Category: Cadence Magazine

After a successful career in law and teaching at Lamar University for more than 35 years, College of Business professor Marleen Swerdlow found fulfillment in supporting her students through scholarship funds and mentorship.

Chelsea Boling shares how Lamar helped guide her and her journey to where she is now.

Freshman students Quinton Haynes and Elie Germain never saw themselves attending a university. Now, having overcome homelessness and poverty, their determination and work ethic remind us what it is to be a Cardinal, and why We Are LU.

With a background in political science, Lynn Maurer, new dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, is focused on working to empower LU's underserved populations. “I’m dedicated to the idea of inclusive excellence in the diversity of education, by recognizing varying financial needs and helping students at-risk academically,” Maurer says.

As a faculty member of Washington State University, Associate Professor Ashwini Kucknoor had a desire to mentor students far more than possible at such a large institution. The search for greater student interaction led to her coming to Lamar University. “At LU, we professors get to teach at the undergraduate and graduate levels,” she says. “This allows me to develop relationships with my students that last for years."

In 2017, Hyattye Simmons received one of three LU Distinguished Alumni Awards for mentorship of at-risk students and his work towards keeping them on the path to graduation. He enrolled at Lamar University in 1977, just two weeks after making history as the first African-American male valedictorian to graduate Burkeville High School. He credits LU as “the bridge that helped him prepare for the outside world.”

Natalie Sfeir, 2016 Beck Fellowship recipient, has researched an innovative solution to the difficult outings for those with dementia and their family. It’s called a Memory Café.

Inspired by an LU physics class, FuelTrax is the #1 marine fuel management product in the world.

What started as a love for brewing beer became a business for Class of '07 students Tyler Blount and David Pool.