Southeast Louisiana Business Center
Staff
William (Bill) Joubert, Director
Bill currently serves as Director of Southeast Louisiana Business Center at SLU. In this position he also Directs SLU’s Department of Economic and Business Development, the Business Research Center, and the Small Business Development Center. His career includes 2 years as a business consultant for a CPA firm, some retail management, and a previous small business owner. He is well known for his involvement in economic development organizations such as the:, Tangipahoa Economic Development Foundation, Hammond Industrial Board, Dixie Business Incubator and Florida Parishes Economic Development Association. Mr. Joubert’s education includes an MBA degree from Southeastern and Bachelor of Science from LSU in Economics and International Trade and Finance.
John Dardis, Assistant Director of Regional Planning
John Dardis, AICP, has worked in the City and Regional Planning field since 1980. He served as the Planning Director for the City of Hammond for 7 years, owned a private consulting business for 10 years, and served as a Business and Industry Foundation Director for 3 years. Mr. Dardis has worked extensively with grants writing/administration, capital improvement projects, zoning, housing, subdivision review, business programs, transportation programs, and project feasibility studies. He is a certified community developer and a nationally certified planning professional. Mr. Dardis has an undergraduate degree in Government from the University of Arizona and a Master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of New Orleans. He resides in Hammond with his wife Lori.
Melissa Laird, Business Administrator
Melissa Laird currently serves as Business Administrator at Southeastern’s Small Business Development Center. Her areas of focus include management of budgets, programs, reports, contracts, leases and projects, preparing for audits and other compliance issues as they relate to grant programs for the center. Her career includes 2 ½ years of public accounting experience and 3 years of industry based accounting experience. Melissa holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Southeastern Louisiana University.
Farrah Laciura, Administrative Assistant
Farrah Laciura is currently employed by Southeastern Louisiana University as the Administrative Assistant for the Southeast Louisiana Business Center. Some of Farrah’s duties include incubator management, building operations, and quality assurance. In this capacity she also works closely with area organizations including the Tangipahoa Economic Development District, Hammond Industrial Development Board, and the I-12 Alliance - just to name a few. Farrah is a graduate of Oak Forest Academy and currently attends Southeastern Louisiana University pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in Human Resource Management. She is also a Certified Court Reporter through the State of Louisiana and a member of Verbatim Reporters of Louisiana. Farrah has volunteered with the Red Cross and United Way; she is also a part of the St. Albert Catholic Student Association and served for the past two years as secretary for Mater Dolorosa Catholic School Home & School Board.
Contact Us
Southeast Louisiana Business Center
1514 Martens Drive
Hammond, LA 70401
985-549-3199
wjoubert@selu.edu