|
Southeastern designated a Military Friendly School for fifth time
 Southeastern has been named a 2017 Military Friendly School by Victory Media, publisher
of “G.I Jobs,” the premier magazine for military personnel transitioning to civilian
life.
It is the fifth consecutive year the university has earned the special designation.
According to the company, the listing honors the top colleges, universities and
trade schools that are doing the most to embrace the nation’s military service members
and veterans and spouses as students and to ensure their success on campus.
“This listing demonstrates Southeastern’s ongoing commitment to our veterans
and their educational success,” said President John L. Crain. “It is an honor to be
named and to know that we are among the top institutions helping those individuals
who have made great sacrifices in service to our state and nation.”
Southeastern enrolls approximately 400 military veterans attending the university
on the Post 9/11 G.I. Bill of Rights. The university maintains a Veterans Upward Bound
program; an Office of Veterans Affairs that assists students in obtaining benefits
and with other issues; provides academic and other counseling services; offers scholarships
specifically for military students and veterans; and maintains a wide range of online
and distance learning programs that provide students with flexibility in scheduling.
The ROTC program returned to Southeastern last spring after more than a 20-year
hiatus, during which time Southeastern students were still able to participate in
ROTC, but had to take their military courses through Southern University’s Navy program
or LSU’s Army and Air Force programs and had to travel to Baton Rouge in order to
participate.
Also new to campus is the Southeastern Student Veterans & Military Interest Association,
a group open to veterans, reservists, spouses, dependents, and ROTC participants attending
both Southeastern and Northshore Technical Community College. The association was
founded to help the school administration better understand and meet the needs of
veterans; offer advice from experienced to incoming veterans; help civilians better
understand the military experience; and provide opportunities for veterans to meet
one another and connect.
Institutions competed for inclusion on the Military Friendly Schools list based
on such categories as military support on campus, graduation and employment outcomes,
and career and job counseling services. The data provided by schools were independently
tested by the firm Ernst and Young.
The 2017 list of Military Friendly Schools shows the commitment of those institutions
in providing a supportive environment for military students, the company said in announcing
the list.
“Post-secondary institutions earning the 2017 Military Friendly School award
have exceptionally strong programs for transitioning service members and spouses,”
said Daniel Nichols, chief product officer of Victory Media. “Our Military Friendly
Schools are truly aligning their military programs and services with employers to
help students translate military experience, skills and training into successful careers
after graduation.”
Victory Media is a service-disabled, veteran-owned small business founded in
2001. In addition to “G.I. Jobs,” the company also publishes the magazine “Military
Spouse.”
|
|
Chick-fil-A executive recruits students for internship opportunities
Southeastern graduate and Chick-fil-A Chief Procurement Officer and Vice President
Rob Dugas visited Southeastern recently to meet with and recruit Southeastern students
for corporate internship opportunities at Chick-fil-A national headquarters in Atlanta.
Sponsored by Southeastern’s Office of Career Services, the event was part of
the university’s ongoing Real-World Ready initiative that provides students with experiential
learning opportunities, including internships, service-learning courses, research,
and artistic and field experiences.
A 1986 graduate with a degree in communication, Dugas was recruiting for a 10-week
summer program in Atlanta that includes paid corporate internships with a housing
stipend and hands-on corporate learning experience in the privately held company.
Chick-fil-A offers internship opportunities in accounting, business, communication,
engineering, finance, information technology, and marketing and supply chain management.
“Unlike training in biology and other fields, the College of Business doesn’t
have labs to send students to so that they can learn by seeing and doing,” said Louis
Mayfield Professor of Marketing Mike Jones. “Through internships, students can see
if they even want to work in the world that they are preparing for. One can read lots
of books about riding bicycles, but unless you get on one, I don’t think you will
learn to ride. I wish all of our students had the learning experience provided by
internships.”
Dugas was recognized this year at Southeastern’s Annual Alumni Awards Evening
during Homecoming as the Distinguished Alumnus for the College of Arts, Humanities
and Social Sciences.
“Besides being a visionary manager of the highest quality, Rob has been a great
friend to Southeastern and its business students,” said Jones. “For two years he has
hosted a group of 20 supply chain management majors from Southeastern during a visit
to Atlanta, providing students a day of interacting with both he and his team. These
visits provide students a powerful learning experience in a way that textbooks can’t.
Most of the students on those visits have never been in the offices of a large corporation.”
The event included an overview of the Chick-fil-A corporation, as well as a presentation
of internship opportunities in Atlanta, local internship opportunities, an open discussion
question and answer session, and the opportunity to meet with Chick-fil-A corporate
representatives.
 INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITIES – Rob Dugas, vice president and chief procurement officer for Chick-fil-A, discusses
his company with Chelsie Reed, a junior supply chain management major from Gonzales,
on campus at Southeastern. Dugas, a Southeastern graduate, was on campus to meet with
Southeastern students about summer corporate internship opportunities at Chick-fil-A.
|
|
Late Night Breakfast needs volunteers
With final exams quickly approaching, that means it’s time for Late Night Breakfast.
Dining Services will be hosting a student appreciation Late Night Breakfast on Tuesday,
Dec. 6, from 9 until 11 p.m. in the Mane Dish, located on the 2nd floor of the Student
Union.
This is always a well-attended event and a great way to wish our students well
on their final exams.
If you are interested in participating as a volunteer server for Late Night Breakfast,
please contact Robin Parker in Auxiliary Services at rparker@southeastern.edu to let her know if you would be interested in the early shift (9-10), late shift
(10-11) or both shifts (9-11).
Thank you for helping us with this valuable opportunity to connect with our students.
|
|
Business students win case study competition
A team of three Southeastern business and finance students have captured first place
in a regional competition designed to provide real world experience in mergers and
acquisitions, investment banking, and finances.
The Southeastern team, comprised of Nicholas Byrd and Austin Polk, both senior
finance majors from Denham Springs, and Hannah Reeves, a senior business administration
major from Franklinton, competed in the third annual Association for Corporate Growth
(ACG) Energy Case Competition held recently at LSU. Danielle Lewis, Joyce Junguns
Professor of Finance, served as faculty advisor to the team.
“We pulled numerous all-nighters, and it was so rewarding to see our hard work
pay off,” said Reeves, who prepared several spreadsheets correlating the price of
oil per barrel to each company’s income statements, a task that impressed the judges.
“The competition pulled me out of my comfort zone and challenged me to learn a lot
of material very quickly, which was a great confidence boost. I feel much more confident
about going into the ‘real world’ now.”
“Our team demonstrated the skills, knowledge and experience they have gained
through their courses and close interaction with their instructors,” said College
of Business Interim Dean Antoinette Phillips. “We are extremely proud of their representation
of Southeastern, especially since the judges indicated their product was more in line
with the graduate level competition.”
Lewis said teams were given two weeks to prepare an oral presentation supported
by PowerPoint and a handout that analyzed a hypothetical business scenario for an
energy-related company. The case study was primarily finance related but also incorporated
accounting, management and marketing elements. Students worked from documents provided
that included a memo from a chief executive officer outlining the situation, a series
of financial statements, and some supplemental information.
“The competition simulates real world scenarios,” Lewis explained, “and ACG strives
to make the competition as realistic and valuable as possible for the students.”
She said the students worked outside of class on the case study, using the background
provided by ACG and the College of Business Bloomberg terminals, which provide students
with access to up-to-date stock and financial information.
Byrd, who had participated in the competition last year, served as the unofficial
leader of the group, even while carrying 18 credit hours, renovating his home due
to flood damage, and starting an internship at First Guaranty Bank.
“I feel that I gained experience on what it would be like as a junior level investment
banker,” said Byrd. “The ACG Cup is supposed to simulate the stressful environment
of investment banking, and I learned that I liked the pressure and excitement that
comes with it. The competition made me realize I enjoy the investment banking culture,
specifically mergers and acquisitions. I consider that a real potential career path.”
He added that the classes he has taken at Southeastern and faculty members such
as Rakesh Duggal, who taught his mergers and acquisitions course, helped prepare him
for the challenge. “We’ve learned how to think critically and creatively and how to
use the tools we’ve learned in finance classes to answer open-ended questions,” he
explained.
Polk said one advantage his team had was the group had worked together on different
projects and knew how each other worked. “Like any group that works together, we had
our differences, but we got the job done to the best of our ability.”
“The ACG Cup experience was extremely challenging but rewarding when it was all
said and done,” said Polk. “It gave me insight regarding mergers and acquisitions
that I could not gain in the classroom. But Southeastern has prepared me to think
critically, which is one thing required for this competition.”
“I’m very proud of our students’ performance,” said Lewis. “They recognize that
their skill sets, coupled with hard work and commitment, pay big dividends. Our finance
program’s successes in competitions are consistently demonstrating there is a lot
of ‘bang for your buck’ at Southeastern, and our students are capable of successfully
competing against others at a wide range of universities, both locally and nationally.
These successes are proving very valuable in connecting students with work opportunities.”
The ACG Cup is the second first place award Southeastern business students have
won in recent months. Earlier in the year, a four-student team won a national competition
sponsored by the Washington, DC-based Conference of State Bank Supervisors, a nationwide
organization of banking regulators. In addition, Southeastern finance students placed
second in the 2014 ACG Cup competition.
