Management & Leadership Institute

Timothy Stewart is a highly committed and responsible individual with a diverse skill set. With a strong dedication to exceptional customer service. Timothy Stewart excels in creating the best results through competency, innovation, collaboration, compassion, and respect. His ability to understand and effectively manage all aspects of contracts and projects within time and budget constraints showcases his expertise in project development and implementation.

Timothy obtained a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Grambling State University in 2015 and is currently pursuing a Masters in Psychology. His educational background provides a solid foundation for his professional endeavors.

Utilizing his skills and knowledge, Timothy has gained valuable experience in various roles. As his recent new role as the Alumni Engagement/Annual Giving Coordinator at Grambling State University, he is working to develop and implement successful campaigns to engage alumni. His responsibilities included coordinating alumni events, maintaining relationships through different channels, and ensuring accurate reporting of fundraising results.

In his prior position as a Recruiter/Admissions Counselor at Grambling State University, Timothy played a crucial role in driving enrollment growth. He made notable contributions to team initiatives, effectively achieving enrollment targets, by orchestrated a highly successful two-day Presidential Caravan, successfully engaging with a vast student body of over 2000 individuals.

In his free time, Timothy enjoys reading self-help books, empowering youth and young adults, engaging in real estate investing, property management, and staying active through biking and exercise.

With an impressive skill set and diverse experience, Timothy is a dedicated professional who consistently strives for excellence in his work.

Dr. Edward Holt is the Interim Department Head of History and holds the Benjamin A. Quarles Endowed Professorship at Grambling State University. A native of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, he earned his Bachelor of Arts in History from Duke University. Edward completed his Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy in History at Saint Louis University. He is a historian of the pre-modern Mediterranean, centered on medieval Iberia, whose research focuses on cultural, liturgical, and political articulations of leadership through comparative and transregional perspectives. His peer-reviewed articles on medieval Iberian liturgy, kingship, crusade, and geospatial analyses of power have received the Best Early Career Article Prize from Association of Spanish and Portuguese Historical Studies, as well as the Bernard Hamilton Essay Prize from the Society for the Study of the Crusades and the Latin East. His research has been supported by multiple organizations, including the American Philosophical Society, the Madrid Institute for Advanced Study, and the American Academy of Research Historians of Medieval Spain. At Grambling State University, he is additionally the PI for the “Voices of Grambling” initiative, which seeks to preserve the history of African American experiences in northern Louisiana through an oral history podcast and VR experiences and has been funded by the LEH, SSRC, and NEH.  

Dr. Jamie Newman is an Associate Professor of Biology and Associate Dean for Research & Graduate Studies in the College of Applied & Natural Sciences at Louisiana Tech University. Since joining the faculty in 2013, Jamie has taught classes in Research Methods, Stem Cell Biology, and Science & Society, runs an active research program that seeks to understand the biology and therapeutic potential of adult human stem cells, and co-directs the VISTA Center, a collaboration between art and science. Originally from Woodland Hills, California, Jamie moved east after high school and earned her Bachelor of Arts in Biology at Amherst College and her Doctor of Philosophy in Biology at MIT. Jamie and her husband, Brad Cicciarelli, a Distinguished Lecturer in Chemical & Mechanical Engineering at Louisiana Tech, have two young children who keep them both learning and pushing the limits of their creativity with scouts, sports, music, and art. Jamie enjoys spending time with Brad and their children, working with her students, and is rediscovering the joy and freedom found in running.

Jeremy currently serves as the interim Associate Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, the interim Academic Director for the School of History and Social Sciences, and the Director of the Waggonner Center for Civic Engagement and Public Policy, all at Louisiana Tech University. He is also the Joe D. Waggonner Professor of Political Science, specializing in classical political philosophy, politics and literature, and American political thought. Before (and even occasionally during) his time at Tech, Jeremy taught, studied and conducted research at the University of Virginia, Harvard University, and Columbia University.

