What are one or two of your greatest business and/or community achievements?

Two achievements stand out. First, being asked to help lead CGI’s U.S. Early Career Programs and Partnerships. I get to shape strategy, design programs, and open doors for diverse early-career talent across the country. I create an alignment between university, community, and industry – improving access to jobs in tech. Second, returning to UL Lafayette as an Adjunct Instructor for UNIV 100. Teaching a professional development course was a full-circle milestone, allowing me to give back to the place that shaped me. I created a hands-on course in public speaking, resume building, and career readiness. Seeing students gain confidence along the way was the best part. I am excited to return to teaching again soon.

What’s your favorite thing about what you do for a living?

I love how personal the work feels for me. I get to sit down with people, learn about their goals and strengths, and then turn that insight into programs that connect them to real opportunities. It’s incredibly rewarding to design initiatives that meet both business needs and the needs of the people we serve. I also love that my voice matters. I can share ideas and see them come to life. And, I’ll admit, I’m a bit of a nerd when it comes to project management. There’s something so satisfying about organizing tasks, driving progress, and watching a plan come together. At the heart of it, I get to be the bridge for early-career professionals stepping into the workforce. Combining my two favorite things – working with people and managing projects – makes every day exciting and meaningful.

You’ve helped launch 100+ tech careers locally as a Campus Recruiter and now lead early career strategy while managing a $1M NSF grant. What’s one thing you’ve learned about building real opportunity for young professionals in Acadiana?

I think this goes back to the question about “what should we do to keep young people here?” One thing that’s been very interesting for me is that a lot of young professionals in Lafayette don’t want to leave Lafayette. This is home for them, or at least close to home for them.

And so what I’ve learned through the programs that I manage and through hiring over a hundred early career professionals is that we have some really amazing young professionals in this city coming right out of UL, and there are just so many different programs and groups that we have in Lafayette to support them.

We just need to find a way to get that information to them. The705 is a great example of that. They want to be involved. They want to stay here. They want to build careers here. And I’m really thankful that I get to be a part of that – going into the university, finding people and hiring them, and giving them their offer call for their first professional job is absolutely amazing.