| IN THIS ISSUE ... | ||
Southeastern participates in North Shore Focus
Southeastern participated last week in North Shore Focus, a regionally-hosted gathering
with state legislators, held in the Louisiana Capitol's Memorial Hall.
This was the ninth year for the collaborative advocacy event, designed to provide
area business leaders with an opportunity to visit with legislators from across the
state and present the North Shore region's legislative priorities.
Above, right: Pictured from left are Representative Chris Broadwater, President John L. Crain, Larry Rase, executive director of the Northshore Business Council, Erin Moore Cowser, executive director of public and governmental affairs, and Representative Greg Cromer.
LSBDC at Southeastern wins Regional Excellence & Innovation Award
The Louisiana Small Business Development Center at Southeastern was recognized as
the top center in a five-state region at an awards reception held at the Governor's
Mansion May 15.
The SBDC Excellence and Innovation Award is given annually to the program that
demonstrates excellence in improving value to small businesses and advancing program
delivery and management through innovation.
After being named the top center of the year out of 10 centers in the state,
the Southeastern SBDC was nominated for the SBA Region VI Award. Region VI covers
Louisiana, Arkansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. The achievement ranks the Southeastern
center among the top 10 SBDCs in the nation for 2012.
"This is a well-deserved recognition of the entire team and exceptional work
with small businesses and entrepreneurs in southeast Louisiana," said LSBDC State
Director Mary Lynn Wilkerson.
She said the center's productivity, professionalism and dedication to entrepreneurship
have been noted by the community, clients, resources partners, media and many others
who have worked with the Southeastern group.
It is the second time the center received the top state award and its first regional
award.
Southeastern President John L. Crain said the university is proud of the center's
recognition.
"The Louisiana Small Business Development Center at Southeastern has a long history
of providing vital consulting services to individuals and organizations planning business
start-ups or expansions," said Crain.
"The Northshore area is the fastest growing region in the state, and the SBDC,
along with the services provided through the university's Southeast Louisiana Business
Center, has created an environment that facilitates fast service to clients," he added.
"The efforts of this team, with strong university support, have resulted in a model
of private-university-public partnership that is proving to be highly successful in
helping develop the economic potential of the region."
"We hired some great people and they have done great work," said Southeastern
SBDC Director William Joubert. "This award is about our entire staff, the university
and the LSBDC State Office all working together to better serve the business community
and other Small Business Development Centers."
In addition to Joubert, other staff members recognized at the award ceremony
were Assistant Director Sandy Summers and consultants Wayne Ricks, Steven Baham, Ginger
Cangelosi and Scott Uffman.
The SBDC at Southeastern has been at the helm of economic development on the
North Shore for more than 10 years. In 2001, Joubert proposed the university adopt
an innovative plan to create a one-stop shop for regional economic development, with
the SBDC as the linchpin. That vision became a reality in 2003 with the opening of
the Southeast Louisiana Business Center. Located in its own building near the campus,
the center houses the SBDC, a business incubator, the Business Research Center and
various economic development organizations.
The center – which serves the five-parish region of Livingston, St. Helena, St.
Tammany, Tangipahoa and Washington parishes – has assembled a team of high quality
business consultants and assembled an deep network of resources. Since 2008, the center
has served more than 1,760 clients and trained more than 4,200 individuals. The team
helped clients create 2,027 jobs and save 612, secure more than $217 million in capital,
start 108 new businesses and increase sales by $100 million.
Above: The Southeastern Small Business Development Center was recognized with the
SBDC Excellence and Innovation Award. Serving on the Southeastern team are, from left,
Ginger Cangelosi, business continuity consultant; Scott Uffman, sales consultant;
Director William Joubert; Wayne Ricks, senior business consultant; Steven Baham, business
consultant; and Assistant Director Sandy Summers.
Southeastern biologist named president-elect of International Sea Turtle Society
A Southeastern biologist has been named president-elect of the International Sea
Turtle Society (ISTS).
Roldán Valverde, associate professor of biology, has served on the board of directors
of the organization for two years and as a member for more than 20. As president-elect,
he will be a primary organizer of the ISTS Symposium to be held in New Orleans in
April 2014. It is the first time the organization is meeting in New Orleans.
The ISTS is an organization of more than 1,200 scientists and others linked by
their interest in sea turtle biology and their dedication to sea turtle conservation.
"ISTS is a very diverse organization, representing various cultures, national
origins, professions and organizations," Valverde said. "We are united in our vision
and knowledge of the importance sea turtles play in our environment and are dedicated
to preserving their habitats and improving conservation measures for these endangered
species."
