may find the Dooley
children sitting happily in the bleachers of Joe Aillet Stadium
and watching their dad doing what he loves – coaching football.
“One reason why I took this job is that I wanted my kids
to have those experiences,” says Dooley. “At Tech, it’s OK for
them to be at practice; it’s OK for them to hang around the
players.”
At home, the Dooleys like to get outside and toss the ball,
too, and any ball – a baseball, a basketball or a football – will
do. According to their proud dad, John Taylor, 8, is a “sports
fanatic,” and Peyton is as “good hearted” as a five-year-old can
be. And at 3, Julianna shows a knack for soccer.
Glossy photos of the Dooleys adorn the walls of the
coach’s office in the Charles Wyly Athletic Center. Windows
overlook the new turf of Joe Aillet Stadium, where the Tech
logo shines in brilliant blue and red against the field. On the
winter morning when Dooley had a moment to break for an
interview, the view symbolized the challenge that awaits him:
the challenge of resurrecting a team and a staff. Dooley, as
he sat on a blue sofa beside the window beneath the looming
view, expounded his philosophy of football and coaching. He
spoke without hesitation because football flows through his
DNA. And he believes in the people of Tech. “This is a people
business,” began Dooley, in a firm, clear voice. “If you trust
and believe in the people you’re working with, you can make
things work.”
When it comes to making things work, Dooley knows
he’s the man for the job. His strategy begins with one simple
question: “How do we attract quality character, great football
players who want to come to Tech?” When he formulates his
coaching message, Dooley isn’t interested in buzzwords or
rhetoric. He’s interested in action. He’s interested in showing
athletes who choose Tech that the University will support them
in all areas of their Tech experience, especially in academics.
He draws an analogy between the potential for growth
within Tech’s football program and the achievements of the
University’s College of Engineering and Science: “Louisiana
Tech is one of the top engineering schools in the country.
Why does an engineering student want to come here?” he asks
rhetorically. “They know they’re getting top facilities and top
faculty. It’s no different with football. They need a top notch
coaching staff, a top notch support system and top notch
facilities. That’s what attracts good players.”
Days after his arrival in Ruston, Dooley insisted on hiring a
staff member who would function in the capacity of academic
support and who would serve as a liaison between athletes
and the University colleges. “I pressed Dr. Reneau on that
because I believe that helping our players reach their academic
potential and ultimately develop a career outside of football is
an important part of our program,” says Dooley, who turned to
his own law degree when he negotiated his contract with Tech.
Indeed, the changes Dooley brings to Tech are powerful
ones. Two came in the form of new offensive and defensive
coordinators, hired by Dooley in early January. They are Frank
Scelfo, formerly Tulane University’s offensive coordinator,
and Tommy Spangler, formerly head coach at Presbyterian
College in Clinton, S.C. The pair spent late January and early
February criss-crossing the South in a last-ditch effort to work
the high-school football circuit and net Tech a new crop of
winning athletes. Scelfo, Tech’s new offensive coordinator, is
a big name in Louisiana. He started his career at River Oaks
High School in Monroe, and his father and brother coached
at Tulane. Recruits are paying attention. “Tech’s academic and
athletic reputations are strong,” Scelfo says. “We’re being very
well-received.”
- Derek Dooley
When it comes to defense, Tech is on its toes with
Spangler, the new defensive coordinator. At Presbyterian
College, Spangler’s defense ranked first in the South Atlantic
Conference in scoring defense and total defense – achievements
that likely caught Dooley’s eye and convinced him to hire
Spangler as defensive coordinator. There’s history between
them, too. Spangler played football from 1979 through 1982
for Vince Dooley at the University of Georgia. In 1980, the
team defeated Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl. Now Spangler
has high hopes for Tech. “We’re going to be capable,” he says.
“We’re going to be aggressive, and we’re going to play hard.”
His winning attitude starts at the top. It begins with Dooley’s
philosophy.
Tech’s family heard Dooley’s philosophy for the first time at
a Dec. 18 press conference that introduced the new head coach
to a standing-room-only crowd of news reporters, Tech alumni
and University staff. Later, reports of the event focused on five
words Dooley had used to lay the groundwork of his program:
integrity, discipline, passion, selflessness and class. “In the end,”
he told the crowd, “I think the entire state of Louisiana will be
proud of the way we represent this program.”
While they were interested in hearing Dooley’s philosophy,
reporters couldn’t overlook the drama of his family story, the
big detail that he’s the up-and-coming son of a legendary
coach. Dooley put their questions at ease. When it comes to his
dad there’s no rivalry or pressure, only admiration. Because for
Dooley, how the game is played is more important than wins Ñ
Minutes after signing their contracts with Tech, new offensive and
defensive coordinators Frank Scelfo (right) and Tommy Spangler
(left), hit the road to recruit a new crop of athletes before signing
day. Here, they talk strategy in the Wyly Athletic Center.
www.latech.edu | 15
or rewards. Ultimately, he wants his players to generate respect.
“One thing that would make me proud is if my teams played
the way my dad’s teams played, and if my program is run the
way his was run,” Dooley says.
Indeed, if Vince Dooley had his druthers, his son would
have stayed a lawyer. The coaching life is a grueling one, and
the elder Dooley didn’t want his son to follow his footsteps to
the football field. Yet, after law school, and at the age of 27,
Derek Dooley couldn’t envision a life of briefs and courtrooms.
When he imagined his future he saw one thing. That was
football.
Years later, he admits that he entered law school by default
after graduating from the University of Virginia in 1990
with a bachelor’s degree in government and foreign affairs.
For five months he had worked as a lobbyist for Coca-Cola
in Washington, D.C. “I didn’t know what I wanted to do,”
Dooley says. “So I went to law school. To my surprise, I loved
it.” Theory isn’t practice, and Dooley learned that lesson the
hard way when he moved to Atlanta to take a job in civil
litigation at a private firm.
By then, Allison had enrolled in medical school and the
couple settled cozily into a house in Buckhead, home to
Atlanta’s grandest mansions. “We were,” Dooley says, “well
on our way to living happily ever after.” Yet, in the year that
followed, Dooley watched the sweet life sour. He couldn’t shake
the notion that he had made a disingenuous career choice. He
realized that law school had merely delayed the inevitable. “I
said, ‘Oh. I’m a lawyer. Is this really what I want to do?’”
For six months, he dangled that question in the back of
his mind. Finally, he asked himself what made him happy.
He discovered an answer that didn’t surprise anyone who
knew him. “It was all the things that made me happy when I
was playing football,” Dooley says. “That was being around
people, working together as a team, going through tough times
together and accomplishing goals as a team.”
His answer meant changing his life. He put a “For-Sale” sign
up in front of the Buckhead house and took a job as a graduate
assistant at the University of Georgia. It paid $10,000 per year,
a salary that taught him money didn’t matter half as much
as career satisfaction. “I felt rejuvenated. I was alive,” he says.
“From there I’ve been very fortunate to get some breaks.”
Some breaks, indeed. From Georgia, Dooley went to
Southern Methodist University, where he spent three seasons
as wide receivers coach and assistant recruiting coordinator.
In 2000, Nick Saban hired him as recruiting coordinator/
tight ends coach for Louisiana State University. Dooley spent
five years in Baton Rouge and made important recruiting
connections at high schools throughout the region. And Allison
went into private medical practice.
When the Miami Dolphins hired Saban as head coach in
2005, Dooley followed the coach – by now a mentor – to
Miami. And from there, the rest, of course, is Tech history.
Leaving the NFL wasn’t a difficult decision for Dooley. He
entered coaching to mold the lives of young men, some of
whom needed guidance desperately. And he wanted to meet
them before they came to the NFL. He wanted to meet them
in college.
“Sometimes people are very critical of college coaches who
go out of their way to defend kids who make mistakes and
do poorly. What they don’t understand is that they never sat
in that kid’s living room, or in some cases, in a really bad
situation,” Dooley says. “What they don’t see is that some of
these kids aren’t raised with the same moral compass others
have been blessed with. So when you see a kid who comes from
nothing and hasn’t had the love and support he needs, and
you have the chance to shape him for four or five years – and
teach him right from wrong – then see him go on to be a very
successful person, it makes you feel good.”
