News release Public Information Office   SLU 10880   Hammond, LA 70402   phone: 985-549-2341   fax: 985-549-2061 publicinfo@selu.edu Summer  2005 news releases Public Information home News archive Contact: Christina Chapple (Southeastern)              Rusty Jabour (UL System) Date: 12/12/05    Click on image for publication quality photo  SOUTHEASTERN STUDENTS RECEIVE CLAUSEN SCHOLARSHIPS – Southeastern Louisiana University education majors Jamie Lynn Breaux of Rayne and Matthew Chauvin of Reserve are among 11 students who have been awarded 2005 Clausen Scholarships by the University of Louisiana System Foundation. From left, are Gale Clausen, wife of the late Thomas Clausen, former Superintendent of Education; Breaux; ULS President Sally Clausen; Chauvin; and ULS Board Chair Mike Woods, a member of the ULS Foundation. SOUTHEASTERN PAIR AMONG 11 CLAUSEN SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS        BATON ROUGE – Two Southeastern Louisiana University education members are among 11 students at five Louisiana universities who have been awarded Clausen Scholarships.        Seniors Jamie Lynn Breaux of Rayne, who is majoring in special and elementary education, and Matthew Chauvin of Reserve, a middle school education major, were presented the scholarships and $750 at a meeting of the University of Louisiana System Board of Supervisors on Dec. 9 in Baton Rouge.          The Clausen Scholarships program was established in 2002 after the death of Thomas Clausen, who served as Louisiana’s Superintendent of Education between 1984 and 1988. The scholarship also honors the memory of Kyle Clausen, Thomas’ son, who died in 2003. The scholarships are funded through private donations to the UL System Foundation. They not only provide traditional financial help, but also offer professional development in areas such as classroom management and personal assistance in the early, critical years of teaching.        “This multi-faceted scholarship program offers much more than money. We plan to track the students and to follow up with pertinent, hands-on assistance in their early years of teaching. That’s the critical time when nearly half of all teachers leave the profession,” said Sally Clausen, president of the University of Louisiana System.        “Our universities guarantee the teachers they produce, and these scholarships from the system level help reinforce our pledge of better prepared teachers for Louisiana’s schools,” she added.        Also on Friday, the Rev. Chris Andrews, chairman of the ULS Foundation, announced that Sugar Woods of Shreveport, mother of ULS Board Chairman Mike Woods, has donated $10,000 to help fund future Clausen scholarships.        “Mrs. Woods was very impressed with the program and the quality of the students, and she wanted to help the foundation and the scholarship program,” said Andrews.        The 11 winners were selected by a panel of judges from among 32 applicants, based on their applications, letters of recommendation and essays about the importance of teaching. As a group, the winners have a grade point average of 3.7 and are involved in an array of university and community service activities. Each student, also, has completed at least 45 hours of college credit.        Additional 2005 scholarship recipients are Shoyla Bryant of Plain Dealing, Grambling State University; Ericka Knight of Schriever, Nicholls State University; Susanne Jones of Natchitoches and Joby Richard of Creole, Northwestern State University; Vangie Davidson of Kaplan, Jenna Lachney of Mansura, Jamie Oplt of Lafayette, Amanda Shackelford of New Iberia, and Annemarie Wikstrom of Broussard, University of Louisiana-Lafayette.