Terrebonne Young Achievers Share Their Hope for the Future

The Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce and Business First Bank presented the 2019 Terrebonne Young Achiever’s Award at the Chamber December General Membership Luncheon. The luncheon featured a panel of guest speakers composed of local educational leaders: President of Nicholls State University, Dr. Jay Clune; Chancellor of Fletcher Technical Community College, Dr. Kristine Stickland; and Terrebonne Parish School District Superintendent, Philip Martin. The program also included the presentation of the 2019 Terrebonne Young Achiever’s Award to three recipients. Congratulations to Alexis Knight of Fletcher Technical Community College, Terrebonne Parish Public Works Director David Rome Jr., and Eugene “Gene” Songy of South Louisiana Financial Services, LLC!

Mrs. Alexis Knight, Executive Director of Enrollment Management at Fletcher Technical Community College is a graduate from Terrebonne High School. She graduated in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in Business from Capella University, then went on to earn an MBA from her Alma Mater in 2019. She not only dedicates her time to her career, but also as a wife and a mother.

Alexis began her work at Fletcher as a student worker in the Arts and Sciences Office. After proving herself as a valuable student employee, she was offered a position as Administrative Assistant for the division. She handled day-to-day assistant tasks as well as helping maintain processes for student record keeping. After 5 years in the position, she was promoted to Registrar. As the Registrar, she is responsible for maintaining all student records (registration, course schedules, graduation applications, etc.). She has been in the position for almost 2 years where her co-workers spotlight her capability to complete tasks before deadlines, ability to streamline the records process, and her dedication to exceptional customer service with the students, co-workers, and those in the community.

A letter of recommendation highlights the heart of this award recipient by highlighting impressive feats. Alexis has held an integral part in the growth of processes and programs at Fletcher. Through her knowledge and the ability to troubleshoot and build new processes, she has set up a means for Fletcher to be able to serve the Juvenile Justice community with educational opportunities by building an infrastructure that enabled them to attend college remotely in a confidential and secure environment with a rolling semester with a start and end date. It was something that was not in practice at Fletcher, but Alexis worked through the challenges to enable the educational environment that was meant for students to be able to have public access to work for incarcerated students with no public access outside of the jail.  She has also been an essential part of the Degree Works program which allows faculty, staff, and students to better track their educational progress towards graduation and earn their degrees in a more informative manner.

Alexis has served as the secretary of Fletcher Technical Community College’s Alumni Association since its formation in 2018. She has provided support in fundraising projects and events to advance the association. She has volunteered for Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society’s 5-K race and South Central Industrials Association’s ‘Females Fueling our Workforce’ event. She is also a member of The Max Charter School’s Parent Teacher Association.

When asked about her vision for Terrebonne Parish, Alexis says her vision is for the parish to “remain as a sportsman’s paradise and a staple in South Louisiana tourism. Terrebonne Parish will continue to straddle the line between urban and rural labels, while providing rich opportunities in education, employment, and entertainment. Citizens of the parish will have access to a high-quality education that fits the needs of the students. Charter schools will exist throughout the parish to provide specialized curriculums to high-performing students, high-risk students, and students who learn differently. Roadway and infrastructure upgrades will help residents travel throughout the parish with new technology to expand our economy. To help shape the vision of Terrebonne Parish, it is my goal to expand my involvement in opportunity to serve on curriculum and advisory committees that recommend programs and pathways for a wide variety of students. While I feel that my biggest impact will be in the education arena, I intend to extend my volunteerism into other sectors too. I hope to be remembered as a life-long resident of Terrebonne Parish, a young leader, and an advocate of education.”

The second recipient is David Rome, Jr., Public Works Director for Terrebonne Parish Consolidated Government. He graduated from Andrew Jackson High School and is currently enrolled at Fletcher Technical Community College. David began his career with the Public Works Department in 2012 with the Pollution Control Department where he managed field crews and reviewed construction plans for compliance with code. His ability to lead and supervise employees were quickly recognized. He became Superintendent of the Roads and Bridges Department in 2013 overseeing 54 subordinates and 3 divisions. He worked closely with parish officials, contractors and engineers to efficiently ensure the safety and integrity of the Parish’s road and bridge infrastructure. He became the Public Works Director in 2017 overseeing the daily operations for Roads, Bridges, Vegetation, Gravity and Forced Drainage, Transit, Engineering and Fleet Maintenance Divisions. In addition to supervising the departments, David administers the budgets for each of the departments. He has over twenty years of public service experience; eighteen of those years are in a supervisory position.

David’s leadership qualities and volunteerism spirit benefits the community as a whole by helping to ensure all pump stations were not only operational during Hurricane Barry, but all backup generators were in place should they have been needed. The teamwork was successful in preventing major flooding in the homes of Terrebonne Parish residents during the storm.

He was nominated with the words: “David Rome epitomizes a Young Achiever. He is driven and highly focused both on his work and his profession.” He is described as having a strong moral character and believes we all, regardless of age, can and should work to contribute to our community.