In the NFL, Dooley spent the pre-game minutes catching
up with athletes he had coached on the college level and
who were playing for the other team. In those conversations,
rivalries faded. “They’d give me a hug and they’d say, ‘We
couldn’t have done it without you,’” Dooley says and leans
forward, enlivened.
“Well,” he pauses, “that’ll touch you.”
Pictured from left to right: Leo Sanford, Tom Hinton, Ronnie Wiggins, A.L.
Williams, Charles Bourgeois and Carrell Dowies gather outside Thomas
Assembly Center during the football reunion they organized.
beautiful memories: aillet and lambright
players reunite at tech
The first Thursday of every month finds former Tech athletes
gathering at Howard Johnson’s in Ruston. There they eat a
country breakfast and swap stories about old friends and Tech
athletics.
“We talk about the health of other athletes,” says former
Tech football player Carrell Dowies. “We talk about their
families.”
About a year ago, another topic arose in conversation,
that of a football reunion for Tech athletes who had played
for Coaches Joe Aillet and Maxie Lambright. At the time,
matt dunigan:
2006 Cfl hall of fame inductee
Matt Dunigan, who surpassed many of Terry Bradshaw’s
records while starring at Louisiana Tech, was a 2006 inductee
into the Canadian Football League Hall of Fame.
One of the CFL’s all-time most successful and popular
players who excelled at quarterback for six different franchises
was one of five new inductees. He joined players Allen
Pitts, Bobby Jurasin and Henry “Gizmo” Williams and
administrator/official Victor Spencer.
“I am honored and humbled to be considered among the
best in CFL history,” Dunigan said from Canada, where he
has worked as a broadcaster on TSN’s Friday Night Football
telecasts for CFL games the past six years. “It’s a very, very
humbling experience to be included and associated among
some of the greats like Tom Hinton (former Tech star) and
Warren Moon in the Canadian Football League Hall of Fame.”
Dunigan, who is on the list of candidates for the Louisiana
it seemed like a pipe-dream. For six months, Dowies and
five other Tech alumni poured their hearts and souls into
organizing a Tech football reunion.
Their dream became a reality in October, proving the
power of the love Tech athletes feel for their alma mater.
More than 250 former football players and their wives
turned up for the Oct. 21 get-together. A few had not been
back to Tech since the day they had graduated.
“They were surprised at what’s here now that wasn’t here
when they were students,” Dowies said. “They were impressed
by what they saw.”
Attendees, he added, spent hours reminiscing about their
Tech years, and many renewed old friendships that had
Tech Athletic Hall of Fame and Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame,
totaled 14 seasons and 194 regular season games during a
brilliant 14-year career in the CFL.
He played with Edmonton, British Columbia, Toronto,
Birmingham, Winnipeg and Hamilton.
A five-time divisional All-Star and three-time All-CFL
honoree, Dunigan passed for 43,857 yards and 306 touchdowns
while completing 3,057-of-5,476 passes during his career.
His best single game performance is a CFL record 713-yard
passing show for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in a wild 50-35
win over the Edmonton Eskimos in 1994.
In 1987 and 1991, he guided Edmonton and Toronto to
Grey Cup titles, awarded to the best team in the league.
“There’s 224 inductees in the CFL Hall of Fame and I’m
just thrilled to death to be included in that mix,” Dunigan said.
“I appreciate that the individuals who decide who is honored
in this way felt that I played in a manner benefiting the highest
award that can be presented to a player in the Canadian
Football League. I am just thrilled to death about it.”
He retired following the 1996 season, during which time
he suffered a concussion that prematurely ended his career.
Dunigan is the only quarterback in CFL history to guide four
different teams to Grey Cup games (six times). He played
at Tech from 1979-82 and currently ranks No. 4 in passing
attempts (1,103), pass completions (550), in passing yardage
(7,042) and touchdown passes (40), and also in total offensive
yards (7,135).
He was the starting quarterback for the Bulldogs’ 1982
Southland Conference championship squad which posted a 103 record.
Dunigan still holds numerous passing and total offense
records for several of the teams he played for while in the CFL.
While he established superlatives with the pass (still No. 3
all-time in TD throws and aerial yardage for the CFL), he was
also a major threat as a runner and finished his career with
5,031 yards and 77 touchdowns on 850 rushing attempts.
Following his playing career, he was the offensive
coordinator at Valdosta State and later the head coach and
general manager of the Calgary Stampeders before moving into
the broadcast booth.
– The Ruston Daily Leader
fizzled over time.
Now, plans for another reunion are in the works. Organizers
hope to build off the success of the inaugural event.
Dowies says the group hopes to expand beyond the Aillet
and Lambright years to include a larger pool of athletes.
They’re hoping to substantially increase attendance next
year. Judging by the reaction the event received from alumni,
that task should be a breeze.
“People appreciate being asked to come back,” said Charles
Bourgeois, a former Tech football player who helped organize
the reunion. “They welcome the opportunity. And as you get
older, your college memories are more beautiful to you.”
www.latech.edu | 17
where we would be staying. I didn’t know what the challenges
would be. I was pretty much just clueless.
What aspect of the program did you find easiest to adapt to?
Not having a cell phone was really hard on some people. I was
kind of relieved not to hear my cell phone ring all day long. It’s
kind of nice to leave the phone off for a little bit.
I guess probably the one question most people have is, how
much of reality television is really reality?
Nothing is scripted. Nothing is prompted. Interestingly, they
have about 150 hours of footage that have been taped. They
narrow that down to about 42 minutes of actual coverage. So
what you don’t see is so much more than what you do see.
That is the part of reality that is not reality.
Alice Fakier kicks
back in her mother’s
living room – she
designed it herself
(even that cute
couch) – and shares
the secret of what it
takes to be a Reality
TV star.
Alice Fakier
Hometown: Shreveport
Resides in: Temple, Texas
Alice in
reality tv-land
Back from a whirlwind summer of travel, taping and
– yes – signing autographs, Alice Fakier barely has time to fluff
the pillows on her mother’s couch after HGTV’s “Design Star”
vaulted her to the national spotlight. Reality TV-junkies know
that Alice finished a close second in the cable competition.
And her star continues to rise. This year she’ll tape 10 Internet
segments dealing with the do’s and don’ts of design for the
network’s Web site. She took a break in Bossier City to chat
about staying true to her style, putting the cell-phone on
permanent snooze and the “reality” in reality television.
What was the process for being narrowed down to the 10
finalists?
Background checks, credit check, medical record check –
anything you can imagine. They knew me and my background
thoroughly before they called me to go on the show. I knew
what was going on because they had to send me paperwork for
my consent. So I had a feeling I was being narrowed down to
Degree: 2002, Interior Design, BIT (BS)
a final candidate, but I didn’t actually get a final call that I was
selected until two weeks prior to taping.
How did you hear about the Design Star competition?
My parents are HGTV addicts. They watch it all the time.
They saw a call for the next “Design Star.” They didn’t know
the premise of the show. They didn’t know the prize. But they
encouraged me to enter. I had to send in a five-minute video
and a portfolio of my work. I didn’t think anything would
come of it. I didn’t even tell my husband about it – just slapped
some stuff together and dropped it in the mail. You know
how those things are. They get hundreds and hundreds of
applications. You look at the odds and you are like, ‘Oh well.’
When they gave you that call to go to New York, you really
didn’t know what you were up against?
No, I didn’t know what the premise of the show was. I didn’t
know that there would be other contestants. I didn’t know
Is there any time that they say, ‘You do whatever you want,
we won’t tape?’
They wake you up on camera. When they show us waking up
on camera and I have no make-up on, that is because that is
me – first thing in the morning. You go throughout your day
on camera. The only time you’re not on camera is when the
cameramen take breaks to eat. And that would be the time we
would eat. It was our only opportunity for food. One morning
Donna and I got up for coffee at 4:30, and the cameraman was
there – rolling. Because if you fall down the stairs, they want it
so they can put it on the blooper show.
What was your favorite project from the show?
The project for the military family in Oklahoma. The husband
was serving in Iraq. The wife wanted to create a room for him
as a surprise, so that when he came home they would have
a place to relax. We always had a budget during challenges,
but to see that generous budget of $10,000 go to improving
someone’s life felt good. It was more than entertainment. We
were actually making a difference for someone. That is the
whole point of design.
