Arlena acree biography template

If you didn't believe they were serious, today they made it official.

Six familiar faces gave their money and their signatures to the clerk of court in Caddo parish, today.

All qualified in their attempt to be the next mayor of Shreveport.

Like students waiting to get into the school house, they huddled outside the clerks office Wednesday morning, until the doors opened.  They were candidates for all races, incumbents and first time hopefuls, people like former KSLA General Manager Ed Bradley, who says his record reveals a man, "driven to lead."

"I think this is about leadership and when you get into that and talk about that, it's a about the future," says Bradley.

It's a future state representative Cedric Glover, who turned forty-one Wednesday, says he's fought for in the legislature, and now wants to brighten here at home.

"We have a great deal of potential.  It just simply takes the right kind of leadership, the right kind of vision, the right kind of commitment, and the right type of experience to get the job done.  I possess all of those," says Glover.

With seventeen years of experience in the public eye, and the last seven in public service, former executive assistant to the mayor, Liz Swaine, says she's the best person to replace her boss, targeting infrastructure, economic development, and crime.

"It's the beginning of a new day.  It's the start of a lot of positive things to come, and I'm just ready to get out there and do it," says Swaine.

Arlena Acree will tell you, she's been doing it for almost a decade.  As economic development director for Shreveport, Acree touts her history for bringing business to northwest Louisiana.

"My heart is in the right direction. I love this city, and I've created jobs and I'm going to bring it up to another level," says Acree.

Former city attorney Jerry Jones, says getting to the next level requires a leader who's influence is driven by example.

"Now we're going to start telling our story, what we believe, wh

From its creation in , Orange County was governed by the County Court, appointed by the Governor until , and elected thereafter. Under the new state constitution of , the legislative powers of the County Court were transferred to a Board of Supervisors. Elected from four magisterial districts (Madison, Taylor, Barbour, and Gordon), the first Board of Supervisors took office on September 5, A fifth district (Spotswood) was created in , and the names of election districts were changed to numbers in

This history of the members and Chairmen of the Board was compiled by R. Mark Johnson from the official minutes of the Board located in the Orange County Circuit Court Clerk's Office.  As of , Johnson also authored each of the individual biographies.

The following individuals have served as members of the Orange County Board of Supervisors since   The listed year indicates the year when the person first took office. An asterisk denotes service as Chairman.

Click an image below to enlarge the image and read more about the supervisor.

NOTE: This project to compile photographs of each Board member is a work in progress.  To share a photograph or provide information on the whereabouts of a photograph not currently shown, please contact Alyson Simpson, Chief Deputy Clerk to the Board, by email or at ()

There are some who won't let Louisiana be mired in old attitudes in

The state and its residents haven't always been portrayed in the most favorable light. And whether or not the perceptions were deserved, there's no time to make a change like the start of a new year.

Between a long history of violent crime and new scrutiny on police, politicians in the wrong place with the wrong people and budgets that favor big business over struggling schools, pieces of Louisiana's reputation are well earned.

Down eight points from , a full 44 percent of residents said the state is headed in the wrong direction, according to the Louisiana Survey conducted by the LSU Public Policy Lab in February. For the first time since , the survey pointed to education — 29 percent — over the economy as the state's biggest problem. Since , confidence the state government will address the most important issues has eroded by 28 points from 64 percent to 36 percent.

"Inside the state, residents are mostly satisfied with the quality of life and Louisiana, even if they are negative about much of the state (schools, roads, etc)," Kirby Goidel, formerly with the LSU Public Policy Lab, said in an email. "Louisiana has amazing people, but the focus is too often on 'how do keep our young people (and children) from leaving' instead of how do we get new people, new ideas and new energies into the state."

Below is a look at thoughts and plans aimed at improving the Louisiana brand this year and in coming years:

If anyone's perceptions of Louisiana are changing for the better, it's those of business owners and corporate scouts.

Thanks to generous tax incentives, low tax rates and low energy costs, Louisiana politicians have had plenty of economic wins on which to hang their hats. But it isn't necessarily translating to pride at home — and personal pride goes a long way for attracting new business.

"I don't think most North Louisiana residents real