Jeremy is a (fiercely) proud native of Louisiana. Born and raised in Lafayette, Jeremy attended Lafayette High School, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, and Louisiana State University. He lives in Ruston with his wonderful wife (Simone), their two beautiful children (Gabriel and Camille), and their opinionated one-year old labradoodle (Sterling). They enjoy being together, being outside, and being well.

Ashley Jackson currently serves as the Assistant Director of Human Resources- Unclassified Personnel and Benefits at Louisiana Tech University. Ashley’s journey at Tech began in 2012 as a library specialist at Prescott Memorial Library. After three years, she made a seamless transition to human resources, where she excelled as the benefits coordinator. Ashley’s exceptional performance in her role led to her being promoted to Unclassified Coordinator in 2019 and then to Assistant Director of Unclassified Personnel and Benefits in 2021.

Ashley served as a core member of the Workday team, which was responsible for the successful implementation of the system at Louisiana Tech and she was the recipient of the 2020 University Senate Loyalty Award. Additionally, she was also selected as a participant in President Guice’s 2022-2023 Leadership Institute, a prestigious program that develops and prepares emerging leaders. Ashley is a proud two-time graduate of Louisiana Tech University and she is currently pursuing her doctoral degree in Educational Leadership. She is a lifelong member of the Bulldog family and is committed to driving change. Ashley is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated and is the proud mother of Kennedy.

Curtis Rogers has worked in the Information Technology department at McNeese State University for 15 years. In that time, he attained a bachelor’s degree in Engineering Technology (2015) and a Master of Business Administration (2018). He is currently A.B.A in his pursuit of a Doctorate in Education Leadership at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette with his research focusing on the economic impacts of higher education.  

Besides his duties in I.T., Curtis merged into the Student Services related committees. He is a certified Title IX investigator and often sits as chair of those hearings. He is also the chairperson of the Academic Integrity and Code of Conduct committees. Curtis’ educational philosophy is centered around a holistic approach and sees every facet of the students’ university experience as opportunities for them to have their lives changed by the institution. Curtis is dedicated to the vision of McNeese and involves himself in every professional development opportunity afforded to him by the university and its parent system. 

Curtis was born in Monroe, La and graduated from Neville High School. He is a resident of Sulphur, La where he raises his eight-year-old daughter who participates in jujitsu, tennis, and gymnastics. He was raised in a family that does extensive volunteer work in the community and hopes to have his daughter continue this tradition. In his leisure time, Curtis enjoys fishing, live music and chess problems. 

Dr. Srinivasan Ambatipati is an Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering and serves as Department Head of Engineering and Computer Science at McNeese State University (MSU). He earned a Bachelors in Chemical Engineering from University of Madras, Chennai (India) in 2000, a Master of Engineering from MSU in 2003, and a Doctorate in Chemical Engineering from Clarkson University, NY in 2010.

Dr. Ambatipati leads a 700-student department which includes BS Engineering, BS Mechanical Engineering, BS Chemical Engineering, BS Computer Science and Master of Engineering programs. He is responsible for program operations, guiding curriculum development and implementation, conducting program accreditation activities, facilitating student recruitment and retention efforts, and serving on college, university and professional committees. Before he joined MSU, Dr. Ambatipati worked in Oil & Gas Industry as lead Process Development Engineer for 10 years.

Lacey Crochet serves as the Special Projects and Outreach Specialist in the President’s Office of Nicholls State University. Initially, her job consisted almost exclusively of researching, identifying and developing grants to supplement operational revenue for the university. Over time, her position evolved and now she engages in alternative revenue generation through a variety of mechanisms, including grant development and administration, public-private partnerships, project management and other donor-supported endeavors.  