ACG Louisiana is a non-profit organization that facilitates the networking of
business professionals in Louisiana and the surrounding areas.
 SOUTHEASTERN FINANCE TEAM TOPS IN COMPETITION – A team of Southeastern business and finance students took the top prize in a Louisiana
competition sponsored by the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG). Pictured are,
from left, team members Austin Polk, Hannah Reeves and Nick Byrd and faculty advisor
Danielle Lewis.
|
|
|
Ceramics Club holds Pottery Sale Nov. 28-29
The Southeastern Ceramics Club will hold its fall pottery sale Nov. 28-29 from 9 a.m.
to 3 p.m. in front of the Student Union.
Money raised in the sale will be used to help fund visiting artists and awards
for students. The club was organized to help Southeastern art students sell and promote
their work.
For more information, call 549-2193.
|
|
Columbia Theatre to offer Silver Screen Series
Southeastern’s Columbia Theatre for the Performing Arts is once again offering the
Silver Screen Series at the downtown Hammond theatre.
The silver screen cinema showings feature the best of independent and classic
movies on the big screen at the theatre, said Roy Blackwood, director of the Columbia
Theatre. All movies begin at 7:30 p.m.
First on the schedule Nov. 28 and 29 is the foreign documentary “Landfill Harmonic.”
Rated PG with a running time of 95 minutes, the film is about the poor people of Cateura,
Paraguay who literally live with garbage. Even in that environment, however, they
are transforming it into beauty. The documentary follows an Orchestra as it takes
its inspiring spectacle of trash-into-music around the world.
“Follow the lives of a garbage picker, a music teacher and a group of children
from a Paraguayan slum that, out of necessity, started creating instruments entirely
out of garbage,” Blackwood said. “This film is a beautiful story about the transformative
power of music, which also highlights two vital issues of our times: poverty and waste.”
Next up is the film “Dark Horse,” scheduled Dec. 12 and 13. Blackwood said this
British documentary is an inspirational true story of a group of friends from a working
men’s club who decide to take on the elite “sport of kings” and breed themselves a
racehorse. Rated PG, the film has a running time of 85 minutes.
On Jan. 9 and 10, Columbia will show “When Elephants Were Young.” A foreign documentary
with subtitles, the film is not rated and has a running time of 90 minutes.
“A young man and his young elephant street beg in gritty Bangkok amid the controversial
elephant business that treatens their survival,” Blackwood said, “until the opportunity
comes to release the elephant to the wild.”
Last on the schedule is “April and the Extraordinary World” on Jan. 30 and 31.
A foreign animated French film with English subtitles, the film is rated PG and runs
one hour and 43 minutes.
From the producers of the Academy Award-nominated “Persepolis” and renowned graphic
novelist Jacques Tardi, Blackwood said the film is a riveting sci-fi adventure set
in an alternate steampunk universe in 1941 Paris.
“A family of scientists is on the brink of discovering a powerful longevity serum,
when all of a sudden, a mysterious force abducts them, leaving their young daughter
April behind,” Blackwood said. “Ten years later, April lives alone with her cat, Darwin,
and carries on her family’s research in secret. But she soon finds herself at the
center of a shadowy and far-reaching conspiracy and on the run from government agents,
bicycle-powered dirigibles and cyborg rat spies. Undaunted, she continues her quest
to find her parents and discover the truth behing their disappearance.”
Tickets for all Silver Screen films are $9 for adults, $7 for seniors and students,
and $6 for children 12 and under. The Columbia Theatre box office is located at 220
East Thomas Street in downtown Hammond and is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through
Friday.
For more information, contact the box office at 543-4371.
|
|
Kristyn Gary wins Miss Southeastern Crown
Southeastern early childhood education major Kristyn Gary of Denham Springs has been
chosen Miss Southeastern 2017.
Gary received her crown from Miss Southeastern 2016 Alexis LaPlante of Hammond
at the annual pageant Saturday (Nov. 19) at Southeastern’s Pottle Music Building Auditorium.
Sponsored by the Campus Activities Board, the pageant is affiliated with the Miss
America Pageant system.
A sophomore, Gary also received the Miss Congeniality Award.
First runner up was Tonykea Alford, a senior elementary education major from
Hammond. Alford also received the Miracle Maker, Lifestyle and Fitness, and Talent
awards.
Communication major Jamie Dearman of Baton Rouge received the People’s Choice
Award, while chemistry major Trista Kramer of Covington received the Student Government
Association (SGA) Academic Award.
Gary will advance to the Miss Louisiana pageant, which will be held in Monroe
in June.