Did you ever feel as though the judges were misinterpreting
your work?
Several times. We had chances to explain ourselves to the
judges. With the house in Oklahoma, someone said, ‘I wish
you would have angled your sofa to take advantage of the view.’
I said, ‘I did. But myself and my carpenter both agreed the
traffic flow was too tight and the kids would get caught in a
traffic jam if we moved it around.’
What happened off camera that you wish that everyone
could have seen?
More of the positive feedback from the judges, because a lot of
times people remember the negative. The positive doesn’t stick
out much to them. Unfortunately it looked like the judges
were negative. They did have a lot of good comments. But they
weren’t on video.
Was there anything on camera you wish people wouldn’t
have seen?
When I almost cut my fingers off running that saw. They had
to play it over and over.
Was there ever a point at which you forgot about the camera?
I did. It took a little while. The cameras just became a part of
it. They were a part of the challenges.
Tell me something about being on a reality show that
someone who has never been on one wouldn’t know?
I think people don’t realize that you are on camera 18 to 19
hours a day. Easter Sunday was a filming day. Someone was
eliminated on Easter, and I thought Easter would be a free day!
I couldn’t call my family, no ham dinner – nothing.
What did you learn at Tech that helped you on the show?
I took a lot of classes at Tech that encouraged us to think
creatively. And I think I used that.
So being an interior designer, would you say your style is
more functional than aesthetic?
I always look for stylish solutions to everyday living problems.
I always look at these factors: functionality, how a family lives,
and are there pets? But I want what I do to look good, too.
How many contestants had a similar style to you and how
many were on the other end of the spectrum?
It’s interesting. David is on the other end of the spectrum.
He and I are extreme opposites. He is very fantasy oriented.
For the Pet Store Challenge, he made a rug out of reptile
bark chips. We couldn’t walk on it because we would kick it
everywhere. He was all, ‘Well it looks good.’ I would never do
something like that because – in my mind – there is always a
client who has to live with it.
What is your advice to future interior designers?
I would tell them not to let one negative opinion have any
ounce of effect on their self esteem or their ability. The mind
is very subjective and opinion oriented. You can’t please
everybody. After the Blue Room Challenge, I had people tell
me ‘Oh that’s brilliant.’ And some people would say, ‘Oh that
makes me nauseated.’ So you can’t please everybody, really.
Editor’s note: New York City living – in particular Tiffany &
Company – inspired Alice during the Blue Room Challenge.
Working in a New York City loft, she painted her room’s walls
“Tiffany Box Blue” and used the same color to accent white
furniture.
What would you tell a student coming to Tech?
Take advantage of everything that is offered to you. My one
regret is that the furniture design class here was really early in
the morning and I didn’t want to take it. I wish I would have.
I took a math class instead. Furniture design and construction
would have helped me on the show. And I would love to build
my own furniture now. If I would have taken that class, I
would be able to.
Is there anything you would like people to know about Alice?
Just that I appreciate how much Tech has supported me in this
endeavor. Tech family is a family. Students should definitely
take advantage of their time here. Know that your fellow
students will be rooting for you for your entire life, no matter
what you do.
www.latech.edu | 19
Ruth Johnson whispers a word of
encouragement to James Davison, a Ruston
businessman and a former student, during a
pre-graduation get together at the home of Tech
President Daniel Reneau.
“I tried to teach them how to live and work with people … to accept themselves for what they
were … to be the best that they could be. I taught them that they should leave this world a
better place in which to live by having lived in it.”
“miss ruth” johnson
receives honorary doctorate
Ruth Johnson, affectionately known as “Miss Ruth”
to her legions of friends and former students, has positively
influenced thousands of lives during her distinguished career
as an educator. Recognizing and honoring this outstanding
educator, Tech President Daniel Reneau conferred upon her the
honorary doctor of humanities degree, only the 24th honorary
doctorate conferred by Louisiana Tech University.
An educator for 40 years, an institution as a teacher from
1943 to 1967 at Ruston High School, a national award-winning
hostess at Ruston’s Holiday Inn, an astute businesswoman, and
a tireless civic and church worker, Miss Ruth celebrated her
100th birthday on October 3, 2006. At the gala reception and
centennial birthday party celebration hosted by friends and
former students at Squire Creek Country Club, Reneau joined
a host of dignitaries who congratulated Miss Ruth, and he
surprised her by announcing that she would receive the
doctorate at the November commencement ceremonies.
A brilliant teacher of mathematics at Ruston High School,
Miss Ruth didn’t confine her instructions to formulas and
computation; each day as students entered her classroom,
they found truisms on the blackboard. “Rolling stones gather
no moss.” “Anything worth doing at all is worth doing well.”
“Honesty is the best policy.” “If a task you’ve once begun, never
leave it ‘til it’s done.” She believes that education is far more
than subject matter; education involves the mind, the body
and the spirit, and she always treated her students with genuine
interest, love and a good dose of discipline, too.
“I had a lot of wonderful students,” Miss Ruth says. “I am
so proud of all of them. I tried to teach them how to live and
work with people … to accept themselves for what they were
… to be the best that they could be. I taught them that they
should leave this world a better place in which to live by having
lived in it.”
Born and reared in Choudrant, Miss Ruth and her brother,
T.W. Ray Johnson, graduated from Choudrant High School
in 1925 and entered Louisiana Tech. Miss Ruth was two
years older than her brother, but her parents decided that
they should enter elementary school at the same time so that
they could walk the three miles to and from school each day
together. Miss Ruth quickly completed the requirements for
her teaching certificate at Tech and began teaching in order
to assist her brother Ray as he continued his education. She
re-entered Tech as a full-time student in 1930 and completed
her bachelor’s degree from Tech in 1931. She later earned a
master’s degree in mathematics from Louisiana State University
and completed requirements for a doctorate in math at LSU.
The university could not award the degree because the head of
the math department did not hold a doctorate; unfortunately,
her dissertation, the only copy, was mistakenly destroyed in the
math department’s office, and she chose not to continue the
pursuit. “I decided that I liked teaching so much, and I made
the right choice,” she says.
Miss Ruth has a great love for her Louisiana Tech family,
and she maintains a keen interest in all University activities,
from academics to athletics. A great fan of the Lady Techster
basketball program, she follows many of the Tech sports
teams with interest. “I feel like Tech is part of my heart,” she
explains. Her presence at the annual homecoming meetings of
the Golden Society, made up of Tech graduates of 50 or more
years, is always a highlight as friends and former students greet
her with great warmth and excitement.
- Dr. Ruth Johnson
Her sincere love for Tech and her deep belief in academic
and teaching excellence led her to establish the Norman and
May Pipes Johnson Endowed Professorship in the College
of Applied and Natural Sciences in memory of her parents.
Miss Ruth also established the T.W. Ray Johnson Endowed
Professorship in Chemistry; her brother was a legendary and
much-loved chemistry professor at Tech, and this professorship
honors his memory and his career as a master teacher.
Today, Miss Ruth’s life is filled with friends, her church, and
the active business life that she maintains. In her unassuming
way, she goes about doing good, helping those who need a
boost in some way. She enjoys visits with her former students,
and indeed, many of Ruston’s most successful business leaders
count her as their mentor and inspiration. Retired since 1991,
her schedule continues to be active, and she is healthy, strong
and enthusiastic. When she looks back on her life, Miss Ruth
quickly discerns what’s important: respecting human beings.
And she’s thankful for God’s grace that has given her a long
and productive life.
Reneau, in conferring her honorary doctorate, said, “Ruth
Johnson is an icon; she is the example that all educators should
follow. Louisiana Tech University is blessed to have the interest,
the love and the support of this fine lady. Her life has blessed
literally thousands who, in turn, are blessing thousands more.
Excellence is her hallmark, and Louisiana Tech confers this
degree with great pride and gratitude to her.”
www.latech.edu | 21
news around campus
IfM sparkled during crystal
anniversary
jackie stevens: family ties
Jackie Stevens’ family had trouble feigning surprise when, after graduation, she
announced her decision to work at Tech.
“They always saw me working at Tech, and that was the big joke when I was a student worker
here,” says Stevens, smiling. “My grandparents and everyone that knows me joked, ‘Is Jackie
running Tech yet?’”