In April 2011, she was hired as the Business Manager for Bayou Community Academy (BCA), a Type 1, open enrollment, public charter school, which was being developed in Lafourche Parish. She spent 8 years as the BCA Business Manager and upon her resignation, the school had five consecutive years of clean external financial audits and had saved and/or invested over eight million dollars. In addition, BCA was the highest performing public school in Lafourche Parish, enrollment and personnel had more than doubled since the school first opened and there was a waiting list for nearly every grade level. Most importantly, students and families in the community were benefitting from a high-quality public education. 

In May 2006, she graduated Summa Cum Laude earning her Bachelor of Arts in Government from Nicholls State University. In May 2011, she graduated from Nicholls State University with her Masters in Business Administration. From 2010 – 2011, she served as the Secretary for the Master of Business Administration Association. In August 2022, she became a doctoral student at University of Louisiana Lafayette in the Educational Leadership (Ed.D) Higher Education program.  

Lacey is passionate about service and volunteers her time in the community. She is a member of the Thibodaux Chamber of Commerce and served as a Chamber Ambassador from February 2020 – January 2023. In 2022, she graduated from the Leadership Lafourche Program, which is a leadership immersion program focused on the prosperity of our communities and economy. In addition, she volunteers as a grant writer for Hi-5, Inc. a nonprofit after-school program for low-income, at-risk students and families. Also, she volunteers with the Thibodaux Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #52 whose fundraising efforts benefit community programs including, the Children’s Advocacy Center of Lafourche and Main Street Thibodaux, Inc.  

Lacey has been married to her husband TJ for 8 years and has a stepson, Tyler and one grandchild, Trenton. In the summer 2023, she is expecting the birth of her second grandchild Natalie. She is an animal lover and the proud mom of two rescue dogs, Lady and Saint.  

Cambria currently serves as the Director of Academic Services at Nicholls State University. Prior to taking this role in August of 2020, she served as a Professional Academic Advisor at the university for eight years and became the coordinator of the Academic Advising Center in July of 2019. In her current role, she oversees the Academic Advising Center, the Tutoring and Academic Enhancement Center, the Academic Testing Center, and the Transfer Student Resource Center. She also serves on a number of committees on campus and helped to develop the First Generation Experience that Nicholls began offering in August of 2022. 

Cambria is an alumna of Nicholls State University earning a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education in 2009 and a Master of Education in 2012. In her time at Nicholls, she has enjoyed working with the students, staff, faculty, and administration. Her biggest passion comes from working with students, and she is blessed to be in a career where she can do that daily. 

Dr. Jie “Jessica” Zhang is the Associate Professor and Department Head of New Media, Journalism, and Communication Arts at Northwestern State University. She earned her Bachelor of Arts (2002) in Advertising at Shanghai University, China, Master of Arts (2005) in Journalism and Mass Communication from University of Oklahoma, and Ph.D. in Advertising from University of Texas at Austin (2010). Her dissertation received the ‘Dunn Award’ that acknowledges outstanding dissertations with respects to international advertising from American Academy of Advertising in 2010. Dr. Zhang’s research topics are varied, including cross-cultural comparison studies of strategic communication, digital word-of-mouth communication, online marketing communication, psychological motivations for social media usage, written Chinese to English translation, and more.

Since joining the faculty of Northwestern State University, Dr. Zhang continued her passion for teaching. Dr. Zhang is a firm endorser of “learn by doing.” She tried to help students find internships and grow social network through class projects with real-world clients. Students from her classes use creative work such as videos, audios, animation, social media ideas, and more to make great impacts in local communities, including for-profits and non-profits in Fort Polk, Shreveport, Alexandria, and Natchitoches. Dr. Zhang is also widely recognized for her passion for serving students and improving process efficiencies. She collected creative work from faculty and students and revamped the department website with most updated and prominent achievements from the department members. She tried to be all-inclusive by showcasing various student organizations and activities on the department website. She also initiated an internship database with the breakdowns of inside and outside Natchitoches, online and offline internships, and media versus non-media companies for students to browse anywhere anytime.

