Tag: Nicholls

BCBS of Louisiana Foundation Awards Nicholls a Disaster Response Grant

Nicholls State University will soon be able to offer need-based scholarships to help students return to campus after having previously left in the wake of Hurricane Ida. According to this news release from the school, a $100,000 disaster response grant will be utilized to create these scholarships, which will be helpful to students wanting to return to their degree plans.

It was announced by the university in May 2022 that a $100,000 disaster response grant was awarded by The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation. It was also announced that the funds would be utilized so that students who had halted their learning due to Hurricane Ida’s detrimental impact on the area would be able to qualify for a needs-based scholarship that would offset the cost of re-enrolling & returning to classes.

Nicholls State University President Dr. Jay Clune commented on BCBSLA’s award by saying, “even though others outside of South Louisiana have long stopped talking about the effects of Hurricane Ida, we are still feeling the impacts every single day. We are grateful for this partnership with Blue Cross Blue Shield. I don’t like to think of where we would be without the support of our wonderful industry and community partners.”

In the wake of Hurricane Ida, the destructive Category 4 Atlantic hurricane that made its landfall near Port Fourchon on the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, it was reported that an estimated 25% of Lafourche and Terrebonne Parish homes were destroyed or declared uninhabitable. Additionally, approximately two-thirds of the Nicholls community reported that their homes were destroyed or uninhabitable. Once the storm passed, the BCBSLA Foundation had committed $5 million in funds to areas affected by Ida, and other communities across the Gulf Coast also stepped up.

Earlier this year, The Courier reported that Nicholls State’s spring enrollment had dropped 10% from the previous year, attributing the decline to Hurricane Ida as well as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In August of 2021, Nicholls President Dr. Jay Clune announced that the school would essentially restructure its retention and recruitment strategies. As a result, the university’s decision to have recruitment and retention efforts managed by the Office of Academic Affairs, specifically being led by Sue Westbrook, provost and president for Academic Affairs, and Renee Hicks, assistant vice president of Institutional Effectiveness, Access, and success.

It was then reported that the university’s fall-to-spring retention rate of first-time freshmen had increased by 7.9 percentage points from the previous year to be listed at 90.5%. This was the first time that this retention rate had surpassed 90% in over a decade, thus signaling that Nicholls’ restructuring was beginning to pay off. Renee Hicks interpreted the data by saying, “when we post retention rates like this, it means our entire campus community has come together to provide extraordinary support for our students during the recovery from a major hurricane on top of a pandemic.”

Dr. Clune commented on the promising data, saying, “in addition to our strong retention rates, we also see applications are up year-to-year. I attribute that to our data-led approach to recruitment and retention by Ms. Hicks and her team. With a new marketing campaign and increased recruitment and retention efforts, we anticipate a return to an upward trend in enrollment.”

Pair this earlier indicator of rising enrollment rates with these new needs-based scholarships established from The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation’s $100,000 disaster response grant, and it’s even clearer to see that not just the campus community of Nicholls is coming together to come out of Hurricane Ida stronger than before, but the surrounding community of Houma, Thibodaux, and the State of Louisiana is banding together as well.

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Dinner of the Century is Back at Chef John Folse Culinary Institute

For the first time in over two years, the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute at Nicholls State University is inviting members of the community to be a part of their annual “Dinner of the Century” fundraiser, according to this news release from the school.

Director of the Culinary Institute, Chef John Kozar, commented on the return of the traditional fundraiser by saying, “this is the first Dinner of the Century since the pandemic began over two years ago. We are excited to be able to bring this unique culinary experience back to our community.” The theme for this year’s dinner is named “A Joyful Magnificence Celebrating Catherine de Medici.”

