Board of Trustees

Ronald Harris Bordelon is President of CORE Energy, Ltd, a nation-wide firm part of The CORE Group, one of the largest construction managers in the nation, and former Chief Facilities Officer and Assistant Superintendent for the Louisiana Department of Education. In this role, Ronald was responsible for all aspects of the $2B+ School Facilities Master Plan, the largest school disaster recovery program in US history, aligning Federal, State, and local government around a common goal of success and financial responsibility. As former Chief Executive of a privately held real estate development firm, Ronald brings a unique blend of both public and private sector approaches to large capital programs, financial strategies, and compliance initiatives.

Serving under four Louisiana Governors, Ronald is currently Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Louisiana Public Facilities Authority, leading the board during its most successful period in its 50-year history. Ronald also served on the Louisiana State Board of Commerce and Industry, implementing over $6B in incentive programs, and was Chairman of the Long-Range Planning Committee. He also has a long history of service as a board member of several economic development and philanthropic organizations, and recently served on the Forbes Technology Council publishing on a variety of topics including energy.

Admitted in both Federal and State Courts as a real estate and construction expert, Ron is supported by multi-state licenses in finance, real estate, appraisal, construction, and various professional certifications. Ronald holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration and a Master of Science degree in Human Resource Development from Villanova University. Furthering his formal education, he is ABD earning a Ph.D. in Global Leadership and Organizational Development from the Indiana Institute of Technology. Ronald has presented at many domestic conferences, as well as international conferences in the United Kingdom and Canada. He developed both Corporate Facility Planning and Commercial Financing Strategy curriculums as part of a graduate degree program at Columbia College and currently serves as an Associate Professor for Villanova University in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.

Malone practices in the areas of corporate law, entertainment law, business transactions, civil litigation and public sector law. His experience includes representing business and governmental entities in state and federal courts, representation of public sector administrative bodies and charter schools, structuring complex commercial transactions, public bid law and zoning litigation, police and municipal liability claims, personal injury defense and commercial law.

Malone received his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Southern University and his law degree from Southern University Law Center. Malone was admitted to practice in 1985. He is licensed to practice in all Louisiana district and appellate courts as well as the Louisiana Supreme Court. He is admitted to practice in the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana and the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal.

Malone’s  legal career includes an appointment as an Assistant City Attorney for the City of Shreveport; Special Assistant District Attorney for the First Judicial District; and the first Parish Attorney for the Parish of Caddo. After serving in government for more than seventeen years, Malone entered private practice and became a partner in a regional law firm. In 2005, Malone established and managed The Malone Law Firm, L.L.C. during the course of the next ten years. He currently serves as General Counsel for the Caddo-Bossier Parishes Port Commission and Of Counsel to our firm.

Craig A. Cheramie, a top-producing independent investment representative and personal financial specialist, has joined the Board of Trustees of the Louisiana Public Facilities Authority. Cheramie was appointed to the LPFA Board of Trustees by Gov. Bobby Jindal in 2010.

With more than 35 years of professional expertise as a Certified Public Accountant, Cheramie is an independent investment representative with Cambridge Investment Research, Inc., which has more than 3,800 independent contractors managing over 137 billion in assets for some 400 thousand individuals, families, and small businesses in 50 states. Cheramie has consistently proven to be a top-producing representative for the firm in Louisiana.

Cheramie is also a member of the Greater New Orleans chapter of the Financial Planning Association and a member of the Louisiana Society of CPA’s Financial and Estate Planning committee.

He graduated from Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, LA with a degree in accounting and a minor in computer science. Cheramie and his wife Sherry live in Metairie, LA.

David W. Groner is an attorney and the president of David Groner, PLC. A lifelong resident of New Iberia, Groner has served as chairman of the Atchafalaya Land Commission, a member of the Iberia Medical Center Board of Trustees and is a partner with Standard Title for Iberia, St. Martin and St. Mary parishes.

Guidry, of Thibodaux, is a licensed clinical social worker and the CEO of Start Corporation, which serves to promote opportunities that enhance the self-sufficiency of people who are impaired in their abilities to live and function independently.

Mr. Matthew T. Valliere of Zachary was appointed by Governor John Bell Edwards to the Louisiana Public Facilities Authority Board of Trustees. Mr. Valliere is the Chief Executive Officer at CareSouth in Baton Rouge.

CareSouth Medical and Dental is a private, non-profit Federally Qualified Health Center that provides a comprehensive range of community-based medical, dental and behavioral health services including primary care, pediatrics, HIV health testing and care, OB/GYN, immunizations, podiatry, chronic disease management and individual, group, and family therapy. CareSouth has locations in Baton Rouge, Plaquemine, Zachary, and Donaldsonville.

Heather C. Songy of Metairie was appointed by Governor John Bell Edwards to the Louisiana Public Facilities Authority Board of Trustees.

Serving in the New Orleans area, Songy is currently Vice President of Commercial Lending for Investar Bank, a Louisiana based national bank.  With more than 23 years in the banking industry, she is an experienced leader in multi-million dollar cash management solutions and a top producer for the New Orleans market.

Songy earned both her bachelors and masters in finance from the University of New Orleans .  She also graduated from the LSU Graduate School of Banking and the Institute of Politics at Loyola
University in New Orleans.

Songy is a member of the Krewe of Iris: the oldest all-female Mardi Gras krewe. She is also a member of the New Orleans Chapter of CREW (Commercial Real Estate Women) and a member of Louisiana Women in Public Finance.

Songy and her husband live in Metairie, LA.