A member of the Southeastern faculty since 2004, Valverde has worked for the
Caribbean Conservation Corp. – now the Sea Turtle Conservancy – as a field leader
of the green sea turtle tagging project in Costa Rica, the oldest sea turtle project
in the world. He has led several summer tropical ecology and sea turtle study-abroad
courses to Costa Rica. His lab at Southeastern fosters international collaborative
programs, especially with Latin American institutions.
Above, right: Associate Professor of Biological Sciences Roldán Valverde, shown in his lab at the university, has been named president-elect of the International Sea Turtle Society, an association of more than 1,200 scientists and others interested in sea turtle research and conservation.
The Lion's Roar honored with Associated Press Awards
The Lion's Roar, the student newspaper at Southeastern, was recently honored with two awards at the
Louisiana-Mississippi Associated Press Managing Editors annual meeting in New Orleans.
The students competed in the college and university division, which recognizes
student journalists for outstanding performance in college print journalism.
The newspaper took first place for its website, www.lionsroarnews.com in the digital-website portion of the competition.
"Winning this award means that our publication is moving in the right direction
in terms of our web presence," said Social Media Editor Brooke Kimball of Walker,
who manages the site. "It is especially meaningful since the site is relatively new,
and we have been working to bring awareness to students about this new way to receive
campus news."
Photography Editor Tony Romain of Slidell took first place in the college/university
photography category.
"It's reassuring to be in the top ranks of others in our region and that I'm
capturing special moments of the school's history in photography," said Romain. "I
feel like I am living up to the legacy of photo editors before me."
Bloomberg Terminals an advantage for Southeastern students
When most people think of a laboratory, images of test tubes and beakers come to mind. However, a different kind of lab was recently installed at Southeastern Louisiana University—this one with special computer terminals linked to immediate stock quotes and related data needed for intense business analysis.
It's the same kind of equipment and access to data that high powered stock brokers are using to analyze fast moving markets, explained John Cresson, associate professor of finance.
"It's all about the students separating themselves from the competition, said Cresson, who is the director of Southeastern's Executive MBA program. "They can use this system for their projects – where they get real-time, up-to-the-minute data – or they can use the Internet, which is what was being used 15 years ago."
The new lab, located in a reconfigured portion in the College of Business' Garrett Hall, features 11 terminals that link to Bloomberg, a major global provider of 24-hour financial news and information, including real time and historic price data, financials data, trading news and analysis, as well as general news. Bloomberg services also offer analytic tools that are typically used by financial specialists.
The Bloomberg Lab, according to Cresson, gives Southeastern students valuable experience in working with one of the high-tech tools of the modern financial world.
"At a recent conference in New York, the participants using Bloomberg commented on how it helps separate them from other schools of business," Cresson said. "With our smaller class sizes, our students are getting more opportunities to work on these specialized terminals."
And with some of the terminals powered by laptop computers, EMBA students – who typically meet in class on Saturdays – will be able to periodically check the machines out of the university for work at home, Cresson said.
The new lab – which includes licenses and computers – was financed with self-generated funds by growing enrollments in the EMBA program, as well as a grant from the Southeastern Student Government Association.
The look and feel of a Bloomberg keyboard is similar to a standard computer keyboard, with the addition of several yellow "hot keys" that identify market sectors, such as government securities, money markets, preferred and equity shares, commodity markets and currency markets. The terminal functions as an application in the Windows environment.
While Bloomberg is known primarily in the financial world, it's not just used for finance. It's also used for business.
"There is supply chain management information, economics, accounting, and statistical data. Students can research a company they may be interested in working for in the future," Cresson said. "Bloomberg has in-house analysts. It's not a substitute for finance; it compliments it. It allows the students to take theory and put it into practice. We don't have to make up numbers or give them cases that happened five years ago. It's all current information. It's a tool that allows the students to put into practice what we teach in the classroom."
Southeastern MBA student and Bloomberg lab graduate assistant Wayne Crawford couldn't agree more.
"Although I am not a finance major, I believe this is a great way for our students to gain an advantage," he said. "The students who use the Bloomberg lab for projects or research and dedicate the extra time are definitely gaining an advantage."
"We have the resources that major private institutions offer, but at a considerably lower tuition," he said. "We have the best of both worlds because we have professors and people with real-world experience, not just graduate assistants, teaching our students."
Above: Southeastern EMBA Director John Cresson observes senior Toni Bonura of Madisonville
as she works at a Bloomberg terminal, in a new, highly specialized computer laboratory
in the College of Business. The new lab gives business students a competitive edge
by exposing them to one of the modern tools used in business today.
Ricks certified as Global Business Professional
Wayne Ricks, a business consultant with Southeastern's business center has been certified
as a Global Business Professional.
Ricks works in the Southeast Louisiana Business Center and the university's Louisiana
Small Business Development Center. The center also houses a business incubator and
several area economic development agencies.