 NEW MISS SOUTHEASTERN CROWNED – Recognized at the Miss Southeastern 2017 pageant are, from left, Tonykea Alford,
first runner-up, Miss Southeastern 2017 Kristyn Gary, People’s Choice Award recipient
Jamie Dearman, and SGA Academic Award recipient Trista Kramer. (Photo credit: Larshell Green of The Lion’s Roar)
|
|
Fantastic frogs and sexy salamanders topic of next Science on Tap presentation
Regaining an appreciation for frogs and salamanders – creatures most children think
are pretty neat – will be the focus of the next Science on Tap lecture presented by
Southeastern’s Department of Biological Sciences on Tuesday, Dec. 6.
Professor and Head of the Department of Biological Sciences Christopher Beachy
is the featured speaker at the presentation scheduled at 7 p.m. at Tope La Catering,
113 East Thomas St. in Hammond. The lecture titled “The Fantastic Frog and the Sexy
Salamander” is free and open to all ages. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.
“Kids love frogs and salamanders; they don’t need a reason because they appreciate
them just for being what they are: neat animals,” said Beachy. “But as they become
adults, many forget they loved them as kids. Adults will often ask me, ‘What are they
good for?’”
Beachy said he will outline several cases that demonstrate the importance of
frogs and salamanders while reminding the audience that these animals are admirable
for no other reason than they are living things that deserve respectful treatment.
“Among several topics, I will talk about how amphibian metamorphosis is an excellent
way to study pregnancy, how observing salamander tongues helps us think about ballistic
weapons, and how salamander sex provides insights into human mating behavior,” he
said.
“Biologists are deeply worried about amphibians,” he added. “These wondrous animals
are in serious danger, and several amazing things that certain amphibians do are no
longer in existence because of recent extinction.”
For information on future Science on Tap presentations, contact the Department
of Biological Sciences at 549-3740.
|
|
University Advancement holds retreat
 Southeastern’s University Advancement Office sponsored a Board retreat earlier this
month featuring internationally renowned philanthropic leader Simone P. Joyaux. The
retreat brought all boards and campus employees affiliated with fundraising together
in a meeting intended to improve and create new systems and implement strategies in
an effort to secure additional resources for the university.
Participants included volunteers and staff members from the Southeastern Foundation,
Alumni Association, Lions Athletic Association, all deans, department heads and coaches.
Joyaux speaks worldwide, working with colleagues in places such as Mexico City, London,
Paris, Italy and other areas. She teaches in the philanthropy graduate program at
St. Mary's University in Minnesota. Joyaux has written several books, including Keep
Your Donors, Srategic Fund Development and her latest work, Firing Lousy Board Members.
|
|
Mindfulness series continues Thursday
 Intro to Mindfulness: A series of meditations and discussions for students, faculty
and staff, will meet on Thursday, Dec. 1, at 4 p.m. in Sims Library, room 252.
|
|
Northlake Community Band to give free concert
The Community Music School at Southeastern will present the Northlake Community Band
Concert on Tuesday, Dec. 6. Titled “The Big Parade,” the concert is scheduled at 7:30
p.m. in Pottle Auditorium on Southeastern’s campus and is free and open to the public.
“The Northlake Community Band is a true musical jewel on the Northshore and the
surrounding communities, and we are very proud to have them as part of the Community
Music School,” said Community School Music Director Jivka Duke. “The band brings together
musicians from various walks of life, from current and retired professional musicians
to people who only recently started playing music again after many years of working
in a different carrier field.”
“The band also attracts many high school music students especially in the summer
months,” Duke added. “We are very thankful for Dr. Jerry Voorhees’s vision of founding
this ensemble and for volunteering his time to make the Northlake Community Band such
a great asset to our community’s music life.”
Duke said the Northlake Community Band always welcomes new members.
For more information, contact the Community Music School at cms@southeastern.edu or 549-5502.
|
|
Sims Library named ACRL member of the month
Southeastern’s Sims Memorial Library was named member of the month by the Association
of College and Research Libraries (ACRL).
The library has been a member of ACRL for 30 years and was recognized by the
organization for being service-oriented, resilient and friendly.
According to Sims Library Director Eric Johnson, the library is a support center
for students, faculty and visitors to Southeastern’s campus.
“The library supplies not only technical resources needed to create new scholarship,
but also the professionals who maintain those resources and guide users at their point
of need,” he said. “The library hosts educational experiences in the forms of presentations
and both formal and informal instruction, and it acts as a partner for many on-campus
initiatives.”
Johnson said the ACRL provides information and scholarly research on topics that
most affect academic libraries.
“Having access to their resources is a boon in furthering communication and collaboration
among academic librarians,” he said. “Its efforts regarding information literacy and
the development of the original standards and new framework are tools and discussions
that help shape instructional services directed towards students’ needs.”
|
|
Men’s Basketball, vs. Maryland-Eastern Shore, University Center, 7 p.m. (KSLU) (LionVision)
