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Farming transition

Louisiana Farm Bureau Federation President Ronnie Anderson was chosen to head the farm transition committee of Agriculture Commissioner-elect Mike Strain. The committee will review policy matter statewide while examining staffing needs within the department.

Security alert

TraceSecurity, a provider of on-demand security compliance solutions, announced its partnership with PHNS, making its web-based Compliance Manager available to hundreds of health care organizations across the country. PHNS will also deploy TraceSecurity Compliance Manager within its own organization, allowing it to simplify security compliance by integrating and automating regulatory compliance audits, board-level reporting, policy management, vulnerability assessment and employee education and testing.

Expanding help

The Legislature expanded the Louisiana Aging and Disability Resource Center program piloted at the Cajun Area Agency on Aging to help older adults or adults living with disability improve their health, independence and quality of life. The expansion bill allows the program to serve adults with disabilities who are 21 years or older, as opposed to the original program geared toward adults 60 and older.

Roads get facelift

U.S. Rep. Richard Baker of Baton Rouge secured $500,000 for improvements to La. 42 and La. 16 as part of the House-Senate conference report for the fiscal year 2008 Transportation and Housing Urban Development appropriation bill. La. 42 will receive $250,000 for safety improvements, and La. 16 will receive $250,000 for widening the two-mile section of the road from Denham Springs to Watson.

The lowest bidder

The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development announced the results of the Oct. 31 bid letting. In Ascension and East Baton Rouge parishes, Barber Bros. Contracting Co. of Baton Rouge won with a bid of $6,579,992.95 for the installation of draining pipe, asphalt overlay, pavement patching and related work on Airline Highway from Perkins Road to Pecue Lane.

AWARDS/HONORS

Jack Whitehead Jr. was elected the 2008-10 treasurer of the Louisiana State Bar Association. Whitehead is a shareholder in the Whitehead Law Firm and an active member of the association and the Baton Rouge Bar Association since the late 1980s. He is currently serving his second year as a member of the budget committee.

EATEL named 10 Ascension Parish second-grade classes winners of the first Imagination Press Book Grant. The winning teachers and their classes will turn their story ideas and artwork into a professionally published 25-page hardbound book. The school system’s Students Teaching and Reaching will help prepare the books for publishing along with digital cameras provided by EATEL.

The Pelican Chapter of American Builders and Contractors professional organization received the organization’s Construction Users Roundtable Workforce Development Award. The award is given in recognition of recruitment, training and education of construction professionals. The Baton Rouge chapter received one of six awards nationwide.

Object 9 was named Client Provider of the Year at the Louisiana Business and Technology Center’s anniversary and graduation ceremony. Object 9 donated $10,000 to the winner of the New Venture Business Plan Competition for the second consecutive year. The competition provides a forum in which qualifying participants present their ideas to win prizes to help start their business ventures.

Entergy Corporation received the Corporate Citizenship Award at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Business Civic Leadership Center’s annual dinner. Entergy received the award for their Low-Income Incentives program designed to help individuals and families achieve economic self-sufficiency by supporting job training, literacy, scholarships and affordable housing programs.

Carol Carter was awarded the Entrepreneurship 101 Award at the 25th Annual Entrepreneurship Education Forum. Carter is an instructor at LSU’s E.J. Ourso College of Business’ Rucks Department of Management and assistant director of the Stephenson Entrepreneurship Institute. The award was given for Carter’s creativity exhibited in bringing entrepreneurship education to LSU.

The 2007 Manship Torch Award for Ethics in Business from the Better Business Bureau of South Central Louisiana was presented to Gage Telephone Systems, Kleinpeter Farms Dairy, Shaw Group and Johnson & Associates. Award recipients are judged for high ethical standards of behavior toward customers, buyer/seller relationships and the communication of ethical policies to employees.

IEM, a homeland security and emergency management company, was awarded the International Association of Emergency Managers’ highest technology and innovation award. The award was presented for IEM’s role in planning and demonstrating an integrated communications system that allows for multiple civilian and military agencies to share information during an emergency.

Saundra McGuire of LSU’s Center for Academic Success, adjunct professor of chemical education and associate dean of University College received the Presidential Award for Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring. The annual award is administered by the National Science Foundation and includes a $10,000 grant and presidential commemorative certificate.

Certifications and professional designations

Sanford F. Roy of Merrill Lynch completed the Certified Investment Management Analyst. The certification is given to financial advisers that have demonstrated client-centered investment management consulting.

Bryan Poche of East Federal Credit Union received a Certified Financial Services Auditor certification from the Institute of Internal Auditors Baton Rouge Chapter.

Judith Morris of Southern University received a Certified Government Auditing Professional certification from the Institute of Internal Auditors Baton Rouge Chapter.

Marcus Manuel of General Heath Systems, Paul Gray of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana, Adrienne Felterman of the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office, Patrick Bateman of the Office of Youth Development, Anthony Vining of Statewide Bank and Jeremy Lemoine of Cleco received their Certified Internal Auditor certification from the Institute of Internal Auditors Baton Rouge Chapter.