David was a founding member of the Tri-Parish Toastmasters Club in 2013. This organization brings together individuals of all backgrounds to help them improve communication and leadership skills. He also organized his employees during the annual TPCG Fill a Box Food Drive to raise the most donations four years in a row. He is a 2012 graduate of Leadership Terrebonne, a “community leadership incubator,” that provides a comprehensive, interactive program for current and future leaders to prepare for volunteer and public service through a 10-month program. David serves as the Vice-President of The Louisiana Engineers and Supervisors Association and is a member of the South Central Regional Transportation Safety Coalition Committee where he serves as Chairman of the Infrastructure and Operations Subcommittee.

David’s vision for Terrebonne Parish is that the parish “prides itself in its infrastructure and serves as a model for the other parishes as the paragon of Hurricane Protection. I want Terrebonne Parish to be a place people choose to live, work and eventually retire.  As the Public Works Director, my department, together with Administration and the Parish Council, have worked together to enhance the lifestyle of our citizens by improving Drainage, pump stations, as well as recreation facilities, parks and the downtown area. In forty years, I want the stories of flooded communities to be just that—stories, told to a generation that never had to suffer through a catastrophic flood. I want the bridges that I build today to still be standing in 40 years with another 40 years to go after that. The first time I ever visited Terrebonne Parish, I instantly fell in love with the people, the culture, and the beauty of the land. I was living in Mandeville at the time, displaced from St. Bernard Parish by Hurricane Katrina, and when I visited here, I knew I wanted to live here. I was fortunate enough to come to work for the Sheriff’s Office and then eventually the parish government. I have been given the opportunity to help protect this amazing place by working to improve the drainage and its infrastructure. The greatest accomplishment I could ever hope for is to be remembered as the man who helped pave the way for a safer, more resilient Terrebonne Parish.”

The third recipient is Eugene “Gene” Songy, a Financial Advisor for South Louisiana Financial Services, LLC. He is a graduate of Vandebilt Catholic High School and earned a Financial Services Degree in the Business Department from Nicholls State University. He was nominated with being described as an exemplifying “young leader that is dedicated to his career, family, community, and church. He is a well-rounded young man that gives (me) hope for the future of Terrebonne.” He was born in Houma, educated in Thibodaux, and working in his hometown, which showcases a person who loves the community and realizes that he must be a part of making it a better place.

Gene began his professional career with South Louisiana Bank and South Louisiana Financial Services in 2010 as an intern from Nicholls College of Business. Since his start, he has been a person who wants to make sure he makes a difference and gets the job done in an honest manner. Gene has successfully grown the Investment Management Department into a very successful program. He has been a member of the Advisory Council for Investment Centers of America from 2013 to 2017 when ICA was purchased by LPL Financial. He was also a top 25 producing Financial Advisor for Investment Centers of America from 2015-2017. He was chosen as a top 100 financial advisor published in Bank Investment Consultant Magazine in 2015. He possesses Series 6, Series 7, and Series 66 securities licenses and manages South Louisiana Financial Services (SLFS) Investment Division.

Gene has been actively involved within our community. He has been on the Bayou Chapter Committee for Coastal Conservation Association from 2010 to the present. In this role, he coordinates and organizes the Annual Banquet and its related events that benefit conservation efforts in our area. Gene is also a committee member on Ducks Unlimited Houma Chapter. In this role, he assists with the Annual Banquet, Sponsor Banquet, and most importantly, the financial management of this chapter which works for wetland and waterfowl conservation in Terrebonne Parish. He was named to the Board for Roux for a Reason in 2018. Last year, this group assisted roughly 350 people in our area by funding a cancer screening bus. Of the 350 screened, 6 were diagnosed with cancer allowing early detection and hope for a cure. Gene and his family are also active in their church, St. Francis de Sales. Gene is a member of The Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce and SCIA organizations.

When asked about his vision for Terrebonne Parish, Gene said “born and raised in Terrebonne Parish, I have never considered living in any place else. I am an avid outdoorsman that truly loves everything South Louisiana has to offer. The culture, the Food, and the people are second to none in my opinion. When I think about the future, the biggest concern of mine is that my children may not be able to enjoy some of the same passions that I have due to coastal land loss. That is why I focus a lot of my spare time towards organizations that have a major emphasis on preserving and restoring our coast. If we are not serious about that today, who knows what Terrebonne Parish will be like in 20-40 years.

Another topic that I believe is important to this area is industry preservation. Unfortunately, due to a slowdown in the oilfield, our community has struggled. People and jobs have left our area. If we want to preserve Terrebonne Parish and our way of life, I believe our area workforce will need to diversify the types of jobs that are available. We have a very skilled workforce in South Louisiana and a lot of skill sets used in the oilfield could be applied to other business sectors. It will be imperative for local leaders to continue to push to provide a pro-business landscape for other industries to consider calling South Louisiana home. I will be an advocate and work to help make this happen.

At the end of the day, I want Terrebonne Parish to be an even better place to live for my children and their children. If I can be remembered for playing a small part in helping that take place, that will be perfectly fine with me.”•