This year’s menu is inspired by the Queen of France from 1547-1559, Catherine de Medici, who has influenced much of the way we eat and even think about food today. Having been born in Italy, Catherine de Medici introduced many ingredients, recipes, and culinary culture that she had grown up with to the French, making the rest history. Chef John Kozar commented on the cuisine set to be served by saying, “this historic menu is a mix of modern and antique dishes that include some of Catherine de Medici’s favorite treats, as well as some iconic items from Pascal’s Manale, all of which is created by our student chefs and the Chef John Folse team.”

The last planned “Dinner of the Century” fundraiser event was to be held in April 2020, but it was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic; luckily, this 2022 event aims to pick up the torch and carry the tradition onward. In addition to the culinary celebration of various dishes, the evening will be used as an opportunity to induct the DeFelice Family of Pascal’s Manale Restaurant into the Lafcadio Hearn Hall of honor, an honorary event that was originally slated for the since-canceled 2020 fundraising dinner.

The Lafcadio Hearn Award is one that is bestowed upon culinary professionals who have had a positive, long-term influence on the cuisine and greater culture of Louisiana and throughout the nation. The honor is named after Lafcadio Hearn, an influential figure who penned a series of books and articles introducing New Orleans to the world while helping to document Creole cuisine for future generations. Having passed away in 1904, Hearn’s legacy lives on in how the public interprets Creole cuisine today as well as in the inducting members into the Lafcadio Hearn Hall of Honor. The Defelice Family will join other influential chefs and restaurants in the Hall of honor. This includes Ella Brennan, Frank Brigtsen, Leah Chase, Drago Cvitanovich, Ruth Fertel, and T.J. Moran, among many others.

It’s appropriate that the DeFelice Family of Pascal’s Manale Restaurant fame be inducted into the Hall of Honor, because not only has Pascal’s Manale Restaurant been an influential part of New Orleans cuisine, but since the very beginning, the restaurant has been a family affair. First opened by Frank Manale in 1913, the restaurant was taken over by Manale’s nephew Pascal Radosta in 1937, who took full ownership of the establishment and later added his name to create the infamous culinary institute that we now know today.

The restaurant eventually gained international attention after Pascal’s youngest brother, Jake, created one of the most iconic New Orleans dishes in the 1950s: barbecue shrimp. Later,  Pascal’s youngest daughter, Virginia DeFelice, and her family purchased the restaurant in 1988. The family continued to operate the restaurant until November 2019.

The Chef John Folse Culinary Institute at Nicholls State University’s “A Joyful Magnificence Celebrating Catherine De Medici” also honoring The DeFelice Family of Pascal’s Manale Restaurant will be held on Tuesday, May 3, 2022, at Nicholl’s Cotillion Ballroom in the Bollinger Student Union. A cocktail reception will be held at six o’clock with dinner service starting at seven o’clock. Information to reserve seats and sponsorships can be found here, with all proceeds going toward the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute.

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Nicholls Hosts Awards For Excellence

Recently, the many achievements of Nicholls State University alumni and other members of the Nicholls community were honored by the Nicholls Alumni Federation at the annual Awards for Excellence ceremony, as per the school.

Held on March 23, 2022, in the Bollinger Memorial Student Union’s Cotillion Ballroom, this year’s ceremony served as an opportunity for the Nicholls State University Alumni Federation to bestow its four Awards for Excellence to high-achieving supporters of Nicholls State University, be they graduates or not. In addition to the four winners of this year’s Awards for Excellence, the Federation honored the 2022 Hall of Fame recipients, which were made up of outstanding graduates from each of Nicholls’ colleges.

Preceded by a cocktail reception, the evening’s awards program saw the bestowing of the James Lynn Powell Award, the Harvey Peltier Award, the Corporate Mark of Honor, the Honorary Alumni Award, and several Outstanding Alumni awards to a member of each of Nicholls’ colleges.

Katherine Mabile, the director of Alumni Affairs for the Nicholls Alumni Federation, said of the evening, “we are so blessed as a university to have men and women such as these who have contributed so much to this institution and our community over the years. his university would not be here today without the passion and commitment of our remarkable alumni. It is an honor to recognize them through our awards ceremony.”

