Copyright Baton Rouge Advocate
The following new promotions and new hires have recently been announced by south Louisiana businesses and nonprofits. Baton Rouge Annette Vaccaro, chief financial officer of Community Coffee, announced she plans to retire in June. Vaccaro joined the company in 1998 and has been its CFO since 2004. Tim Hardy, chair of the board of supervisors for the Louisiana Community and Technical College System, has been elected secretary-treasurer of board of directors of the Association of Community College Trustees. Hardy, who has served on the LCTCS board since 2011, will join the ACCT Executive Committee. Plaquemine Bank & Trust Co. recently announced the promotion of two officers to become senior vice presidents during its annual stockholders meeting. Caroline Causin, who has been with the bank since 1974, is the bank secrecy act officer and oversees management of loan operations. Rhett Vaughn, who joined the bank in 1990, supervises bookkeeping and serves as the bank's information security officer and information technology offer. Tyler Gray was named inaugural director of energy innovation for the LSU Energy Institute. Gray most recently served as secretary of the Louisiana Department of Conservation and Energy under Gov. Jeff Landry. The Energy Institute brings together the Center for Energy Studies, Louisiana Geological Survey and LSU research, innovation and policy programs under one umbrella. Acadiana Matt Stuller will step down as CEO of Stuller Inc., effective Jan. 1. Stuller will remain as board chair of the jewelry manufacturing company he founded in 1970. He will be succeeded as CEO by longtime president Danny Clark, while current COO Belit Myers will become company president. Read more from The Acadiana Advocate » New Orleans Sarah Alt has been hired as the first chief information officer for Phelps. Alt is certified in artificial intelligence governance by the International Association of Privacy Professionals. She has contributed to ethical guidelines and standards for the European Commission, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Bryan Bass has been named chief marketing officer of Ruby Slipper Restaurant Group. Bass previously worked for MGM Resorts, Wynn Resorts, Carver Road Hospitality and The ONE Group and launched Jelly Roll's Goodnight Nashville bar. Frank Caldwell was elected as an independent director of the board of Entergy Corp., where he will serve on committees responsible for nuclear and operations oversight as well as talent and compensation. Caldwell, a retired Navy admiral, spent the final nine years of his military career directing the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program. Keva Landrum, a former Orleans Parish judge and prosecutor, has been promoted to become executive vice president of operations and chief counsel of the Housing Authority of New Orleans. Landrum, who was runner-up in the 2020 Orleans Parish district attorney election, previously served as HANO's general counsel and interim executive director. Matt Miller has been hired as special counsel for Kean Miller. Miller is a former software engineer and registered patent attorney who joins the law firm's team of a dozen intellectual property lawyers. He earned a bachelor's in psychology and computer science from Duke University and a law degree, cum laude, from Tulane University Law School. The American Red Cross of Louisiana announced five new appointments. Natalie Hooks, the former development director for Children's Hospital New Orleans, has been named its chief development officer. Sarah Mosely, formerly of the U.S. Agency for International Development, becomes the regional director of service to the armed forces and international services. Sandy Traynor, who was previously program director for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay, has been appointed regional volunteer services officer. Ashonia Knight-Hawkins, who had been regional health disparities coordinator for the Louisiana Office of Public Health, was named executive assistant to the CEO of the Louisiana Red Cross.
