LSU Women’s Center Announces Celebration of 2020 Esprit de Femme Award Recipients

03/23/21
BATON ROUGE – In 2020, the Esprit de Femme award was supposed to have been presented to eight deserving recipients. Unfortunately, the 2020 Sunrise Celebration had to be canceled due to Covid-19. The recipients are Kia Bickham, Morgan Lamandre, Dr. Michelle A. Massé, Karen Stagg, Alma C. Stewart, Beverly Brooks Thompson, Iam Christian Tucker and Erin Monroe Wesley. The 2020 Men Who Champion Women honoree is Roderic F. Teamer Sr.

“We are excited about all of our honorees and look forward to the opportunity to finally recognize their phenomenal contributions at the Esprit de Femme Sunrise Celebration,” said Summer Steib, LSU Women’s Center director. “These women and men have made lasting impacts on the lives of countless women in our state and blazed trails for other women. Our 2020 honorees could not be recognized during last year’s Women’s History Month celebrations due to Covid-19, but we look forward to being able to honor these individuals who represent diverse backgrounds and accomplishments in April. Our honorees are leaders and trail-blazers in government, the arts, the business sector, nonprofits, academics, and civic engagement.”

Kia Bickham
Kia Bickham is a strategic community engagement specialist. She served as political director for Gov. John Bel Edwards’ successful reelection campaign and is currently serving as the political director for the Mike Bloomberg presidential campaign in Louisiana. She has held numerous positions in state government and has been recognized as a 40 Under 40 honoree.

Morgan Lamandre
Morgan Lamandre is the Legal Director of Sexual Trauma Awareness & Response, a local nonprofit sexual assault center. She has served on various task forces to address sexual assault in Louisiana and has drafted and testified in support of several bills that address sexual violence before the Louisiana Legislature.

Michelle A. Massé
Michelle Massé is the Founding Director of Women’s and Gender Studies at LSU, President of the Women’s Caucus for the Modern Languages, and represents higher education on the Governor’s Commission on Women's Policy and Research Commission. Her scholarship focuses upon the many intersections among gender, psychoanalysis, and fiction, and she has received many grants for furthering research in these areas.

Karen Stagg
Karen Stagg has served as the Executive Director of Connections For Life for 13 years. Connections is a non-profit, prison reentry program for formerly incarcerated women. Karen is an LSU graduate and spent her first career as a healthcare operation executive. She serves on several boards supporting reentry for women.

Alma C. Stewart
Alma C. Stewart, R.N., M.S., C.C.H.C., is the founder and president of the Louisiana Center for Health Equity, a nonprofit organization she established in 2010 to address disparities in health and health care, with a focus on wellness and community health. She is a registered nurse, former career state civil servant, an entrepreneur and avid advocate.

Beverly Brooks Thompson
Beverly Brooks Thompson, Ph.D., CFRE, is the Managing Director for Carter Global – an international fundraising advising and philanthropic management consulting firm. She is a published academic and practitioner in the field of philanthropic leadership. Beverly was the director for Forever LSU: The Campaign for Louisiana State University, raising more than $798 million

Iam Christian Tucker
Iam Tucker is the President and CEO of Integrated Logistical Support Inc., or ILSI Engineering. ILSI Engineering is a 100 perxent female, minority owned, civil engineering firm. Iam is a passionate advocate for New Orleans and its people. She is a member of the non-partisan advocacy group African American Women of Purpose and Power

Erin Monroe Wesley
Erin Monroe Wesley is the Southeast Vice President of Government and Public Affairs at Cox Communications, overseeing governmental and public affairs efforts in Louisiana, Florida and Georgia. Prior to joining Cox, she served as Special Counsel for Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards.

Roderic F. Teamer Sr.
Rod Teamer is the Director of Diversity Programs and Business Development at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana. He is also a member of LSU’s National Diversity Advisory Board. He is active in supporting civic and community organizations in both the Baton Rouge and New Orleans communities.

The LSU Women’s Center will recognize the outstanding achievements of the 2020 Esprit de Femme honorees on Thursday, April 22, with a hybrid event on LSU’s campus. Details on how to participate virtually will be shared soon.

Established in 2009, the Esprit de Femme award is an annual acknowledgement of a person who has made exceptional efforts toward the advancement of women in Louisiana. This award honors individuals who elevate the status of women in the community through their contributions to the arts, education, healthcare, business and industry, charity, and civic engagement.

This year the Women’s Center will also recognize two outstanding students with the Esprit de Femme Student Leadership Award. This award will honor and recognize LSU students who exemplify the ideals and principles of the Esprit de Femme Award. Esprit de Femme Student Award recipients will receive financial support to further their academic pursuits. This year’s award recipients are Tyler Hunt and Revathi Menon. Both students will be recognized on April 22.

The LSU Women’s Center is part of the LSU Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and provides support, referral, and information to students, faculty and staff on issues and concerns related to women. The center also promotes the advancement of gender equity issues and wellbeing through its services, educational programs and advocacy efforts.

For additional information about the programs and initiatives of the Women’s Center, visit http://www.lsu.edu/diversity/womens_center/.

Contact Summer Steib
LSU Women’s Center
225-578-1714
esprit@lsu.edu

Ernie Ballard
LSU Media Relations
225-978-8277
eballa1@lsu.edu