Not yet. But after sliding into her new position as coordinator of advancement programs for the
Marbury Alumni Center, Stevens is running the show when it comes to orchestrating events that
draw Tech graduates to campus. This winter, having just finished her first Homecoming, Stevens
couldn’t contain her enthusiasm for work that puts her in constant contact with Techsters and
their families. From planning all home-game tailgating events (and a few away tailgatings, too) to
planning and executing Homecoming activities, she has her hands full. So it’s a good thing that
Stevens can relate to the affection her fellow alumni feel for Tech – and not just because she’s a
2005 graduate.
“My parents graduated from Tech. Other family members – aunts, uncles, cousins – have gone
here,” she says. “I didn’t really think about going anywhere else.”
Prior to her advancement post, Stevens served as interim director of Orientation Student
Programs. Two years prior to that, she worked as a student assistant for the program.
In advancement, she has helped office staff as a student worker and graduate assistant. In her
new post, Stevens’ goals include strengthening the bond between Tech and young alumni by
encouraging them to come back to campus for visits. Once they see the campus in person, alumni
are stunned by the changes taking place. Stevens delights in their surprise.
“I like the fact that you can see results,” she says. “When alumni come back they want to tell you
how things were here and share their stories. They see how the University has grown. Young alumni
appreciate where the University is going. They all appreciate the growth and advancement that are
taking place. It feels great because you know that the hours you put in were well worth the time.”
Stevens says her greatest challenge is catering to large groups of alumni, especially when it comes
to planning events that keep the priorities of families at the forefront of activities.
“My sisters and I feel like we basically grew up on the Tech campus,” Stevens says. “I’d
like for other families to have the opportunity to share time at Tech events with
family and friends.”
When she’s not at Tech, Stevens can be found in her kitchen, since
she’s become an avid cake-decorator in her spare time. On weekends,
she likes to prowl the aisles of Hobby Lobby and Michaels, The
Arts & Crafts Store, in search of cake-decorating materials. She
dreams of attending culinary school, and has completed two cake
decorating courses through Tech’s continuing education program.
Celiac disease, an allergy to gluten, prevents her from enjoying
her creations, although she does some taste-testing when she
can. Doctors diagnosed Stevens with Celiac disease in 2005.
When she’s not in the kitchen, Stevens is visiting
her family in Winnsboro, hanging out with her sisters
– identical twins who live in Ruston – or chatting over
the phone with her friends from Tech who have moved
from the area. An avid sports fan, she never misses Tech
football and basketball games.
“Having grown up at tailgating parties and Tech
sporting events, it is just natural for me to continue,”
Stevens says. “No matter the score or the size of the
crowd, my dad taught me that you stay until the last
second goes off the clock. I will continue to do that
as long as I am able.” Spoken like a true Techster.
Northern Louisiana high school students visit the IfM during its crystal
anniversary.
Louisiana Tech celebrated its Institute for
Micromanufacturing’s 15-year crystal anniversary in
November with an open house, guided tours of the IfM
laboratories and a series of demonstrations.
Tech President Daniel Reneau called the anniversary a
cornerstone achievement.
“It’s a landmark recognition of something we started
a long time ago,” he said. “It represents a significant
investment at Louisiana Tech. We worked long and hard on
it, but it’s paid off — and it’s paying off.”
The IfM was built to be a world-class resource for the
realization of commercially viable micro- and nanosystems
that would contribute to the state and nation’s economy.
IfM Director Dr. Kody Varahramyan said the institute has
been a leader in emerging technologies.
“Since its inception over a decade and a half ago, the
Institute for Micromanufacturing has been at the forefront
of research and educational innovations,” Varahramyan
said. “The Institute has grown to its current five centers of
excellence in nanotechnology, biotechnology, biomedical
nanotechnology, environmental technology and information
technology.”
Since its dedication 15 years ago, the IfM has:
• built facilities valued at more than $50 million in
research and development resources;
• exceeded $30 million in total grants and contracts;
• surpassed 50 faculty, staff and associates;
• been ranked third in the nation by Small Times
magazine for micro- and nanotechnology education; and
• resulted in the existence of five start-up companies.
Enhanced server to boost statewide computer grid
Computing capacity at Louisiana Tech will grow massively when new state-of-the-art servers
are installed as part of the Louisiana Optical Network Initiative, one of the nation’s largest and
most powerful computer grids.
Part of a multi-million dollar agreement with Dell Computers and Intel, LONI will install
six clusters comprised of Dell PowerEdge 1950 servers at six participating campuses: Louisiana
Tech, Louisiana State University, and University of Louisiana at Lafayette, University of New
Orleans, Southern University and Tulane University.
“Now Louisiana researchers will not only have the most advanced optical network in the
country, but will couple that with the most powerful distributed supercomputer resource
available to any academic community,” said Dr. Les Guice, Tech’s vice president for research and
development, and chair of the LONI management council. “This is a strong message to the rest
of the world that Louisiana intends to be a leader in the knowledge economy.”
Tech’s supercomputer, called “Bluedawg,” was the first of five supercomputers installed to
help connect participating LONI universities.
“These enhancements to LONI’s computing power will make the network particularly
attractive to the kinds of companies we need here to energize our state’s high-tech economy,”
Gov. Kathleen Blanco said. “That’s why we’re leveraging the state’s investment in LONI by
reserving 10 percent of the grid’s computational power for the creation and retention of high-tech
jobs. Simply put, any businesses in the state able to connect to LONI can use the network as an
inducement to recruit companies that would benefit from world-class computational capacity.”
LONI cables help Tech’s
supercomputer, Bluedawg, share
information statewide.
www.latech.edu | 23
news around campus
Tech receives award for hurricanerelief efforts
Louisiana Tech has received national recognition for its relief efforts
following last year’s hurricanes Katrina and Rita that devastated the
Gulf Coast.
Tech was among nine universities to receive the Katrina
Compassion Award for Excellence in Hurricane Relief Service from the
Corporation for National and Community Service, the nation’s largest
independent grant-maker for the support of service and volunteerism.
Within 24 hours following Katrina’s landfall, Tech mobilized scores
of faculty, staff and students to accommodate an expected flood of
evacuees.
“Once we saw the magnitude of what was happening, almost
overnight, we made a decision to open Caruthers (residence) Hall to
some 300 evacuees,” said Tech President Daniel Reneau. “Our people
had it up and running in 24 hours.”
About 100 faculty and staff and more than 500 students helped to
clean and renovate the residence hall to house displaced evacuees.
Tulane University’s entire football program and its women’s track
team and staff were provided with office and workout space. The Tech
football team altered its practice schedule to accommodate the Tulane
team.
Tech admitted 289 displaced students from Gulf Coast colleges and
distributed $310,796 in financial aid to many of them.
Tech students sort supplies for Hurricane Katrina evacuees in
Caruthers Residence Hall.
news around campus
Smart paper research cited
A paper by three members of Louisiana Tech’s
Institute for Micromanufacturing was recently
published in an online journal and its print counterpart.
Kody Varahramyan, a professor of engineering and
director of the IfM; Mangilal Agarwal, a postdoctoral
research associate; and Yuri Lvov, a professor of
chemistry, wrote “Conductive wood microfibres for
smart paper through layer-by-layer nanocoating,” which
is available online and also appeared in the November
edition of Nanotechnology.
The researchers have developed a simple and costeffective technique to make electrically conductive
paper by applying a layer-by-layer nanoassembly coating
directly on wood microfibers as paper is made.
Resulting nanocoated wood microfibers and
paper can be used to make electronic devices such as
capacitors, inductors and transistors fabricated on costeffective lignocellulose pulp.
Use of conductive nanocoating on wood fiber can
open the door for future development of smart paper
technology, applied as sensors, communication devices,
electromagnetic shields and paper-based displays.
James wins national leadership award
Amanda James of Ruston, a student at Louisiana Tech, has received Kappa Delta Sorority’s prestigious
Corre Anding Stegall Leadership Award.
James, a senior journalism major, is president of the Alpha Chi chapter of Kappa Delta. She received the
award in Minneapolis and was one of 15 students to be so honored.
The leadership awards are presented each year to the top echelon of Kappa Delta student leaders who
have demonstrated high academic performance and outstanding leadership within their chapters and on
their college campuses.
