Melissa Manuel, a senior with a double major in accounting and Spanish, has been selected as the Outstanding Graduate for the Fall 2006 semester.
She was named the Outstanding Graduate from the B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration.
One student from each of the university’s academic colleges is selected as an Outstanding Graduate. The students were honored during their respective college’s graduation ceremonies on Dec. 16. During Graduate School commencement at the Cajundome that day, the UL Lafayette Alumni Association’s Outstanding Graduate was selected from the finalists. The students are nominated by their deans and judged upon leadership, scholarship and service.
Manuel, the daughter of Richard and Kateri Manuel of Lafayette, has earned a grade point average of 3.9 during her career in the College of Business. She is the recipient of the A.L. Barcelona Scholarship; Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society Scholarship; a scholarship from the Modern Language Department of UL Lafayette to study in Guadalajara, Mexico; and the Accounting Departmental scholarship. In addition, she was awarded both the Acadiana Chapter and the District Zonta International District 10 Jane M. Klausman scholarship. She competed on the international level and was selected as one of six recipients chosen for the Zonta International Jane M. Klausman Women in Business Scholarship award for the 2006 academic year.
She is a member of Beta Alpha Psi, an honorary organization for accounting students. She is also the current president for Phi Eta Sigma and the secretary for the Spanish honor society Sigma Delta Pi. As part of her service with Beta Alpha Psi, Manuel participates in tutoring students in accounting and in Volunteer Income Tax Assistance sessions for the community.
Through her scholarships, Manuel was afforded the opportunity to travel to Spain and Mexico in order to study Spanish abroad. After graduation, she plans to teach English in Mexico and then return to the United States to earn her certification in public accounting. Eventually, she would like to work toward a master's in business administration with a focus on international business.