Students, parents and guests, faculty and administration colleagues, and all guests from the extended Nicholls community:
Welcome to our virtual student awards ceremony. In normal times, we would all get together at 6:00 PM in the Ballroom of the Student Union on an evening late in an academic year to enjoy hors d’oeuvres and honor the success and excellence of our students in this college.
But as we are all aware, these are not exactly normal times. Yet, there’s still evidence of normalcy here in our virtual ceremony. For instance, the ceremony will go live at 6:00 PM on an evening late in an academic year—just as normal. As well, it will honor the success and excellence of our students in this college—just as normal.
What’s especially normal about this year’s ceremony is the wealth and importance of the achievements of our students. Historically, students in the College of Sciences and Technology are well known for their achievements. Our students comprise the overwhelming majority of students enrolled in the University Honors Program. Our students normally comprise the largest group of students named to Colonel Leaders and Scholars and the Nicholls Hall of Fame. The individual achievements of our students, as you’ll hear from the video testimonials below, is remarkable—just as normal.
But these are certainly not normal times. What will return us to normal and—better yet–improve future society and the world? Who will lead us out, rehabilitate the ill, teach us to flatten the curve, develop drugs and vaccines, save lives, make our environment safe, and effectively prepare to conquer the next world issue?
Join me in honoring those very people tonight—right here.
–Dr. John P. Doucet, Dean
Larry S. Haw Memorial Award for Outstanding Mathematics Major
Outstanding Achievement in Calculus
Outstanding Graduate Assistant
Even though our 2021 ceremony is a virtual event, as we all know from recent experiences the amount of effort in organizing events doesn’t diminish with online delivery. In fact, with needs to learn new technology, to communicate with students and faculty and parents without the immediacy of face-to-face conversations, and in general to operate from a distance, the amount of effort is greater. And so is the desire to send thanks.
To our students—Thank you for choosing Nicholls, for choosing to major in a program in the sciences and technology, and in working so diligently toward not only success but also the excellence that’s evident here.
To the parents of our students—Thank you for entrusting your children to us, not only for the past few years but also for the life-long memories and professional association with them that we will continue to enjoy.
To my faculty colleagues—Thank you for mentoring our students, for helping them grow and professionalize, and for feeding their creativity and intellectual interests to make them successful persons we honor here.
None of us could have envisioned in August 2019 the type of ceremony we would need to produce in April 2021. But, nonetheless, “vision” is the key word and the key activity that made this virtual ceremony a success. And for this, I thank the college’s academic departments represented here—Allied Health, Applied Sciences, Biological Sciences, Chemistry and Physical Sciences, and Mathematics. I thank them and their award selection committees for helping to keep this important event annual while at the same time considering the health and safety of our student award recipients and their guests.
Finally and especially, to our college’s administrative team: our Associate Dean, Dr. Brigett Scott, our Assistant Dean, Dr. Gary Lafleur, and our Administrative Assistant, Ms. Chastity Ricouard—Thank you for you direct involvement in producing this event.
–Dr. John P. Doucet, Dean
Students, congratulations for each of your well-earned honors. If you’re leaving us soon to graduation, then know before you leave that it was our honor to serve you. As an alumnus, we hope you remember these past years fondly. You have made Nicholls greater.
If you’re not yet ready to graduate, then we hope to see you next year right back here. Better yet, we hope to see you next year in the Ballroom of the Student Union on an evening late in the academic year to enjoy hors d’oeuvres in your honor.
We hope you have enjoyed our virtual student awards ceremony. Stay safe. Stay vigilant.