Fastabend named to board

Dr. Carl Fastabend, FACC, founder and medical director of the Vein Center of Southwest Louisiana, has been appointed to the Board of Directors for the American Board of Venous and Lymphatic Medicine.

The goal of the organization is to promote the education of physicians practicing venous medicine and improve the quality of patient care related to the treatment of venous disorders. ABVLM administers the certification exam for this medical specialty.

Fastabend is the only full-time, comprehensive vein specialist in Louisiana, and he is board certified in both internal medicine and cardiology.

He is also a Diplomate of the ABVLM, a Fellow of the American Society of Cardiology and Society of Cardiac Angiography and Intervention, and serves on the board of the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission Vein Center.

DuPlechian to oversee elections

Donald W. “Don” DuPlechian of Oberlin has been appointed to the Parish Boards of Election Supervisors by Gov. John Bel Edwards.

The purpose of the board in each parish is to oversee and supervise all elections within the parish to ensure the safety and accuracy of the democratic process.

The Boards of Election Supervisors oversees the preparation and conducting of each election in the parish. Each parish’s board is composed of the parish’s registrar of voters, the parish’s clerk of court, the chairman of the parish executive committee of each recognized political party, and one member appointed by the governor.

DuPlechian is the senior chaplain at Brighton Bridge Hospice. He will serve as the election supervisor of Allen Parish.

Sowela announces promotions

Sowela Technical Community College announced the promotion of 19 faculty members during a special Faculty Rank and Promotion Ceremony. The annual ceremony included promotions from 2020 and 2021 and highlighted the promoted faculty members’ numerous accomplishments and high honors.

Promotions for 2020 and 2021 include four promotions of faculty to assistant master instructors, seven promotions to assistant professor, seven promotions to associate professor and one promotion to professor.

The promotions were awarded as follows:

Assistant master instructors — Roy Angelle, Jonathan Darbonne, Aaron Goodman and Jim Hebert.

Assistant professors — Rebecca Bennett, Katrina Freeman, Lara Guidroz, William Mayo, Ali Katherine Nabours, Chandrea Smith and Emma Thomas.

Associate professors – Adrienne Abel, Jonathan Byrd, Todd Carrere, Angela Madden, Elizabeth Kaye Martin, Dorothy McCormack and Charles Stewart.

Professor – Roy B. Bertucci.

All 19 promotions were submitted through applications to Sowela’s Faculty Rank Committee. Based on that committee’s recommendations, the applications were reviewed by the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and certified by the Office of Human Resources before being officially elevated to the Chancellor for consideration and final approval.

“We have great faculty, and I am very proud that we provide a way to recognize those faculty members who have put forth the effort needed to achieve this milestone. The faculty who participate in this process do so voluntarily which means they have to create the portfolio and submit the evidence of their work and achievements in order to be considered for promotion in rank,” said Chancellor Neil Aspinwall. “Although no easy feat, the faculty who complete this process continue to hone their pedagogical skills which directly benefits our most important asset — the students.