They are the highest recognition that the sorority awards to undergraduate members. The award is
named for the organization’s former national president, who is currently Tech’s vice president for university
advancement.
James previously served Kappa Delta as a 2005 convention page, Panhellenic representative, Preference
Day event chairman and activities chairman. Her other activities include serving on the staff of The Tech Talk and in the Student
Government Association, as well as being a member of Order of Omega and Omicron Delta Kappa. She has a 4.0 grade point average.
Tech, Kazakhstan share visits,
educational ideas
Dr. Stan Napper, dean of the College of Engineering and Science,
traveled to Kazakhstan in 2005 to investigate a partnership between
Tech and Karaganda State Technical University.
Little more than a year later, faculty from KSTU reciprocated
the visit. Their trip to Ruston was aimed at fostering an educational
partnership between Tech and KSTU.
“Our guests were impressed with our hospitality, our openness
and transparency, our respect for their university and positions,
our commitment to education, as well as our innovation and
interdisciplinary approach to education, research and administration,”
Napper said.
The College of Engineering and Science hosted the group to help
the Kazakh visitors gain a better understanding of Tech’s engineering
Genady Piven, rector of Karaganda State Technical University,
program, as well as the American university system.
places a Kazakh native robe on Louisiana Tech President Daniel
“The questions that they have asked us and the questions we have
Reneau. Piven and a group of his associates from Kazakhstan
asked them have confirmed to us that we are on the right path (with
recently visited Tech’s College of Engineering and Science.
changes that are developing at KSTU),” said Genady Piven, rector
– or president – of KSTU.
Tech President Daniel Reneau introduced the group to Tech during an official presentation.
Napper said Piven will work to help KSTU’s students receive the Kazakh Bolashak Scholarship, a prestigious award to finance study
in foreign countries, and that other students may study at Tech, funded by KSTU.
“I will be making plans for a return visit, perhaps even within a few months,” Napper said. “We are also considering an opportunity
for some of our [Tech] students to study in Kazakhstan, at least during a short-term study course.”
Tech Band of Pride celebrates
centennial
They’re at the football games. They meet the team after
away games. They even have a group for basketball games.
Louisiana Tech’s Band of Pride has been leading Tech spirit
– and pride – for 100 years.
In his 16th year at Tech, Jim Robken is leading the Band
of Pride in its centennial celebration.
“First [the band] was military-type, based on the military
style of all boys,” Robken said. “During World War II, the
first girls were allowed in the band.”
More recently, the band has made other additions.
Not long ago, Tech formed the Victory Band, which met
the football team at the Thomas Assembly Center after awaygame wins. Two years ago the band began to meet the team
regardless of whether they won or lost.
A backward glance reveals the changes, as well as
traditions, since the group’s beginning in 1906.
Another addition since 1906 has been the Band of Pride’s
participation in events such as Time Out for Tech and Bark
Practice.
Top: A photo from the 1915-1916
university yearbook, the Lagniappe,
shows band members from that era.
Bottom: Tech’s Band of Pride leads
Tech spirit at every home game.
www.latech.edu | 25
f o u n d at i o n s p o t l i g h t
f o u n d at i o n s p o t l i g h t
TAKING tech ATHLETICS TO THE TOP
How can you support Tech athletics to new levels of excellence?
BUY SEASON TICKETS. JOIN CHAMPS, the annual fund of Tech athletics. MAKE A three-YEAR PLEDGE TO
SUPPORT EXCELLENCE IN TECH ATHLETICS THROUGH VISION 2020 — TECH ATHLETICS.
“I’m absolutely committed to this pursuit
of excellence in athletics, and I believe our
alumni are strongly committed.”
Tech President Dan Reneau has announced a bold
new initiative to elevate Tech athletics. The first powerful
evidence of this move toward new success on the playing fields
was seen with the hiring of football head coach Derek Dooley
and a talented group of coordinators and assistant coaches.
Reneau has also retained a national firm to completely review
the athletic department’s structure and make recommendations
for areas of restructuring that could provide the infrastructure
for new levels of excellence in every area of Tech athletics.
This move in athletics is in response to one component
of the new strategic plan for Louisiana Tech University
that resulted from a more than two-year process by Tech
administrators, faculty and students. Tech 2020-Tomorrow’s
Tech Today sets specific goals and timelines for the process
of transitioning Tech from a very good institution to a great
public research university.
Tech 2020 is a vision of Louisiana Tech in the year 2020
– possibly sooner in many areas. Included in the vision is this
description:
In the year 2020, Louisiana Tech is writing new chapters of
success as an athletic champion that competes at a high level
and wins with integrity.
The roadmap is set, and the process has begun. We know
that great public universities have outstanding athletic
programs; it’s an American tradition! Louisiana Tech will be
one of the great public universities, and our athletic program
will continue its championship tradition.
Reneau said recently, “I’m absolutely committed to this
pursuit of excellence in athletics, and I believe our alumni
are strongly committed. In the past month, you’ve seen the
earliest stages of this new initiative in the hiring of Derek
Dooley and his staff. Needed updating in facilities is planned
in the immediate future, and many other improvements and
enhancements are planned for the next few years. Every one
of our competitive sports is included in this new plan; from
competitive coaches’ salaries to facilities to academic support
and equipment, every sport will be provided the tools that
winners need.”
Tech alumni and friends know that considerable amounts
of private support are received by all highly successful
university athletic programs. State mandate caps the amount of
university operating funds that can be directed to athletics, and
Reneau has funded the athletic programs to the full amount of
that cap. That amounts to little more than 37 percent of the
current total athletic budget. The remainder must be made up
in ticket sales and private support. And the budget must be
significantly expanded to meet the goals of the strategic plan!
Now is the time for the alumni and friends of Louisiana
Tech to step up, to make the statement that they’re committed
to excellence in Tech athletics.
How can you support Tech athletics to new levels of
excellence? Buy season tickets. Join CHAMPS, the annual
fund of Tech athletics. Make a three-year pledge to support
excellence in Tech Athletics through Vision 2020 – Tech
Athletics.
Donations to Vision 2020-Tech Athletics are specifically
dedicated to the new initiatives that will elevate the athletic
program. Improvements for all sports include upgraded and
renovated facilities, enhanced salary programs for coaching
staffs, new support staff where warranted, enhanced budgets
in all sports, and other improvements as identified through
evaluation processes.
Reneau has already raised some major lead gifts, and
alumni will be receiving more information in the near future.
As Reneau said, “I’ve put myself out on a limb by making
some big commitments. I believe that our alumni want a
superior athletic program that reflects the academic programs
of the University, and I’m counting on all alumni and friends
to support this initiative. We need $6 million over a threeyear period. Every single gift is important; if 10,000 of our
65,000 active alumni would commit $25 per month for three
years, what a $3 million difference that would make! I urge
all alumni to join this great initiative; with all of us working
together, the future has never been brighter!”
Detach the form below and send your gift and pledge that
will make the difference for Tech athletics!
“I’ve put myself out on a limb by making some big commitments. I believe that our alumni want
a superior athletic program that reflects the academic programs of the university, and I’m
counting on all alumni and friends to support this initiative.”
Count me in! I’ll support Tech athletics to new and greater levels of excellence!
Name:____________________________________________________________________ Daytime phone:______________________________
Address:___________________________________________________________________ E-mail:______________________________________
Vision 2020 – Athletics
■ I want to support Vision 2020 with a gift of $_ ______________
■ I want to make a three-year commitment of $________________ per year – just bill me in 2008 and 2009.
CHAMPS – Athletic Annual Fund
■ I want to support Champs with a gift of $___________________ ■ Please send me more information on CHAMPS.
■ I’m interested in buying season tickets – send information.
■ Check enclosed (made payable to Louisiana Tech University Foundation)
■ Please charge my gift to: ■ Visa ■ MasterCard Card number:_______________________
3-Digit code:_ _______ Exp. date:_________
Name as it appears on card:_____________________________________________ Signature:_______________________________________
■ Enclosed is a matching gift form from my company/my spouse’s company.
Mail this form along with your payment to:
Louisiana Tech University Foundation
P.O. Box 1190, Ruston, LA 71273-9966
Or make your donation online at:
http://annualfund.latechalumni.org
Thank you for your generous support of Louisiana tech athletics!
www.latech.edu | 27
news about you
What’s new with you?
