Alumni Association chooses new board of directors

Stephanie Stafford Kropog of Hammond has been elected president and chair of the 2022-23 board of directors for the Southeastern Louisiana University Alumni Association.

A 1986 graduate of Southeastern with a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting, Kropog is the physician services director at North Oaks Health System.

Kropog is a member of the Hammond Kiwanis Club, where she served on the board of directors in 2005, the FeLions, where she is a Champagne Bingo committee member, and the Chamber of Commerce.

Joining her on the Executive Committee will be President-Elect Michelle Blum Gallo, of Albany, with Crime Stoppers of Tangipahoa, Inc.; Treasurer Shane Purvis, of Mandeville, with Fidelity Bank; and Secretary Bridget Bankston LaBorde, of Tickfaw, with Northshore Technical Community College.

Executive Director of Alumni Relations Michelle Biggs said board members commit their time and expertise to fulfill the association’s mission of strengthening ties between the university, alumni and community.

“The board is composed of a wide range of individuals who represent the entire alumni base. Each member serves a two-year term, and his or her job is to assist in promoting the mission of the Alumni Association in tandem with that of Southeastern,” said Biggs. “They promote pride, help in student recruitment efforts, act as mentors, preserve traditions of the university and encourage active membership in the association.”

Also serving on the board as new members are Scott Adams, of Denham Springs, with Dow Chemical Company; Amy Caron Gowland, of Mandeville, with St. Tammany Health System; Kenneth Terrell, of Cedar Hill, Tex., with the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office; Donna Graham Wallette, of Hammond, with Holy Ghost Catholic School, and Joel Klein, of Covington, with Joel Klein Insurance Agency.

Returning board members include Makeitta Darbonne Citizen, of Lake Charles, with Southwest Louisiana Credit Union; Michael DuBois, of Hammond, owner of DuBois Resources and Solutions; and Nakia Merrill, of Addison, Tex., with Cedar Valley College.

Biggs said that as part of Kropog’s incoming presidential duties, she has appointed two one-year termed board members to round out the alumni representation in the year ahead. Those include Taylor Anthony, of Ponchatoula, with the 21st Judicial District Attorney’s Office, and Ashley Williams King, of Baton Rouge, with BXS Insurance.

 

Tuesday, May 24, 2022 11:00:42 AM CDT