The James Lynn Powell Alumni Award is the single highest recognition given to a graduate of Nicholls State University. This year Michael J. Hebert, Jr, a native of Houma, was the recipient of this honor. Hebert is the chief of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) as well as the National Jones Act Division of Enforcement (JADE). Hebert has spent over three decades in federal service, including nine years in the military, and in 2016, CBP charged the 2-time Nicholls Graduate with defining, establishing, and leading the newly-formed JADE division.

Today Hebert is responsible for the CBP’s coastwide trade enforcement strategy,, but he’s never forgotten his collegiate roots. Hebert returned to Nicholls from 2015 to 2018 to serve as an adjunct instructor of Petroleum Engineering and Safety Technology Management and criminal justice. Hebert had also contributed to the development of the criminal justice program’s curriculum.

The Harvey Peltier Award is the highest award given to a non-graduate of Nicholls. Similar to the criteria for receiving the James Lynn Powell Award, the recipient of this honor must be considered to be outstanding in their chosen field, contribute to the university and the community, and cannot be a Nicholls Graduate. This year’s Harvey Peltier Award was given to Mr. and Mrs. Salvador M. Brocato, III, two Nicholls supporters whose support began in 2017 when their son, Dominic Brocato, joined the Nicholls Football team.

Members of both the Nicholls Foundation and the Huddle Up Club, the Brocatos’ support for the university is felt across the campus. Not only were they the first to donate to 2020’s Boucvalt Family Athletic Complex Naming Campaign but they have also made remarkable contributions to the Nicholls Police, the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute, and the maritime management program, among many others.

The Corporate Mark of Honor is an award that’s typically awarded to an organization that has proven to be a strong supporter of Nicholls and its mission. This year, Nicholls State University President Dr. Jay Clune awarded the Corporate Mark of Honor to the Giardina Family Foundation, which has given to the Dyslexia Center, Nicholls Foundation, and other organizations across their years of service.

The Honorary Alumni Award is an honor bestowed to a non-graduate of the university who has shown a special interest in the school and who has given their time to Nicholls over the years. This year, Maria B. Cruse, MD., received the Honorary Alumni Award, as she has been highly involved with the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute. Dr. Cruse was named an honorary culinary faculty member in 2011 and had a key role in the creation of the Culinary Guild.

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B&G Restaurateurs Donate to Nicholls State University Athletics

A sizable donation from two Morgan City restaurateurs is set to benefit over 350 student-athletes at Nicholls State University, according to a news release from the school.

Brenda and Gregory Hamer Sr, owners and operators of B&G Food Enterprises, have donated $100,000 to Nicholls State University Athletics. The Hamer family has a history within the Thibodaux and Houma region and with Nicholls State University itself, as their grandson, Garret LeBlanc, is a former Nicholls Football player.

Hillary Charpentier, director of the Colonel Athletic Association, said of the Hammers’ donation, “as the lowest funded school in the Southland Conference, donor dollars allow Nicholls Athletics to compete on the same or higher level than our peer institutions. Support like this has a direct impact on all student-athletes here at Nicholls. Our student-athletes must receive the support they need to compete and succeed at the highest level both on and off the field.”

Previously in 2021, the Hamers had donated $50,000 to the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute so that state-of-the-art kitchen and cooking equipment could be purchased and maintained for Nicholls Students. As a result, the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute’s student lounge and culinary library was named the Gregory and Brenda Hamer Family/Taco Bell Student Lounge and Research Center. Gregory Hamer Jr, the couple’s son, was in the first graduation class of the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute.

Gregory Hamer Sr. remarked to Nicholls press that he and his wife had plenty of reasons to support the university in saying, “we have one grandson who played for the football team, and we have another who plays for them now. We also have businesses in Morgan City, Thibodaux, Houma, and Matthews. It just makes sense for us to support Nicholls. We’ve been proud to support this university for years, and we’re happy to be able to help them with this incredible facility.”