Do you have news to share in the News About You section? We want to share the stories of your accomplishments and
milestones. Photos are always welcome, too. You can submit your information for News About You online at
www.latechalumni.org where you can click on, “What’s New with You?”
1938 .................................
1969 .................................
James W. “Jimmy” Mize, life sciences,
(master’s education 1946), will be one of
three individuals presented with a Lifetime
Achievement Award by the Louisiana Track
and Field Coaches Association.
Donna Harrell Lubcker, elementary
education, (master’s human ecology 1981,
doctorate curriculum and instruction 2004),
collaborated with two others to write “My
Home is Louisiana,” an initiative by the
governor of Louisiana to create social studies
curriculum that is state specific.
1939 .................................
J. Lamar Stall, accounting, former president
and CEO at SWEPCO, will have a 480megawatt, combined-cycle natural gas-fired
plant named in his honor.
1955 .................................
Jean Futrell,
chemical
engineering, has been
chosen to receive the
American Chemical
Society’s Frank H.
Field and Joe L.
Franklin Award
for Outstanding
Achievement in Mass
Spectrometry.
1961 .................................
Ted Enloe, petroleum engineering, was
recently appointed to the board of directors of
Motion Computing, a leader in ultra-mobile
computing and wireless communications. In
addition, he has been named the chairman of
the audit committee of the board of directors.
1964 .................................
R.O. Machen, Jr., accounting, is Vice
President and Webster Parish Administrator
for Gibsland Bank & Trust Company in
Minden.
1965 .................................
J. Michael Pearson,
civil engineering,
has been appointed
by Orion Marine
Group, a marine
construction and
services company,
as chief executive
officer and was also
elected to the Board
of Directors.
1970 .................................
Mary Ann Mabry Bowles, home economics
education, was inducted into the USA
Badminton Walk of Fame Plaza in Orange,
Calif. in April of 2006.
David Crockett, petroleum engineering,
has retired after 35 years with Chevron Oil
Company.
W. John English,
Jr., business
administration,
has been elected to
partnership with the
national law firm of
Baker and Hostetler,
LLP.
John W. Wood, Jr., electrical engineering, has
been appointed by American Superconductor
Corporation to its board of directors.
Jeffrey L. Hawley, accounting, has earned the
personal financial specialist credential from
the American Institute of Certified Public
Accountants.
1967 .................................
1972 .................................
Terrel Deville, sociology, was awarded
an Honorary Doctorate of Divinity from
Centenary College in Shreveport.
Kay Lynn DeLoach Tettleton, human ecology
education, (master’s family and consumer
sciences 1973, doctorate education leadership
2003), collaborated with two others to write
“My Home is Louisiana,” an initiative by the
governor of Louisiana to create social studies
curriculum that is state specific.
Kathy Spurlock, journalism, executive editor
of The News-Star (Monroe) has been elected
to the board of directors of the Public Affairs
Research Council of Louisiana. In addition,
she has been selected as the chairwoman of the
American Society of Newspaper Editor’s Small
Newspaper Committee.
1976 .................................
1973 .................................
John L. Moore, general studies, has joined
Lifeway Christian Resources, a Christian
publishing company, as a network partnership
specialist. He was named a distinguished
alumnus of the New Orleans Baptist
Theological Seminary in June of 2006.
Rebecca Huffman Panagos, general studies,
psychology, (master’s industrial/organizational
psychology 1974), was one of 100 area
teachers to be presented with the Emerson
Excellence in Teaching Award. She was
recognized for instituting a before-school
remedial reading program in St. Charles, Mo.area elementary schools.
Steve Porter, chemical engineering, has been
appointed general counsel at Los Alamos
National Laboratory, a multidisciplinary
research institution engaged in strategic science
on behalf of national security.
Linda Shaw Sonnonstine, elementary special
education, has joined the Maria Mitchell
Association as coordinator of public relations
and development.
Jack Taylor, accounting, has recently been
named executive vice chair, operations for
KPMG, LLP. He has also been named to the
additional position of regional chief operating
officer for the Americas region of KPMG
International.
1974 .................................
Suzy Nelson, interior design, had her oil
painting of Lee Chapel in Lexington, Va.,
auctioned at $4,000 during the Kappa Alpha
Order Bid for Brotherhood in Kansas City,
Mo. Suzy is an instructor at Louisiana Tech
University.
1975 .................................
Patti Thomas Harper, English, is director of
Advocacy and Public Policy for the seventh
largest Catholic health care system in the
United States – CHRISTUS Health System.
She is overseeing the legislative strategy for
CHRISTUS Health’s “Futures Task Force”
approach to healthcare.
landscape architecture.
Barbara Carothers,
interior design, has
returned to Ratio
Architects, Inc.
in Indianapolis,
a large Midwest
firm specializing
in interior design,
architecture, historic
preservation,
planning and
Martin W. Corie, journalism, recently
graduated from the Capital Area Regional
Training Academy for Law Enforcement – a
twelve-week intensive school accredited by
P.O.S.T. (Peace Officer Standards & Training).
1977 .................................
Teri Courtney Noel, early childhood
education, was placed in the Hall of Fame at
Southeastern Education Department.
Gary Young, doctorate economics, has become
dean of the Montana State University-Billings
College of Business. He has most recently
served as the dean of the School of Business
Administration at the University of TennesseeMartin.
1978 .................................
Mickey Stephens deLaup, political science,
has formed a new law firm, deLaup &
Schnexnayder, LLC, practicing in the areas of
insurance defense litigation, personal injury
litigation and medical malpractice defense in
the New Orleans area.
Karl “Randy” Noel, petroleum engineering,
was named State Builder of the Year for 2005
and is chairman of the Louisiana Statewide
Uniform Construction Code Council.
Tracy Pendergrass, agricultural education, was
named vice president of product support at
Riggs Tractor Company in Little Rock, Ark.
Gwen Tabb Spivey, journalism, is employed
with HRworks, a recruiting consulting firm,
as a senior human resources consultant in
Atlanta, Ga.
bryant hammett
natural ambition
Hometown: Ferriday, La.
Now resides in: Baton Rouge, La.
Degree: 1978, Civil Engineering
Professional highlights: Founded Hammett and Associates, LLC,
elected to Louisiana House of Representatives in 1991, served as
chair of the Ways & Means Committee, Infrastructure Manager
and Senior Engineer for the Disaster Recovery Unit, State
Secretary for Wildlife and Fisheries.
How I got to Tech: The simple answer is that I received a full
academic scholarship. I zeroed in on Tech because of the engineering school. I had a strong math
background, but had no earthly idea of what I was going to do with the rest of my life.
Planting roots close to home: When I graduated there was a shortage of engineers nationwide,
anybody with an engineering degree could choose where they wanted to go to work. I wanted
to stay close to home and chose a small consulting firm in Natchez, all the time knowing in
the back of my mind that I was going to open my own business. In 1984, I founded Bryant
Hammett & Associates, LLC, a civil engineering land and surveying business in Ferriday. It’s still
in operation today.
On getting political: A bunch of my friends and I were talking and decided that we needed to
get somebody from Concordia Parish on state legislature. I had the fewest excuses of why not to
run. It was a very quick decision made in August of 1991. The election was in October of 1991.
I’d never served in political office before. The first time I ever saw the inside of the State Capitol
was the day I got inaugurated.
Lending a hand to New Orleans: After Hurricane Katrina, I was hired as infrastructure manager and
senior engineer for the Disaster Recovery Unit. The total budget for disaster recovery is $10.4
billion. Infrastructure was $2 billion. It is the largest reconstruction effort in the history of the
United States. It was a huge personal challenge and a professional obligation to start something
from the ground up and move it forward. The first week on the job, I said it was like ‘trying to
take a drink of water from a fire hose.’
Then landing a dream job: I’m taking a big pay cut to go from the engineering position to
secretary of wildlife and fisheries. I have 800 employees and a $100 million budget. Governor
(Kathleen Blanco) called me up herself and asked me to do it. At this point in my life I feel
strongly about the outdoors and wildlife, and I see great potential for the state. I love to hunt,
fish and scuba dive. It is my passion. I couldn’t see living out my life and sitting on a rocking
chair and going: ‘Man, I wonder what it would have been like to take that job as secretary.’ I
want to be somebody that people in the department respect because of my respect and passion
for the outdoors and natural resources of the state.
