Brandon Meadows has been named senior VP and associate general counsel at IberiaBank. Meadows, who lives in Birmingham, graduated with a bachelor of arts (journalism emphasis) from the University of Mississippi, where he was a letterman on the Ole Miss men's tennis team. He started his career as a commercial lender in Memphis for Boatman's Bank and then for NationsBank. Meadows later graduated from the University of Arkansas Law School, which included his attending a semester at Oxford University in England, studying European Union law. He next obtained a master's in banking and financial law from Boston University School of Law.
Schumacher Group announced that Donna Lindsay has joined the company as chief operations officer for the Hospital Medicine division. Current HM COO Dick Gamber has announced his retirement and will serve as an external consultant to assist in the growth of SG. Lindsay brings a strong 15-year history in contract management and hospital leadership. As VP of operations for Coastal Physician Services in Atlanta, she was directly involved in the world of Emergency Medicine contracting. Following her time with Coastal, Lindsay served as regional VP of AmSol LLC and managed multiple hospital-based anesthesia practices. Most recently, she has maintained the Dekalb Medical Program, where her achievements included successfully integrating a 30 physician, multi-site Hospitalist Program including midlevel providers, RNs and administrative support staff. While with Dekalb, Lindsay also provided interim leadership for Cogent Healthcare and served as regional director of operations for In Compass Health.
Peggy Richard-Grace, a broker with PAR Realty of Lafayette, has earned the Certified Relocation Professional designation from Worldwide ERC. With domestic and international employee mobility becoming an increasingly demanding field that requires knowledge of the residential real estate market, real estate appraisal, tax and legal issues, and mobility strategies, the designation identifies those who successfully pass an exam demonstrating a considerable level of knowledge and expertise in the relocation industry.
MidSouth Bank has promoted Jonathan Domingue to VP/commercial credit manager and Nicole Pourciaux to AVP/senior commercial credit analyst. Domingue previously was AVP/senior commercial credit analyst and has been with MidSouth Bank for nine years. Pourciaux, who has been employed by MidSouth for the past 8.5 years, previously was bank officer and junior commercial credit analyst. A Lafayette native living in Youngsville, Domingue is responsible for monitoring and evaluating the credit quality of new and existing commercial loans and overseeing the creation of loan presentations for senior, advisory and commercial loan committees. He has a BS degree in business administration from UL Lafayette and completed the Southwestern School of Consumer Credit in Nashville, Tenn. Pourciaux, a St. Martinville native, performs commercial credit investigations and evaluates the credit quality of new and existing commercial loans. She has a bachelor's degree in business administration (finance) from UL and holds a Series C insurance license.
Jill Noel has joined Teche Federal Bank as VP, commercial executive for its Broadmoor Branch at 5121 Johnston St. Noel, who most recently worked at Capital One, has 30 years of banking experience.Lafayette General Medical Center has named Schuyler Kleinpeter development director of the newly formed Lafayette General Foundation. Kleinpeter began her career in the non-profit sector in 1996 and has held positions in development, administration, communications and program management with local and national organizations in several major market areas. From 2007-2012, she was director of development and member communications at Council for A Better Louisiana. As head of the foundation, Kleinpeter was instrumental in orchestrating and arranging the Oct. 2 gala art auction fundraiser for the foundation at the Heymann Center. The foundation raises funds and awareness for reinvestment initiatives to help restore, maintain and improve health care at LGMC and its affiliates.
Van Eaton & Romero was recently named to REALTrends 500 top brokers in the nation for the 20th consecutive year and named the 245th real estate firm in the nation based on closed transactional sides at the Gathering of Eagles Leadership Conference in Dallas. Van Eaton & Romero now ranks as the 75th largest independently owned real estate firm in the U.S. REALTrends also reports that Van Eaton & Romero is the 256th real estate firm in the nation based on closed sales volume.
Foster Marketing, a full-service marketing communications firm serving the worldwide energy industry, has promoted Darlene Miller to office administrator. Miller joined Foster Marketing in 2010 as an administrative assistant and handles all office and administrative tasks. She has more than 25 years of administrative experience in the oil and gas industry and has held positions with Medco Energi USA, Inc., Multi-Chem Group LLC (now a Halliburton Company), and Baker Petrolite.
