March 26
March 26, 2008
Howard Edward Green
March 28, 2008ConocoPhillips Company recently donated $15,000 to the Petroleum Services and Safety Technology program at Nicholls State University.
Dr. John Griffin, associate professor of petroleum services, said the $15,000 contribution would be used to fund a crane-safety simulation package for the petroleum program’s computer lab in Gouaux Hall – along with DVD players, projectors and streaming video capabilities.
“This will go a long way to facilitating a state-of-the-art computer lab,” Griffin said.
Ryan Vaccarella, a Houma-based representative of ConocoPhillips and Nicholls alumnus, presented the check to Griffin and Dr. Rebecca Pennington, assistant vice president for development and university relations. Vaccarella said he is grateful to be working for a company with the means and willingness to provide support to his alma mater.
“The petroleum program at Nicholls changed my life.” Vaccarella said. “It opened doors that had never been opened to me before.”
Griffin said his hope is that other Nicholls alumni would follow Vaccarella’s example and ask their own employers if funds might be available to donate to Nicholls.