1979 .................................
1980 .................................
Andrea Hill Mayo, elementary special
education, takes the reins of leadership as
superintendent of the 8,200-student Longview,
Texas Independent School District.
James A. Gifford, music, has been appointed
to the position of minister of education
and administration at First Baptist Church,
Clinton, Miss.
W.J. “Jody” Richardson, Jr., electrical
engineering, after completing three years on the
faculty at the Naval War College, was recently
appointed to the position of director, naval
operational planner course for the U.S. Navy.
1981 .................................
Karen Dyson Taylor, accounting, (master’s
accounting 1979) was selected by Diversity
Journal as a “Women Worth Watching in
2006” recipient.
Mark Bodron, marketing, (master’s finance
1982, bachelor’s accounting 1984) was named
a 2006 Texas Super Lawyer in the October
issue of Texas Monthly and Texas Super
Lawyers. He is a partner with Baker Botts,
LLP in Houston.
www.latech.edu | 29
news about you
John Dansby
Rolling With GM
Hometown: Bossier City
Now resides in: Mansfield, Texas
Degree: 1992, B.S., Electrical Engineering
Further education: B.S., Industrial Technology, Southern
Illinois University, Carbondale
Position: Plant Manager, General Motors Arlington Assembly
Plant
How I got to Tech: I worked the third shift at the Shreveport
GM plant and took engineering classes during the day. I
completed GM’s electrician apprenticeship, but I knew I needed a college degree to move into
management.
A typical day: At 5:30 a.m., I have a conference call discussing the previous day’s results. We start
the assembly line at 6 a.m. There are additional morning meetings, management reviews and
logistical issues to work through. Later in the day, my calendar fills up with community-oriented
activities – chamber meetings, charitable events and interviews. Part of my job is to make
sure GM is a good corporate citizen. I’m not only responsible for the Arlington plant, but I’m
holding our reputation in the community. My day ends at about 7 p.m.
Rolling with GM: I’ve never left GM during my career. After earning my bachelor’s at Tech, I
was promoted to maintenance supervisor in the Shreveport plant paint shop. This led to being
appointed general foreman of maintenance and the paint shop’s electrical engineer. In 1997, my
family moved to Baltimore where I was promoted to production superintendent in the paint
shop. Then, I became superintendent of the trim shop and managed all interior components. I
was then transferred to the Flint, Mich., plant to become area manager of the paint shop. After
a year, we moved to Spring Hill, Tenn., where I became business team leader. Last year, I was
transferred to the Arlington plant to become assistant plant manager. Earlier this year I was
promoted to plant manager.
My toughest professional challenge: I’m data driven. It took me awhile to acknowledge that
people’s feelings weigh into decision-making processes. Numbers alone can’t always drive decisions.
If I’ve learned one thing in life, it is: Consistency is more important than always being right.
Triumph in my life: I take pride in balancing family and work. I’ve been married to my wife,
Darlene, for 22 years. We have three kids in college and two on the way. I just wish you could
have your children when you enter retirement. That way you could spend all your time with them.
David McGivney, accounting, (master’s
accounting 1984) was appointed vice president
of income tax for FelCor Lodging Trust Inc.
of Dallas, one of the nation’s largest hotel real
estate investment trusts.
Suzanne Harper
Stinson, business
technology, (general
business 1988,
master’s business
administration 1982
master’s industrial/
organizational
psychology 1994)
was elected secretary/
treasurer for the
National Association for Court Management
(NACM) at the annual conference held in Ft.
Lauderdale, Fla., in July.
1982 .................................
Nicholas K. “Nick” Akins, electrical
engineering (master’s electrical engineering
1986), has been named the executive vice
president of American Electric Power in
Columbus, Ohio.
Patty Galatas Von Steen, speech pathology,
(master’s counseling 1985) received the 2005
Distinguished Practitioner Award from the
Counselor Education Department of the
University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
1983 .................................
Rosemary Ellis, journalism and graphic
design, has been appointed editor-in-chief
of Good Housekeeping Magazine. She was
senior vice president and editorial director of
Prevention Magazine.
Pam Kelly Flowers, health and physical
education, a former Lady Techster, will be
inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of
Fame in Knoxville, Tenn., for the Class of 2007.
Charles Murray, accounting, has been
named controller of the Allegro Biodiesel
Corporation’s Louisiana operations. He and his
wife, Ann, make their home in Alexandria.
1984 .................................
James “Jace” Hunter, general studies, (master’s
administration and business 1986) was
recently promoted to Lt. Col. in the USAF
Reserves.
Sherlyn Lindsey Waghalter, journalism,
was the Top 20 Re/Max agent in the State
of Florida for 2006 and Emerging Woman
Business Leader in Pensacola for 2006.
1985 .................................
Scott Bozzell, accounting, has recently joined
Amedisys as the senior vice president of
finance.
Terry Kyle, marketing, a senior quality
engineer at the Eaton Corporation in
Mountain Home, Ark., has received ASQcertified Quality Engineer recognition,
indicating a proficiency in and comprehension
of quality engineering principles and practices.
Brent Shinall, industrial engineering, has
joined Helix Energy Solutions to head the
company’s newly formed global supply chain
department, and has been elected as vice
president-supply chain management.
Kellye Williams Walker, marketing, has been
appointed to the position of general counsel,
Diageo North America, the world’s leading
beer, wine and spirits company.
1988 .................................
Tamara McLemore, nursing, has been selected
by the Emergency Nurses Association as a
recipient of the 2006 Exhibitors Scholarship
Award.
Michael Tompkins, social sciences, retired from
the U.S. Air Force, was awarded a Meritorious
Service Medal, 7th Oak Leaf Cluster at his
retirement ceremony at Langley AFB, Va.
1989 .................................
J. Mark Hutchins,
general studies,
(master’s industrial/
organizational
psychology
1990) is the new
vice president
for University
Advancement at
Tennessee Tech
University in
Cookeville, Tenn.
Dwain Spillman, journalism, was promoted
with the Louisiana Department of Public
Safety and Corrections to Probation and Parole
Supervisor with the Leesville District.
Darlene Bush
Tucker, journalism,
was the Louisiana
Press Women’s 2006
Communicator of
Achievement finalist
and was recently
honored during the
National Federation
of Press Women
annual conference in
Denver.
1987 .................................
1990 .................................
Michael Boswell, land surveying technology
and construction engineering technology, has
joined Allegro Biodiesel Corporation as project
construction manager.
Lorin King, psychology, (animal biology
1993, master’s history 1996 master’s biology
1997) has been named the new curator and
chief paleontologist for the Dinosaur Depot
Museum located in Canon City, Colo.
Debbie Primeaux Williamson, health and
physical education, (master’s health and
physical education 1986) has been named
as the secretary-rules editor by the NCAA
Women’s Basketball Rules Committee.
1986 .................................
Michael Manning, speech communications,
was promoted to communications coordinator
for the Country Music Hall of Fame and
Museum in Nashville, Tenn.
Kenn Kotara, graphic design, (master’s studio
1993) was invited to International “Art on
Paper 2006” Exhibition at the Weatherspoon
Museum, University of North Carolina at
Greensboro.
Kara Ferachi
Right on Target
Hometown: Dry Creek
Now resides in: Baton Rouge
Degree: 1998, B.S., Biology
Further education: M.S., Medical Physics, Louisiana State
University
Current position: Medical Physicist, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer
Center
About my job: Medical physicists are involved in every aspect of
radiation therapy. We ensure correct radiation dosages, verify
patient treatment plans and carry out quality assurance for all radiation therapy procedures.
I started working here more than three years ago as part of my master’s program. LSU has a
partnership with Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center whereby students in the medical physics
program do their clinical training here. I get to work alongside prestigious physicists from all
over the country. We have the latest technology that will allow me to advance my career and
knowledge in the field.
A day on the job: There isn’t a set structure. Every patient is unique. Technology continually
changes, and there’s always something new to learn. We have many different radiation therapy
techniques. Some procedures are special and others are routine. The routine procedures don’t
require as much input from a physicist. When a physician prescribes the radiation dosage, it’s
our job to get the radiation to the tumor and avoid healthy tissue. Every tumor is different;
there’s no set recipe.