Jamie Ransonet has joined Keller Williams Realty Acadiana. Ransonet is a graduate of UL Lafayette with a master's degree in business administration and a BS in finance. She is a certified computer technician and has experience in customer service and sales in the IT industry. René Brinlee has also joined the real estate firm. She graduated from LSU with a bachelor's degree in general studies and most recently worked for a residential leasing agent for 2.5 years. Businesswoman Wendy Savoy has switched careers to join Keller Williams. She graduated in interior design from Bauder College in Atlanta and went back to school at the University of Tennessee, studying education and physical education. Savoy previously owned A Stem of the Heart-Florist, Insight Binocular Rentals & Vending and Savoie Fare, DBA French Quarter Too! Restaurant.
Community Foundation of Acadiana held its Leaders in Philanthropy Awards Luncheon Nov. 1 at the Cajundome Convention Center. CFA stakeholders submitted nominations and the awardees were selected by a committee of community leaders. Those receiving the awards were: Lafayette Parish-Paula Woodson Blanchet; Acadia Parish-Michael G. Francis; Iberia Parish-Ernest Freyou; Evangeline Parish-Dr. Charles Aswell III; St. Mary Parish-R.E. "Bob" Miller; St. Landry Parish-Reggie and Marie Dupré; St. Martin Parish-Ray Pellerin; and Vermilion Parish-Nathan Granger. The luncheon featured keynote speaker Todd Graves, founder and CEO of Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers, who spoke about sustaining a successful entrepreneurial business while upholding a strong philanthropic mission.
ATC Associates, a Lafayette-based environmental services firm, is now Cardno ATC. The new name reflects the March 2012 merger with international infrastructure services consultancy Cardno Limited (ASX: CDD). "Transitioning to Cardno ATC means that we leverage the strength of both the Cardno and ATC brands in the marketplace, and seize an opportunity to provide a vast array of integrated services and solutions, tailored specifically to our clients' needs," said Bobby Toups, president of Cardno ATC. By merging with Cardno, ATC expanded its service offerings into new markets such as defense, transportation and water. It also added new capabilities to Cardno's portfolio including industrial hygiene, building sciences, geotechnical engineering, and construction materials testing services. Cardno has kept ATC leadership and staff in place throughout the merger process.
Rebecca Doucet has joined Lourdes Foundation as development officer. In this new role for the foundation, she identifies, develops and cultivates a major gifts plan while promoting its mission and programs. Doucet most recently served as the development director for Performing Arts Society of Acadiana and has more than a decade of community outreach and fundraising development experience. She received a bachelor's degree in psychology from Loyola University New Orleans and a master's of science in public health from Tulane University School of Public Health & Tropical Medicine. Our Lady of Lourdes also announced that Dr. Michael Vanderlick has joined Lourdes Primary Care Physicians. The internist earned his medical degree in 1999 from LSU School of Medicine in Shreveport. He completed his residency in internal medicine at University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, Miss., and is board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine. He has been practicing in Lafayette for almost 10 years and serves as VP of the Medical Executive Committee and a board member for Our Lady of Lourdes hospital. Also, Dr. Diana Fernandez has joined Lourdes Neurology Center. The board certified neurologist earned her medical degree in 1994 from Juan N Corpas School of Medicine in Colombia and completed a combined residency in neurology and internal medicine from the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee.
MidSouth Bank has promoted Michael Groetsch to banking center manager of its Super One location in New Iberia. He is in charge of all daily operations for the center and will also work to develop new business. Groetsch, who has almost a decade of banking experience, has been with MidSouth Bank for six years as a universal banker, primarily working at its Oil Center location. Before joining MidSouth, he was employed by Chase Bank for 3.5 years as a personal banker. A Youngsville native, Groetsch graduated from UL Lafayette with a bachelor's degree in business with an emphasis in marketing. He has completed several training courses on loans, sales and customer service. The bank hired Tammy Worrell Vosburg as facilities project manager for 20 of its 40 banking centers in Louisiana and Texas. She is in charge of all facility setup and maintenance, as well as lease/purchase agreements and insurance. Vosburg has 15 years of executive human resources, marketing and office administration experience, most recently working as a market coordinator for Farm Bureau Insurance. Before that, she was a regional executive assistant at Whitney Bank for 12 years. As part of her responsibilities, she helped manage and coordinate the bank's contract with "The Les Miles Show."