Dr. Zhang has worked and taught in the area of strategic communication for 15 years. Her most favorite two tasks in strategic communication are grant application and international programs including study abroad. She received a couple of research and visiting professor grants before she came to Northwestern State University. Now she focuses on encouraging and helping communication faculty and students to receive grants for different purposes. She is also in the process of building new joint degree programs between the department and an array of overseas universities. She is willing to develop more opportunities and grant aids for Northwestern State University students to study abroad in the future.

Ruth Chatman-Brown is the Human Resources Director at Northwestern State University. Ruth, a native of Humble, TX, is a proud graduate of Humble High School and an NSU Alumni. She became a dedicated employee to the University, February 2007.

During Ruth’s sixteen years of service in the HR department, she has held various titles: HR Analyst, HR Specialist, and HR Supervisor before transitioning to her current role as HR Director. She also serves on the NSU Athletic Counsel Board and has been a member of Central Louisiana Society for Human Resource Management (CLSHRM). Ruth’s drive at the University is based on the best career advise she has been given, “maintain the same passion as if it were your first day.”

In addition to her dedication at NSU, Ruth is a devoted wife and has two beautiful daughters ages twenty-two and seventeen. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, traveling, and spoiling her 3-year-old Shih Tzu (Mamba).

Amber Narro is a Professor of Communication at Southeastern Louisiana University and serves as Interim Director of the Honors Program and Multimedia Communication Specialist for the Center for Faculty Excellence. Active in the community, she has held positions on the Boards of Directors for the Hammond and Ponchatoula Chambers of Commerce and for the Northshore Ginger Ford Fuller Center for Housing. She is most proud of her work on the Board of Directors for Options, Inc., an organization that helps those with disabilities live and work in the community. As a member of Southeastern’s faculty since 2007, Amber has served on the university’s Planning Committee, Technology Committee and currently, the Centennial Celebration Committee. She also hosts a radio talk show, Gettin’ Things Done, during which she interviews nonprofit organization leaders and those who work hard to build and grow the community.

Craig Marinello is a high-energy, motivated self-starter with over 20 years of leadership experience in the corporate, non-profit, entrepreneurial, and higher education fields. He currently serves as the Director of the Office of Career Services at Southeastern Louisiana University. Working daily with students and alumni to find part-time jobs, internships, and career opportunities, Craig desires to help others find their passion, identify multiple pathways to achieve their dreams, and activate unique motivational techniques to ensure success.

Craig received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English with a concentration in Creative Writing from Louisiana State University. Most recently, he received a Master of Arts Degree in Strategic Communication from Southeastern Louisiana University. He is an accomplished professional speaker of over 20 years, having spoken at such events as the Mississippi Governor’s Conference on Tourism, the Louisiana Tourism Summit, and the American Marketing Association’s International Collegiate Conference. With a passion to always be involved at the highest levels of his industry, Craig served as the 2021/2022 Chairperson of the Louisiana Association of Colleges and Employers (LACE) and will serve as the 2023/2024 Chairperson of the Southern Association of Colleges and Employers Consortia (SoACE).

A lifelong resident of the great state of Louisiana, Craig and his wife Lisa have lived in Covington for 19 years with their two amazing daughters Elle (17) and Aubrey (15). When he isn’t working to better the lives of others, Craig spends his time attending his daughter’s basketball games, cheerleading events, and theatre productions.

Dr. Erin J. Horzelski is a native of Seattle, Washington, and an Associate Professor in Biological Sciences at Southeastern Louisiana University. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Biological Anthropology from Western Washington University (1997), a Doctorate of Philosophy in Entomology from Louisiana State University (2004), and served as a Postdoctoral Researcher for the Department of Tropical Medicine at Tulane University prior to her hiring as tenure-track faculty at Southeastern in 2006. Dr. Horzelski has served as Southeastern’s Faculty Senate President for the past five years (2018-2023), as well as has consistently participated in numerous university committees, k-12 and STEM activities, professional memberships, and community outreach engagements throughout her years in Louisiana.