He is the second member of the center to be certified. Director William Joubert
received the certification earlier this year.
The test, administered by NABSITE International (formerly the North American Small
Business International Trade Educators), was formed to raise the level of practice
in the field of international trade, provide professional development goals, and showcase
competency through a rigorous certification process.
"An increasing number of our clients at the center are coming to us with international
concerns, and that spurred our interest in earning such certifications," said Joubert.
"It provides another dimension of the extensive services we offer through the business
center and the LSBDC."
A consultant with the business center since 2005, Ricks works with start-up businesses,
existing business owners and local economic development agencies. He holds an MBA
degree and bachelor's degree in finance, both from Southeastern.
Human Resources news
Quality Service and Self-Motivation Workshops
The Human Resources Office and the Comprehensive Public Training Program (CPTP) are
sponsoring two upcoming workshops, "Providing Quality Service" on Wednesday, June
20, and "Self-Motivation in the Workplace" on Tuesday, July 17.
Both classes will be held in the University Center, room 139 and will run from
8:15 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Registration for these classes is required, and space is limited.
For more information and to find out how to register, contact Jan Ortego at Jan.Ortego@southeastern.edu or at extension 5771.
Ethics Education Requirement
Effective January 1, 2012, LA Revised Statute mandates that all public employees are
required to take one hour of training each calendar year on the Code of Governmental
Ethics. It is the individual's responsibility to comply with this mandate. In addition
to faculty and staff, the requirement applies to student workers, graduate assistants
and university contractors as well.
Below you will find a link to the video training which consists of three twenty
minute classes presented in video format. It is possible to bookmark the video and
return to your place so that all three parts of the class may be taken at the same
time or independently.
Toward the bottom third of the linked page below, at the words Register (New
User), is where you log in with your email address and "create a NEW Password for
this site only." From there it is self-explanatory.
At the conclusion of the video presentation, individuals may print out a certificate
of completion. Please print and send a copy of the certificate to HR, SLU 10799 to
have the class added to your training record. Click on the following link to begin
the training: http://eap.ethics.la.gov/EthicsTraining/login.aspx.
Contact Jan Ortego at Jan.Ortego@southeastern.edu or at extension 5771 for more information.
Action 17 News
SLU announces spring grads
SLU students, faculty inducted into Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society
Southeastern College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences honors top students
http://www.actionnews17.com/News/Education/tabid/88/ArticleID/1105/ArtMID/520/College-of-.aspx
Southeastern faces additional $16.5 million cut
LSBDC at Southeastern wins regional excellence and innovation awards
Southeastern students use Bloomberg terminals to join Wall Street
BR Advocate
Student-athletes get free physicals
http://theadvocate.com/news/livingston/2770119-123/student-athletes-get-free-physicals
Special Olympics held at SLU
http://theadvocate.com/news/livingston/2850205-123/special-olympics-held-at-slu
SLU center offers business seminar
http://theadvocate.com/news/livingston/2850211-123/briefs-for-may-24-2012
Hammond Daily Star
Legislators, public allow insane justice (Letter to the editor)
http://www.hammondstar.com/articles/2012/05/22/opinion/letters/8784.txt
Talk about the South: Gut check time for professors (Column)
http://www.hammondstar.com/articles/2012/05/22/opinion/columnists/8269.txt
Enemy within (Column)
http://www.hammondstar.com/articles/2012/05/25/opinion/columnists/8263.txt
Minden Press Herald
Exhibit sets up at Dorcheat (Charles Elliott)
http://www.press-herald.com/index.php/news/local-news/3050-exhibit-sets-up-at-dorcheat
Professional activities
Dan Hollander and Robert Kraemer (Kinesiology and Health Studies) recently published a book chapter with Oxford University
Press in the Oxford Handbook of Exercise Psychology, entitled "The Psychology of Resistance Exercise." This chapter covers over four
decades of research and is meant to be a reference for libraries, graduate students
and scholars as a definitive source of information in this line of inquiry.
Charles Elliott (History and Political Science) presented "The Louisiana Purchase: Impact and Legacy," a six-week directed readings and discussion session funded by grants from the State of Louisiana and the National Endowment for the Humanities, as part of the Readings in Literature and Culture project (RELIC) sponsored by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities and the Louisiana Library Association; Main Branch (Goodwood) East Baton Rouge Parish Library, April 12-May 27.
ByLion is published weekly online (bi-weekly during the summer session) for the faculty and staff of Southeastern Louisiana University. Send submissions to publicinfo@southeastern.edu, SLU 10880, fax 985-549-2061, or bring to University Marketing and Communications Office in East Stadium. Submission deadline is 4:30 p.m. on Thursday.
Return to By-Lion directory
