LSU Alumni Association Blog

KATE EDDY, BA Mass Communication 2016

The LSU Alumni Association has selected 13 young LSU alumni to serve on the first Young Alumni Advisory Council. We have established this council in order to improve engagement with this unique group and to help guide our future initiatives as a result of our recently launched strategic plan.

The Council will serve as a streamlined focus group and provide key insight and feedback on engagement, development, and fundraising. Members will connect back with their alma mater and network with fellow alumni while also working to better support young and future alumni to build increased and enhanced connection to each other and to the University. The Council's goal will be to incite ideas and initiatives that help the association best serve and provide value to this demographic.

The council will meet four times a year and will help to host our inaugural Young Alumni Tailgate before the LSU vs. Auburn game on October 26. More details on this event will be released soon.

The members represent many cities both in Louisiana and across the United States as well as a wide range of businesses, in order to best represent the LSU young alumni population. We are excited and encouraged to welcome this diverse and accomplished group who have committed to helping advance the mission of LSU Alumni Association and support LSU. Read below to learn more about each Young Alumni Advisory Council member.

We are now officially in “chapter season” – the time of year that takes us from coast to coast to visit with alumni celebrating their love of the purple and gold at those time-honored rites of spring, crawfish boils. We like to call them “parties with a purpose” – for, in addition to the good food, fun, and camaraderie, these events have, over the years, raised some $5 million to endow scholarships and professorships. Together, I know we can do much more. Attend a chapter “party with a purpose” this year and help support deserving scholars. Visit lsualumni.org/coast-to-coast-crawfish-boils to find a boil near you! 

LSU Alum Helps Guide NASA Craft Beyond Pluto

Chris Cummings (BA 2009 and 2019, JD 2013) is the Founder & CEO of Pass It Down, an award-winning digital storytelling platform. Pass It Down is revolutionizing how brands and cultural institutions around the world collect, organize, and share their history, content and stories. The all-in-one platform gives clients the ability to showcase their stories across any phone, tablet, computer, or kiosk to create interactive exhibits and experiences for their users. An iteration of the Pass It Down platform for families is currently being rebuilt after three years of customer stories, lessons, and feedback. This version helped thousands of families around the world capture and preserve their memories.

Kristi Tutt had nearly solidified her status as a Colorado resident when she faced a final test. She had to navigate from Shreveport, La., to Denver through a snowstorm – in a rental car.

Emmy-award winning artist Lee Romaire, shown with two of his creations for the Cajun-themed Christmas display in Morgan City, La.

George H.W. Bush, the forty-first president of the United States, had a history with LSU alumni. Bush came to LSU on May 20, 1994, to celebrate the grand opening of the Lod Cook Alumni Center along with two other former presidents, Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter. He dedicated the LSU War memorial in 1998, and he returned in 2001 to dedicate the Lod and Carole Cook Conference Center. 

KEITH COMEAUX, BSME 1989 and BS, Physics 1989

Keith Comeaux graduated from LSU in mechanical engineering and physics and completed Masters and Ph.D.
degrees in Aeronautics and Astronautics at Stanford University. He also completed his MBA at UCLA. Keith currently serves as the Deputy Chief Engineer at NASA for Mars 2020 Mission. 

2007 Manship School grad Caitlin Picou left the shady oaks of LSU in 2007 and headed west for Fort Worth's oil and gas industry. Her career quickly took a different path as she moved from Texas to the Big Apple before finally landing back in Louisiana. We had a chance to catch up with this successful young entrepreneur and discuss her company Kismet Cosmetics.