Dr. Horzelski has served as a Forensic Entomology Consultant to local and national law enforcement agencies for nearly 25 years and has conducted previous research on insect life histories and use of necrophilous insects in determining postmortem intervals of humans and poached wildlife. She currently also serves as a Commissioner and Secretary on the Board of Commissioners, Tangipohoa Mosquito Abatement District 1 (2021-2025). Dr. Horzelski lives in Hammond, America, is married to her husband, Jason, and has one extremely active 11-year-old daughter (Hayden). Outside of work, she is a dedicated mom who supports her daughter’s ballet and soccer ambitions, a sports enthusiast and volunteer soccer manager, and loves to travel home to Seattle for family, seafood, and Mariner’s baseball. Dr. Erin Horzelski is a proud member of the Southeastern community and is deeply honored to serve as a member of the seventh class of the Universities of Louisiana Management and Leadership Institute.

Ryan Simon is a native of Crowley, Louisiana and a proud graduate of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. He obtained his American Chemical Society certified Chemistry degree from the University of Louisiana and his doctorate in Chemistry from Louisiana State University.

Ryan has been an instructor in the Chemistry Department at UL Lafayette since 2013 and will be moving to the Dean’s Office in the College of Sciences in the position of Assistant Dean in July of 2023. As an instructor, he taught Organic and General Chemistry lectures and laboratories and has been an advisor for the Chemistry Department for over 8 years. Ryan found advising one of the most rewarding parts of the job, officially advising between 30 and 50 students a semester in Pre-Pharmacy and chemistry degree paths as well as unofficially advising Biology and Engineering students in seeking double majors in Chemistry. He was also honored with the Advising award from the University in 2016, 2019, and 2020 as well as the Sun Belt Conference Institutional Faculty of the Year Award for 2021.

Ryan is dedicated to working with students and passionate about education. He has served as sponsor of the American Chemical Society Student Chapter for the past 9 years as well as sponsoring and helping start the Women’s Chemist Society and Chemistry Academic Mentoring Matters Program.

Outside of the University, Ryan has worked with a variety of groups in the promotion of the sciences as well as recruitment. He has performed numerous experiments and scientific talks for all ages at sporting events, libraries, schools, and television.

Jennifer LeMeunier is the Associate Director of Career Services at UL Lafayette. In her role, she provides student workshops focusing on career competencies, resume building, elevator pitch, and selling oneself. She manages Handshake, a job listing, networking, career event coordination platform for the university. Jennifer also conceptualizes, collaborates, and implements marketing strategy and programming to promote career service offerings. Furthermore, she competently engages and executes content in all event delivery, including but not limited to career fairs, student group workshops, Career Closet promotions, organization presentations, faculty/staff presentations, and conducts student mock interviews.

Jennifer achieved her Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Relations from the University of Louisiana in 1992 and her Master of Arts degree in Higher Education Administration from Louisiana State University in 2021. Prior to her career services role, Jennifer served as Director of Alumni Affairs (5 years) and Retail Sales Coordinator at Home Bank (9 years). Her experiences have led her to serving others professionally. She believes learning is a lifelong process, that we are in a constant state of learning, and that we are never too old to learn new things.

Jennifer serves as president for the Louisiana Association of Colleges & Employers and previously served as 2023 conference chair. She maintains memberships in the Southern Association of Colleges & Employers (SOACE) and National Association of Colleges & Employers (NACE). She also participates as a committee member for the Women’s Leadership Conference, member of the New Student Convocation Committee, 482 Network (Faculty/staff engagement & professional development organization )committee member which guides their programming and contributes as a member on the Reginald F. Lewis Scholars Advisory Board. Jennifer is a graduate of Leadership Lafayette and Leadership Louisiana.

Jennifer is a lifelong resident of Lafayette and is proud to be married to Nock LeMeunier for 28 years. They have four adult sons, two grandchildren and two step-grandchildren. Jennifer enjoys spending time with family and friends, especially taking cruises.

