Graduating suma cum laude, Aimee Duplantis has been selected as the Outstanding Graduate for the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. She was the Outstanding Graduate from the College of Education, maintaining a 3.823 grade point average during her college career. She will graduate in elementary education. She is the daughter of J. David and Mary Duplantis of New Iberia.
Nine students were recognized during Graduate School commencement at Blackham Coliseum. The UL Lafayette Alumni Association will named Duplantis its Fall 2005 Outstanding Graduate during the ceremony.
Deans of the university’s nine academic colleges nominated the honorees. They included James Cooke of Baton Rouge, Applied Life Sciences; Alicia Welch of Broussard, Arts; Kristen Lindsey of Lafayette, B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration; Aimee Duplantis of Lafayette, Education; Christopher Deballion of Lafayette, Engineering; Jiro Hatano of Japan, General Studies; Paul Guidry of Lafayette, Liberal Arts; Pamela Block of Lafayette, Nursing and Allied Health Professions; and Emily Landreneau of Lafayette, Sciences.
Duplantis has earned numerous scholarships including TOPS Honor Scholarship, the 2004 Clarence and Ezell Butaud Memorial Scholarship, the 2005 Iberia Bank Scholarship and a Student Government Association Scholarship.
She received the Educational Testing Service Recognition of Excellence for PRAXIS II Scores and for PRAXIS Content Knowledge Exam in Elementary Education. Duplantis was inducted into the Alpha Lambda Delta Freshman Honor Society and the Order of Omega Greek Scholarship Society.
Duplantis was honored as a nominee for Outstanding Greek Woman for 2003-2004 and as a nominee for Outstanding Senior in the College of Education. She has been included in the National Dean's List for 2001-2005.
Active in her university, Duplantis has been a member of Delta Delta Delta Sorority, serving as the 2004 Collegiate Chapter President, the 2002 Activities/Homecoming Chairman and a member of both the Standards Committee and Triple Play Fundraiser Committee. She is the current House Corporation Treasurer of Delta Delta Delta.
She has served as a member of the Union Program Council. She previously served as secretary in 2001-2002 for UPC. She was a member of the Up Til Dawn Executive Board, an annual fundraiser for St. Jude's Hospital, serving as the On-Locations Chairman in 2002. She has been active in the Newman Club and the A+PEL Student Organization.
Aside from her university involvement, Duplantis has also served the community as a participant in fundraisers for the Children's Ward at University Medical Center during 2001-2004 as well as St. Jude's Hospital. She also was a catechism teacher for St. Mary's Catholic Church and a Core Team Member for Our Lady of Wisdom.
Last summer, she attended the French Immersion program. She also assisted with the Super Saturday's program run by graduate faculty for Gifted Education, helping local students to create and publish a television guide for kids.
After graduation, Duplantis plans to teach third grade students at Sts. Leo-Seton Elementary School. She eventually wants to return to UL Lafayette to work towards her masters degree in Gifted Education.