LSU Shreveport graduates celebrate academic achievement at Friday's commencement ceremony

LSU Shreveport graduates celebrate academic achievement at Friday's commencement ceremony

BOSSIER CITY - "It's never too late."

That's the prevailing thought of grandmother Annette Dugas, who obtained her master's of education in curriculum and instruction degree from LSU Shreveport during Friday's commencement ceremony at Brookshire Grocery Arena.

Dugas started her career in 2003 as a paraprofessional in a special education classroom in Lafayette Parish, working her way to her own classroom via a bachelor's degree in 2014 and now will seek administrative responsibilities via her master's degree.

"It was hard to get through, but I'm so happy that my grandkids are here to see this," said Dugas, who is 50. "I hope they learn to never give up.

"The kids are what make special education so rewarding. They deserve educational opportunities just as much as the regular education kids."

General studies major Jey Rogers hopes her children (13-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter) pick up those same lessons.

The New Orleans resident graduated with an applied and social sciences concentration to bolster her pharmacy career.

"Having a full-time job and a family, being able to complete my bachelor's degree online with LSUS was really good for me," Rogers said. "This degree will open doors for me, and I hope I've inspired my children to know that even though I'm a non-traditional student - it's never too late to accomplish your goals."

Commencement speaker Keith Burton started his family at LSUS, meeting his now wife Tina on the third floor of the business and education building.

Burton, who celebrated his 33-year wedding anniversary Friday at commencement, said of all the moments in his long and decorated education career, one with a kindergartener seemed most poignant.

The current Superintendent of Caddo Parish Schools was an elementary principal observing a kindergarten class as students worked together on group projects.

The number one rule in the lesson was that nobody worked alone.

"This one girl kept looking at me with a worried look on her face, and she checked to make sure the teacher wasn't looking, and she came up to me, extended a hand, and said, 'It's OK Mr. Burton, you don't have to work alone,'" said Burton, a two-time LSUS graduate. "I threw my evaluation stuff down and went to work with this little girl.

"She didn't have authority or a title or any kind of academic credentials, but she had opportunity and awareness to see it. Be more than your major or job title."

Undergraduate business major Harris Anderson is fusing multiple academic paths on which she's traveled.

Anderson started as an architecture major, but COVID-19 derailed that pursuit and pushed her to take a couple years away from college.

"When I decided to go back to college, I decided that I wanted to keep working at my architecture firm, so LSUS's option to do online classes was a huge deal," said Anderson, a Houston resident. "I did a concentration in international business, and now I'm moving to New York City with my firm in hopes of landing us a client in Europe."

Anetria Bolden wanted her MBA experience to benefit more than just herself.

She trekked to Shreveport-Bossier from northern Virginia with her niece in tow.

Bolden is seeking to advance her financial management career through an accounting concentration while providing an example to her niece, who is pursuing her associate's degree.

"I was looking to upskill with an advanced degree, and I'm already leveraging skills learned in this program," Bolden said. "I'm in auditing and data analysis, and I worked really hard to get to this point.

"The accelerated format wasn't easy, and this degree was a labor of love. But I found a huge online community in a program that offered flexibility for me to study on my own time."

A master's degree was always a dream for New York resident John Rint.

Rint, who works in case management at a law firm, wanted to sharpen his management skills with an MBA degree.

"Now that I'm in a management role, I wanted to get a better grasp of management," said Rint, who lives in Queens. "I've definitely applied what I've learned, like concepts I've written papers about in strategic management class.

"I'm more of an old-school guy who likes to attend class in person, but flexibility of this program, its affordability, and the depth in which LSUS dove into the different topics made this an enjoyable experience."

For Averee Guillory, the blend of in-person and online classes was the right fit as a resident of Patterson (south of Lafayette).

Guillory is enhancing her career as an administrative assistant at a furniture office supply outfit.

"LSUS had a good, homey feel - and I loved the professors," Guillory said. "I'm moving to the Covington/Mandeville area to work in a different office."

Jimmie Jones wanted to prolong his career in the oil and gas industry by completing his MBA.

The Houston resident has worked in control systems for more than two decades, particularly working a lot with automation.

"In automation, I didn't know what my job was going to look like in 15 or 20 years," said Jones, who started working in this field at age 16. "So I wanted to open some more doors within the control systems sector, possibly get into leadership, with this master's degree.

"I had a two-year plan in 2023 to finish my bachelors and start my masters, but I never thought I'd be able to finish my masters before 2025 was over. Time management was essential in completing this degree in 10 months, and the online format helped me tremendously."