Dr. Anne Case Hanks currently serves as the Director of the School of Sciences at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. She is responsible for the academic programs and faculty within the School of Sciences. She is an Associate Professor in the Atmospheric Sciences program.

Dr. Case Hanks obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from the University of Toledo and a PhD in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences from the Georgia Institute of Technology where she focused on Atmospheric Chemistry.

Dr. Case Hanks is a passionate advocate for STEM education, training, and teaching. She is committed to advancing innovation in STEM pedagogy within higher education and supporting faculty development in the sciences. She also works to promote STEM within K-12 to motivate and create the next generation of scientists. Her recent work includes developing a Natural Hazards and Disaster curriculum for high school, summer outreach for elementary and high students interested in STEM, and helping to establish a Louisiana Mesonet.

Kristin is twice an alumna of ULM earning her BA in Social Work and her M.Ed in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. Kristin began working at ULM in 2010 and has served in many roles across the campus including academic advising, online admissions, recruitment, and career services. She now oversees both Career Development and Student Development as the Executive Director. Two of Kristin’s greatest professional achievements have been creating the ULM Women’s Symposium and the ULM Mentorship Program. Kristin’s focal point has always been to create programming that benefits the growth and development of students, so she is looking forward to gaining more knowledge and ideas from her colleagues and leadership teams cross-institutionally through the ML&I Program.

Dr. Dong-Jun (DJ) Min is an Associate Professor of Marketing and serves as the Chair of the Department of Management and Marketing at the University of New Orleans. In this capacity, he is responsible for managing fiscal operations of the department, coordinating department strategic planning, curriculum development and program accreditation efforts, facilitating recruitment of students and working toward student success, assisting faculty and staff with attainment of their professional development goals, leading outreach and public service efforts, and serves on several college, university, and professional committees.

Prior to being appointed as Department Chair in the Fall of 2022, Dr. Min taught numerous undergraduate and graduate marketing courses, working to guide students in their development of transferable knowledge and skills that can help them understand the relevance of marketing, either in their everyday lives as consumers or in their future careers. To be successful in any field in the business world, he believes that one must be able to appreciate and understand viewpoints that are different to one’s own, clearly and succinctly communicate their own ideas that are thoughtful and well-supported, and think critically about the important issues at hand. As such, he actively encourages students to take part in the learning process and gives them opportunities to think critically about current business problems, develop distinct opinions, and further support/defend those opinions. As a researcher, Dr. Min’s primary focus is on understanding the interplay between cognitive psychology and consumer judgment and decision making. Some of his most recent work examines how consumers utilize different types of information about the product, service, and/or the environment to consciously and/or subconsciously influence their subsequent behavior such as purchase, satisfaction, and referrals.

Dr. Min received his Ph.D. in Marketing from the University of Georgia and holds a Master’s degree in Marketing from the University of Denver and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Kyung Hee University (S. Korea). Dr. Min and his wife, Hyeon-ok Kim, have their hands full raising three precious daughters, Claire, Chloe, and Clara. He enjoys spending time with his family, taking weekly trips to the local bookstore and parks, cooking, and playing sports.

Nick Cutrera currently serves as Manager of Desktop Support and Instructional Media & Technology in UNO’s Information Technology department. Information Technology touches every facet of the University, interfacing with users in the entire community from the President to the academic colleges and students sitting in labs and classrooms. The most recent technology emphasis was the movement of faculty, staff, and students to an online/hybrid/telework environment with Zoom, Teams, virtual desktops and streaming to maintain the highest level of education. The University of New Orleans must be technologically prepared for extreme weather events, e.g., hurricanes and tornadoes to future pandemics and cyber security breaches while dealing with an evolving data management/educational landscape.

Mr. Cutrera earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in 1995 and Master of Science in Transportation in 2023 from the University of New Orleans. He joined the University’s staff in 1998 after leaving the Louisiana Army National Guard with 10 years of honorable service.