My toughest professional challenge: Keeping up with the new technology and understanding how
to apply it.
Fond memory of Tech: I met my husband, Kyle Ferachi (1998, political science). He is a partner at
Keogh, Cox and Wilson law firm in Baton Rouge.
On working with cancer patients: It can be difficult, but it’s rewarding in the sense that what I
do helps people. In some cases, the patient has no other option. Knowing that I’m making a
difference in someone’s life helps me cope with the stress.
If I’ve learned one thing in life, it is: Enjoy what you do and look forward to the future.
Michael Parker,
business technology,
was named “Agent
of the Month”
for December by
SoCo Urban Lofts
and its developer,
Westmount Realty
Capital LLC.
Fellow program for 2007.
Neil G. Weingarten, professional aviation, was
promoted to the position of director of station
operations at Allegiant Air in Las Vegas.
1995 .................................
Keith Rainey, biomedical engineering, received
a promotion to a regional engineer position
with Weyerhaeuser in the Pacific Northwest.
Jeffrey Risinger, industrial organizational
psychology, served as acting executive
director for the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission. He and his family reside in
Woodbridge, Va.
1996 .................................
1992 .................................
Robert “Neill” Kirkland, forestry, was recently
presented the Young Forestland Owner of
the Year Award at the 65th Annual National
Forestry Landowners Conference in San
Jerry Johnson, graphic design, has been
selected to Troy University’s Chancellor’s
Amy Brown, health and physical education,
former Lady Techster player, has been
named the head women’s basketball coach at
Tennessee Tech University.
www.latech.edu | 31
news about you
Antonio. He was also presented with the
Outstanding Young Forester award last year by
the Mississippi Society of American Foresters.
1998 .................................
Michael Braughton, speech communications,
was recently hired by the Purdue University
Athletic Department to serve as the director of
the John Purdue Club.
Martie Cordaro, marketing, has been named
the Omaha Royals assistant general manager
for business development.
Jason Knippers, sociology, has accepted the
position of minister of students at First Baptist
Church, Newton, Miss.
1999 .................................
Chris Daniel, political science, has recently
joined the law firm of MacNeill & Buffington,
P.A., of Jackson, Miss., as a senior litigation
associate. He also has been named the Young
Alumni Chairman, Mississippi College School
of Law Annual Giving.
Susan Henderson Morris, animal biology, has
completed her medical residency in pediatrics
and has recently been appointed as a Fellow
of Pediatric Intensive Care Medicine at the
Emory School of Medicine in Atlanta.
2000 .................................
Patrick Raley, industrial engineering (master’s
education 2006), has recently published his
first novel “Precedent of Justice.”
2002 .................................
Jennifer H. Bell, interior design, has become a
designer for the architectural firm of Lambert
Ezell Durham Architecture Interior Design in
Florence, Ala.
Stay connected.
Join the Louisiana Tech Alumni Association today.
Donald Logan Hulett, business
administration, earned his Doctor of
Jurisprudence from South Texas College of
Law in May 2006.
Palmer Green Johnston, biology, is a resident
at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital. She graduated
from LSU School of Medicine in May 2006.
Patrick Moore, secondary education, became
USAF Chaplain with the 169th Fighter Wing,
McEntire Air Force Base, S.C.
Loraleigh Cox Phillips, pre-law, recently
received her juris doctorate degree from
Mississippi College School of Law in Jackson,
Miss.
2003 .................................
Adam Gates, human resource management,
recently joined the Jackson, Miss., firm of
McGlinchey Stafford, working primarily on
labor and employment law and class action
defense.
Mary Harris, general studies, (master’s
counseling and guidance 2005) was presented
with the $25,000 Milken Award. She is
a fourth grade teacher at Summer Grove
Elementary School in Shreveport.
Cynthia Pilcher, doctorate education
leadership, collaborated with two others to
write “My Home is Louisiana,” an initiative
by the governor of Louisiana to create social
studies curriculum that is state specific.
Emily Scalfano, journalism, is the editor of
L Magazine and the non-daily publications
editor for The Daily Advertiser in Lafayette.
in Orangeburg as assistant vice president of
student affairs.
and you will be even prouder to be a part of the Tech Family. Come join
the excitement in 2007.”
- Kenny Guillot (‘88), Alumni Association president
Randi Frazier Anderson, speech, was selected
as one of 10 finalists in the Kirkland’s Home
Next Great American Artist Contest. Her
acrylic painting, Tree of Life, was selected from
nearly 3,500 entries Kirkland’s Home received
from artists across the country.
W. Olin Machen, civil engineering technology,
is a technical professional in production
enhancement for Halliburton in Bossier City.
2006 .................................
Jessica Jordan Self, political science, is
attending LSU to pursue a master’s and PhD
degree in political science.
Shannin Watkins, medical technology, has
accepted a job at Johns Hopkins Hospital in
Baltimore, Md. as a medical technologist.
Retired Faculty
Dorothy Hanks, was inducted into the C.E.
Byrd High School Hall of Fame on Oct. 20,
2006. She graduated from Byrd High School
in 1930 and was assistant professor of library
science at Louisiana Tech University.
Please cut along dotted line and send to the following address or join online at www.latechalumni.org/association.
Alumni Information Update – mail to: Alumni Association | P.O. Box 3183 | Ruston LA 71272
________________________________________________________________________________________
Name: Last
First
Middle/Maiden
Class
Degree
Social Security #
________________________________________________________________________________________
Spouse’s Name: Last
First
Middle/Maiden
Coll./Univ. & Class
Degree
Social Security #
________________________________________________________________________________________
Home Address: Street
Dallas Cheek Knight
William & Karen Land
John H. Laughlin
Bobby B. Lyle
Milt & Angel May
David W. McGivney
Ray A. Millard
J. Craig Morris
John & Linda Morris
Allen G. Pike
City
State
ZIP
Home Phone #
________________________________________________________________________________________
The Louisiana Tech Alumni Association salutes these Lifetime Members:
athletics. Our vision is clear ... we will be the best at whatever we do,
2005 .................................
Valerie Fields, curriculum and instruction,
has joined South Carolina State University
These names have been added to the lifetime roster since the previous issue of the magazine.
campus is buzzing with anticipation of our renewed commitment to
Sarah Beth Peel, marketing, has recently
joined the University of New Orleans in the
office of admissions as an admissions counselor.
2004 .................................
Brandon & Susan Ewing
Karen Wright Gordon
Larry & Janet Graff
Benjamin T. Grafton
Robert G. Griffin
Monique Cooper Hampton
Frances Turner Henry
Roberta Green Hinton
Derek & Jennifer Husser
Dr. T. Kent Kirk
to be a premier national institution of higher learning, and the
Kathy Buckner Mims, family and consumer
sciences, graduated in May from Stephen F.
Austin State University with a master’s of social
work with a 4.0 grade point average.
thank you for your support.
Errol & Karen Aboe
Dr. F. Paul & Betsy Beall
William G. Boggs
John & Patricia Bonneau
John D. & Jane Caruthers
Kermith E. Conrad
The Honorable James L. Dennis
John & Stacey Denny
John & Jane Ellett
Chris & Kelly Elliott
“What an exciting time it is at Louisiana Tech! Our University continues
K. Lance Pullis
Stanley & Judy Read
Bonnie Bliss Richardson
Dr. Glen M. Robinson, III
Wayne & Buena Stevenson
Louis W. Waller
Velton Welch, Jr.
David S. Wilburn
Adrienne M. Williams, M.D
Clarke M. “Trey” Williams
Edwin M. Wright, Jr.
Employer
Bus. Address
Bus. Phone #
Position
________________________________________________________________________________________
Spouse’s Employer
Bus. Address
Bus. Phone #
Position
________________________________________________________________________________________
Email Address
Spouse’s Email Address
■ $35 Single Membership ■ $50 Joint Membership ■ $500 Single Life Membership ■ $600 Joint Life Membership
I have enclosed: $______________
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Please make your check payable to the Louisiana Tech Alumni Association.
Thank you for your membership and continued support of Louisiana Tech.
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dooley`s dawgs - Louisiana Tech Alumni

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