UL Lafayette College of Education & Human Development

05/25/2026

Join us this Memorial Day as we remember and thank the brave men and women who sacrificed their lives to serve our nation. 🇺🇸

University flags fly at half-staff and offices are closed on Monday, May 25, in observance of the holiday. We will reopen for normal business hours on Tuesday at 7:30 a.m.

05/23/2026

On Tuesday at 10 a.m., President Emeritus Dr. Joseph Savoie will be honored by the Louisiana Senate in recognition of nearly half a century of extraordinary leadership and service to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Acadiana and the state of Louisiana.

For 17 years, Dr. Savoie guided the University through a period of remarkable growth and transformation — advancing research, expanding opportunities for students and strengthening UL Lafayette’s role as a driver of innovation, culture and economic development.

We are grateful to State Senator Gerald Boudreaux for recognizing Dr. Savoie’s service and legacy, and we invite the Ragin’ Cajuns community to join us in celebrating this well-deserved honor.

05/23/2026

05/23/2026

05/16/2026

05/13/2026

Through funding provided by the Gulf Research Program Early Career Research Fellowship in the Education Track through the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Dr. Heather Stone was able to organize and participate in a focused writing retreat dedicated to advancing an article that has been developing over several years. The retreat was held at Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium (LUMCON), whose environment provided the space and time needed for concentrated collaboration and writing. The retreat was attended by Dr. Heather Stone, Dr. Liz Skilton, and recent master’s graduate Maria Lindquist, all from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. During the retreat, we drafted nearly 7,000 words and made substantial progress toward completing the manuscript. The retreat created the dedicated time and collaborative space necessary to move the article from a long-simmering idea toward completion, and we anticipate submitting the manuscript by the end of the month.

05/13/2026

Each semester, academic colleges nominate graduating students who exemplify excellence in leadership, scholarship, and service. Finalists are then interviewed by a committee from the Alumni Association, which selects one student to receive the university’s highest graduating student honor.

Congratulations to Abbey Poirier, for being nominated as the college's Outstanding Graduate AND being selected as the University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s Overall Outstanding Graduate for the Spring 2026 semester! We are super excited to have a student from our college to be selected!

Abbey Poirier is graduating on Friday, May 15th in Elementary Education with a perfect 4.0 overall GPA! Geaux Abbey!!

05/05/2026

The University of Louisiana at Lafayette's College of Education and Human Development recently honored graduating high school seniors who are choosing to pursue an education or related degree at UL Lafayette next fall. This event was held on Friday, May 1, 2026 on UL Lafayette’s campus.

Congratulations, Dr. Barber, Dr. Adams, Dr. Bruce-Davis, Dr. McKey, and our Ed Rising Collegiate Chapter who all hosted UL Lafayette Signing Day Event.

Congratulations to the panel as well! Dr. Giroir, LPSS, and our Ragin Cajun future educators, you were a hit! The entire ceremony has grown so much from just a few years ago when we had our first signing at Lafayette High.

05/05/2026

COEHD recently gathered to recognize an outstanding group of students whose leadership, scholarship, service, resilience, and dedication have elevated our college community and inspired those around them. These awards celebrate students who represent the very best of our mission—future educators, health professionals, servant leaders, researchers, and advocates who are already making a difference.

This year’s honorees were selected through a nomination process that included nominations submitted by peers, teachers, researchers, administrators, and self-nominations. A review team of faculty, staff, and administrators from across the college carefully considered each application and nomination packet.

We were incredibly impressed by the quality of students nominated this year. The accomplishments, leadership, and service reflected in these nominations made the selection process both meaningful and very difficult. We are proud of every student who was nominated and grateful for the many individuals who took time to recognize their excellence.

Mighty Oak award winner for grit, determination, and perseverance.

Alex Brown (EDCI)

Impact award winners have made meaningful contributions to their field of study, demonstrated professionalism, and shown passion for their chosen profession.

Marisa Ho**er (EDCI)
Parker Bristow (KNES)
Amanda Torrans (Graduate Program)( not pictured)

The Dean’s Award of Excellence is one of the highest honors presented by the college. It recognizes a student who has demonstrated extraordinary service to the college, university, and profession while embodying leadership, integrity, humility, and excellence.

