D-D Breaux Named Alumna of the Year, Jordan Davis Named Young Alumnus of the Year

BATON ROUGE – D-D Breaux, retired LSU gymnastics head coach, was named the 2022 LSU Alumna of the Year, and country music artist Jordan Davis, is the 2022 Young Alumnus of the Year.

They will be inducted into the LSU Alumni Association Hall of Distinction on Friday, April 1, 2022, along with Cate Heroman, a veteran teacher, administrator, advocate, consultant, coach, author, and Knock Knock Children’s Museum volunteer; Gil Rew, a dentist in private practice in Mansfield, La.; and Ivory Toldson, president and CEO of the QEM Network, professor of counseling psychology at Howard University, and editor-in-chief of The Journal of Negro Education.

Breaux, the longest tenured coach of any sport in SEC history, built the LSU program into a national powerhouse during her forty-three seasons. As the “Dean of Coaches,” she represented the university at the highest level in the gym and in the community, dedicating her life to LSU and the more than 200 gymnasts she coached over the years. She was named SEC Coach of the Year on nine occasions and NCAA Central Regional Coach of the Year nine times. Breaux earned a bachelor’s degree in health and physical education in 1976 and a master’s degree in physical education in 1978.

Davis, a songwriter and performer, has won multiple awards including Billboard’s Top New Country Artist of 2018 and the iHeart Radio Music Award for Best New Country Artist, and was nominated in 2019 for an Academy of Country Music award in the New Male Artist of the Year category. He is currently nominated for his collaboration with Luke Bryan on the song, “Buy Dirt,” for the Musical Event of the Year CMA award. His album “Home State” pays tribute to Louisiana. Davis earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental management systems in 2007.
 
“The LSU Alumni Association annually recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves and the university through their careers, their personal and civic accomplishments, their volunteer activities and their loyalty to their alma mater,” said Gordon Monk, association president and CEO. “These individuals have excelled in all of these areas and exemplify the essence of a true Tiger.”
 
The first LSU Alumnus of the Year award was conferred in 1966; the Young Alumnus of the Year Award was established in 1999 to recognize alumni who have attained professional prominence early in their careers. Including the 2022 inductees, the LSU Alumni Association has recognized 324 individuals representing a cross-section of LSU graduates.