40 UNDER FORTY

YPI Top 40 Under 40 Announcement Party

1) Jill Valentine and Joe Valentine

2) Jacob McSharma and Jaya McSharma

3) Lindsay Michel, Paul Spivey and Kayla Southard

4) Rashida Dawson and Charnae McDonald

5) Daniel Wagner and Catherine Michelson

6) Jay Covington, publisher of The Forum Magazine, and Shondale Coleman, president of YPI

7) Jana Freeman Forrest, Shea Frederick and Taylor Jamison

8) Tracy Whittington and Grace Nickels

9) YPI President Shondale Coleman; Joshua Robinson, co-chair; Katie Bursley, chairman of 40 Under 40; and Dr. Timothy J. Magner, president of the Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce.

Forty young professionals under the age of 40 have been selected as the 2018 Class of 40 Under 40 and were introduced at an Aug. 20 event at the Remington Suite Hotel and Spa. The honorees are selected by a select committee of the Young Professional Initiative of the Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce. The Forum is the presenting sponsor of the awards. Honorees will be celebrated, and the Young Professional of the Year will be named on Dec. 1 at the Shreveport Convention Center.

“I speak for the entire YPI board when I say that we are blown away by the level of professionalism represented in the 2018 Class of 40 Under 40,” said Shondale Coleman, YPI president. “We’re looking forward to the reception in December when we get to honor all of these hardworking, dedicated young professionals.”

This year’s class of 40 Under 40 includes:
1. Leighton Allen, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Ally Real Estate
2. Sarah Ardis, Shreveport-Bossier Rescue Mission
3. Adam Brewer, Brewer Physical Therapy
4. Anna Brown Priestley, Regions
5. Kenya Claiborne Roberts, Caddo Parish Schools
6. Rashida Dawson, United Way of Northwest Louisiana
7. Callie Dean, Cyber Innovation Center
8. Emerie Eck Gentry, Lagniappe P.R.I.M.E., LLC.
9. Rob Eppers, Risk Services of Louisiana Inc.
10. Dan Farris, The Law Office of Daniel Farris, LLC
11. Sherricka Fields Jones, City of Shreveport
12. Anna Flores, Welbilt Inc. (Frymaster)
13. Marco French, Queensborough Elementary School ~ Caddo Parish Schools
14. Sophia M. Herron, Gingerbread House Bossier-Caddo Children's Advocacy Center
15. Brandon Horton, Matthews, Beaty & Company, CPAs
16. Nick Huckaby, CHRISTUS Health
17. Kayla Jackson Southard, Moonlight & Lace Weddings and Events, LLC
18. Sarah Kirk, Sarah Kirk State Farm Agency
19. Michele Marcotte, Shreveport Times
20. Dany Martin, Williams Financial Advisors, LLC
21. Megan Martin, Bossier Parish Community College
22. Charnae McDonald, United Way of Northwest Louisiana
23. Jaya McSharma, Christus Highland Hospital
24. Lindsay Michel, LSU Health Sciences Center Shreveport School of Allied Health Professions
25. Catherine Michelson, Catherine Michelson Accounting
26. Matthew Mitchell, Caddo Parish School Board
27. Dr. Alexis Nelson, Caddo Parish Schools
28. Grace Nickels, LSU Shreveport
29. Julianna Parks, Langley, Parks, Horton & Maxwell, LLC
30. Jarred Pellegrin, Broadmoor Baptist Church
31. Rachael Peters, Centenary College of Louisiana
32. Adam Philley, Broadmoor United Methodist Church
33. Sedrick Robinson, Norwela Council, Boy Scouts of America
34. Renisha Sanders, Cardinaux Wealth Advisors
35. W. Ryan Smith, Willis-Knighton Health System
36. Paul Spivey, Bossier Parish Community College
37. Stewart Thompson, Bossier Parish Schools
38. Jill Valentine, Bossier Federal Credit Union
39. Ryan Williams, Seedlinks Behavior Management
40. Karen E. Wissing, AEP Southwestern Electric Power Company (SWEPCO)

For more information on the 40 Under 40 Awards or any of the other Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce initiatives, contact Erin Smith at erin@shreveportchamber.org or 318-677-2500.