As a sign of their appreciation, Nicholls Athletics has proposed that the Tight Ends Meeting Room be named after the Hamer’s grandson and former Nicholls Football player, Garret LeBlanc, and their business, B&G Enterprises, pending approval from the University of Louisiana System Board of Supervisors.

The naming within the Boucvalt Family Athletic Complex is a part of a naming campaign that began in 2020 to raise money for current and future needs within Nicholls Athletics. The campaign’s initial goal was to name all areas within the facility, and each may be named after an individual, family, or business as per the guidelines set forth by the state of Louisiana, Nicholls State University, and the Donor Gifts Agreement. Funds accumulated from the naming campaign are used as both an endowment and for upkeep and maintenance within the athletic department.

Nicholls Athletic Director, Jonathan Terrell, commented on the recent donation by saying, “every student-athlete benefits from this. For them to be able to give from the heart is incredible because of how many people it’s going to help. We have this excellent new building, and with these dollars will be able to keep it in the best shape possible.”

B&G Food Enterprises, which was initially created in 1982 by the Hamers when they opened their first Taco Bell location in Morgan City, now operates over 150 Taco Bell locations across Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas and is the largest Taco Bell franchise in Louisiana. Gregory Hamer Sr. is a Trustee of the National Restaurant Associationand the past chairman of the National Restaurant Association Education Foundation. Hamer Sr. also served as the president of the Louisiana Restaurant Association and was elected to the association’s Hall of Fame in 2002.

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Nicholls Sees Decade-High Enrollment Retention

Despite beginning the school year amid a flurry of natural and pandemic-related challenges, the Fall-to-Spring enrollment retention of first-time freshmen at Nicholls State University is holding steady at the highest percentage rate in over a decade, as per this news release from the school.

As it’s true for many post-secondary learning institutions nationwide, the prolonged continuance of the COVID-19 pandemic and its lasting effects has cast a particular shadow on collegiate affairs, enrollments, and retention of students during the transition from the Fall to Spring semesters. In 2021, Nicholls students were facing an even more immediate and devastating disaster in the form of Hurricane Ida, which predictably led to an expected drop in Spring enrollment.

The University’s enrollment data for the Spring 2022 semester showed a 10 percent drop since Spring 2021, dropping from 6,165 to 5,531 students. Nicholls President Dr. Jay Clune reported that this result was expected. This expectation is due to the fact that the Nicholls’ community is still attending classes “amid an elongated pandemic” and still actively “recovering from a devastating hurricane.”

Attending school and earning an undergraduate or graduate degree amid a pandemic is quite the feat in and of itself, but Dr. Clune put the experience in perspective saying, “we have juniors here at Nicholls who have only known college through the lens of this pandemic. We understand how difficult that can be. I commend the students who have remained on campus and look forward to better days ahead.”

This past August, the Nicholls President announced that the University would begin restructuring its initial recruitment and ongoing retention strategies. On a whole, the restructuring efforts will be spearheaded by the Nicholls Office of Academic Affairs with Dr. Sue Westbrook, the provost and vice president for academic affairs, and Renee Hicks, the assistant vice president of Institutional Research Effectiveness and Planning, access, and success leading the charge.

Though only announced at the beginning of the 2022 school year, the positive impact has been immediately evident, as seen with this recent enrollment data. This year’s Fall-to-Spring retention of first-time freshmen at Nicholls was reported as being 90.5 percent, which is a total 7.9 percentage point increase from last year and the first time that the Freshman retention rate has remained above 90 percent in over ten years.

Renee Hicks commented on the positivity emitted from the milestone achievement by saying, “when we post retention rates like this, it means our entire campus community has come together to provide extraordinary support for our students during the recovery from a major hurricane on top of a pandemic.”