Faith Hebert (EDCI)

SGA Distinguished students for outstanding academic accomplishment, leadership, and service. This award celebrates one student from each of our undergraduate divisions (EDCI, KNES, and UL LIFE) who are excelling in the areas of leadership, academic success, and service to others. It reflects the belief that student excellence should be recognized not only in the classroom, but also through involvement, character, and positive impact on the university and broader community.

Sophia Gruesbeck (EDCI)
Kaylee Rentrop (KNES)
Carmen Simoneaux (UL LIFE)

We also recognized the COEHD Outstanding Undergraduate.

Abbey Poirier (EDCI)

05/05/2026

A special thank you to our Dean, Dr. Tracy Cross, for his unwavering support and for providing the resources that helped make the 2026 COEHD Research Symposium accessible to our students and impactful overall. The Symposium was held on Monday, April 27th.

Thanks to our keynote speaker, Dr. Julius Austin, for such a wonderful, well-connected keynote address. The level of audience participation made it clear that his message truly resonated.

Thanks to the committee members for their time, dedication, and support. Special thanks to: Dr. Ismatara Reena, Dr. Christine Briggs,
Dr. Shiho Goto, Love Our Schools, Dr. Megan Breaux, Ms. Lisa LeBlanc, and Dr. Abington-PItre.

I am especially grateful to Mr. Christopher Landry for his essential role in coordinating supplies, handling posters and name tag printing, and assisting with the event from planning through completion. Your dedication and willingness to support our students’ needs were invaluable to the event’s success.

My sincere gratitude to Mr. David Suter and Mr. David Jamie for providing the basketball courts for our student presenters.
Many thanks to Dr. Amanda Mayeaux and Ms. Tiffany Taylor for handling the certificates.

To our faculty research mentors—Dr. Christine Briggs, Dr. Toby Daspit, Dr. Pavel Samsonov, Dr. Dustin Joubert, Dr. Charles Duncan, Dr. Peter Smoke, Dr. Aimee Gros, Dr. Shiho Goto, Dr. Sebnem Cilesiz, Dr. Justin Dunnam, Dr. Ismatara Reena, Dr. Gabriela Wilson, Ms. Sadie Smith, and Mr. Ronald Dore—thank you for encouraging student participation and for your continued support of student research.

Special thanks to our abstract reviewers and poster judges: Dr. Pavel Samsonov, Dr. Dustin Joubert, Dr. Peter Smoke, Dr. Shiho Goto, Dr. Toby Dore, Dr. Justin Dunnam, Dr. Megan Breaux, Dr. Tarrah Davis, Dr. Latasha Hold, Dr. Jin Lee, Dr. Min‑seok Choi, Dr. Jungmin Lee, Dr. Ismatara Reena, Ms. Anna Villanella, Ms. Elizabeth Theriot and graduate students-Humaira Tajeen, Nirmal Gope, Sania Sanjida, Joao Leonel, Marzia Iffat Jahan, and Chance Holmes.
To the attending leadership and faculty—Dr. Tracy Cross, Dr. Christopher Giroir, Dr. Peter Sheppard, Dr. Kumer P. Das, Dr. Mathew Green, Dr. Irvin Esters, Ms. Erin P Robicheaux, Ms. Cindy Duhon, Dr. Toby Dore, Dr. Tarrah Davis, Dr. Latasha Hold, Dr. Jin Lee, Dr. Anita Pool, Dr. Marietta Adams, Dr. Erika LeBlanc, Mrs. Marlene Beard, Ms. Anna Villanella and Ms. Elizabeth Theriot—your presence underscored the importance of COEHD Symposium places on student research. I hope I haven’t missed anyone!

A special thanks to Mr. Paul V Kieu for being there to capture special moments of our student researchers.

A heartfelt thank you to our amazing graduate student volunteers—Joao P. Leonel, Victoria Datta, and Chance Holmes—for assisting with easel setup, sign-in, and guiding presenters. Special thanks to Joao P. Leonel for your endless support throughout the entire process.