Knight Oil Tools has promoted Barret Lemaire to director of IT for the company. Lemaire oversees the company's information technology strategy and initiatives for Knight Oil Tools' locations worldwide. Lemaire has been with Knight Oil Tools for more than six years. He has held numerous positions within the company's IT department, including systems analyst and business applications developer, where he was a co-developer of Knight Oil Tools' KIP interactive inspection process and quality assurance program. His most recent position was network manager. He received a BS degree in management information systems from UL Lafayette.
Ashley Lane has rejoined Reamco Inc. as CEO. Lane assisted with the startup of the company in 1986 and progressed from operations manager to vice president during his 12-year first tenure. Lane has 32 years of experience in the oil and gas industry, having moved on to gain additional entrepreneurial and management experience through roles as international business development manager of Superior Energy Services Inc. and president of Drilling Logistics Inc., a downhole rental and manufacturing company in Lafayette.
Kavolshaia Howze has joined UL Lafayette's communications and marketing department as multimedia specialist. Howze has six years of experience in the video production and media relations industry and is in charge of promotional and marketing videos and will also head all operations for the university's YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/ullafayettechannel). The Birmingham, Ala., native worked for two years as a graduate assistant in sports information and communications and marketing for Northwestern State University in Natchitoches. She completed her studies in August 2012, earning a master's degree in health and human performance with a concentration in sports administration. During her time at NSU, Howze received a spot in the Class of 2011 NASCAR Diversity Internship Program. The summer placement gave her the opportunity to produce multimedia projects for international audiences with the NASCAR Media Group in Charlotte, N.C. Howze began to mold her multimedia skills while earning a BA degree in mass communication-broadcasting at Grambling State University. At GSU, she spent three years as the producer and media liaison of the GSU Sports Radio Network on ESPN 97.7 FM in Ruston. The former GSU softball player also worked as a producer and on-air talent for GSU-TV, and a football operations intern for the former AF2 Bossier-Shreveport Battlewings.
Bill Hale has joined specialty logistics provider Apex Freight Services as leader of its sales and marketing effort. Hale is helping Apex continue its growth by expanding product and service offerings and building a national sales team. He has more than 20 years of leadership experience in sales and marketing and is an accomplished supply chain and logistics executive. Hale is an active member of the Native American Business Alliance, Native Americans in Business and Native American Chamber of Commerce, representing the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. He also holds advisory board positions with two Dallas-Fort Worth-area non-profits and shares his leadership expertise with several national marketing associations.
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Shaun Trahan** has been named director of nursing for patient care services operations at Our Lady of Lourdes. He is responsible for clinical education, the transition unit, multiple support contracts, and managing the PRN pool. He has a degree from UL Lafayette's College of Nursing and more than 15 years of nursing experience. Most recently, he owned his own nursing staffing company. He is enrolled in the MBA program at UL with a concentration in health care administration. Also at Lourdes, Trisha Dominick was named physician recruiter coordinator, assisting in recruiting specialists for the Lourdes Physician Network and coordinating all recruiting processes. Dominick was previously employed with Healthe Habits for Living. She earned a BS in business administration with a concentration in international business from UL.
The National Business Group on Health, a non-profit association of large U.S. employers, has honored Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System for its commitment to promoting a healthy workplace and encouraging its workers and families to support and maintain healthy lifestyles. Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System was among 66 U.S. employers that received the 2012 Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles award at the Leadership Summit sponsored by the National Business Group on Health's Institute on Innovation in Workforce Well-being. The system received a Platinum Award for measurable success and outcomes achieved through Healthy Lives, its employee health and wellness program.
As a result of a $4.8 million upgrade to Cox's fiber-based network in Acadiana, Cox Business has launched two new Internet tiers at 80 and 100 Mbps designed to meet the needs of small businesses with high speed requirements. Acadiana was the first Cox market nationwide to receive the new speed options, with additional Cox Business markets to launch this year and early 2013. Cox Business owns and operates its own high speed, multi-service, national fiber optic backbone comprising 13,000 miles of fiber.