Dr. Clune was also one to attribute the strong retention rates to the efforts put forth by the Office of Academic Affairs. He said, “in addition to our strong retention rates, we also see applications are up year-to-year. I attribute that to our data-led approach to recruitment and retention by Ms. Hicks and her team. With a new marketing campaign and increased recruitment and retention efforts, we anticipate a return to an upward trend in enrollment.”

Colleges and universities calculate their annual retention rates by comparing the number of enrolled students (as of the 14th day of classes) and subtracting the number of students who have withdrawn or canceled their enrollment. Then this figure will be divided by the total number of enrolled students. This retention rate is then regularly compared to other universities in the area as well as the individual school’s rate across the years. This data is reported annuallyby the university and any fluctuations in data are typically attributed to a wide array of factors, but for Nicholls State University to have seen a milestone increase in freshmen enrollment retention  amid a pandemic and natural disaster is certainly quite the feat of the academic institution.

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Nicholls Nursing Students receive Clinical Lab Coats from United Houma Nation

Nursing students at Nicholls State University will be receiving clinical lab coats thanks to a large donation from the United Houma Nation, as per the university. The United Houma Nation (UHN) donated approximately $20,000 worth of clinical lab coats to Nicholls’ Department of Nursing in order to assist students by covering an important and often costly part of their enrollment in the program.

After Hurricane Ida passed in 2021 and massive amounts of damage and destruction were surveyed in Thibodaux Parish, the UHN had received various donations of supplies that were to be distributed to the affected community. Among these supplies were numerous boxes of nearly $20,000 of clinical lab coats, and these boxes were discovered by Cami Dardar. Dardar is both a senior student of nursing at Nicholls and a member of the UHN, so when she discovered the boxes of lab coats while organizing the donations, she jumped to action.

Dardar told Nicholls press, “I knew I had to get in contact with Dr. Raquel Engolio to get these uniforms out. I really think this is from God because the uniforms could have gone anywhere and out of all the people involved, I knew what to do with them. I would have never thought that being a nursing student and a member of the UNH would ever cross paths. It’s amazing to see two important parts of my life come together.”

The Bachelor of Science in Nursing Program at Nicholls admits 160 students annually with approximately 80 students admitted each semester. Each student is responsible for procuring their own clinical lab coat, which can be costly as these coats are valued at about $115. Stacked against tuition, textbooks, and other supplies, it’s certainly advantageous for nursing students to be recipients of this UHN donation.

In reflecting on the significance of a Nicholls student who may or may not have had their entire lives upended by Hurricane Ida receive this symbolic and vital part of their Nursing education, Dardar said, “to see another student who needs the uniform due to losing them in the storm or can’t afford them is just a feeling I can’t describe.” She continued, “I remember my first semester and how much of a burden it was to afford these uniforms. Now, students don’t have to worry. It is an honor to bless upcoming students with these coats.”

Head of Nicholls’ Department of Nursing and assistant professor of nursing Dr. Englio commented on the donation by saying, “this wonderful donation will assist Nicholls Nursing students by saving them both time and money. We are very grateful to have this type of support from the community and from one of our students. The timing of the donation is perfect. It is also very meaningful to future registered nurses and will help them have a positive clinical experience.

These donated clinical lab coats were primarily donated on November 5, 2021 at a dedicated donation event organized by Principal Chief August “Coco” Creppel, in which a team of UHN members delivered and handed out approximately 450 lab coats to new clinical students.

New students admitted to the Department of Nursing previously were able to attend a Nursing-exclusive job fair last semester. The job fair was organized by the university’s Career Services, and it provided current and former graduates of Nicholls’ nursing programs to meet, interview with, and connect with potential employers. Employers attending the Nursing Career Job Fair were healthcare providers from hospitals and other healthcare groups across Louisiana.

Over the past decade, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reported an on-average projection of about 194,500 job openings for registered nurses with the typical entry-level education required being a Bachelor’s degree. That being said, the donation of lab coats from the United Houma Nation is massively appreciated by Nicholls’ nursing students.

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