Carlee Alm-Labar has been named as the next President and CEO of United Way of Acadiana. She will replace Interim President/CEO Troy Cloutier. Alm-Labar, who ran for Lafayette Mayor-President last year, has remained largely out of the public eye since the election in November. She says running for the seat gave her a different perspective on the challenges many in our community face. She was most recently Director of Traditional Neighborhood Developments for Southern Lifestyle Development. Her official start date is February 26th, but the organization says onboarding will start immediately.

United Way of Acadiana posted this release on Facebook.

The United Way of Acadiana has named Carlee Alm-LaBar its new President/CEO of United Way of Acadiana, bringing to the organization her deep understanding of the issues and extensive community contacts.

“Over the last several years, I’ve been in positions that allowed me to see the needs and opportunities in our region. United Way of Acadiana is a perfect fit to leverage that knowledge and bring people and passion together to improve the lives of our citizens, Alm-LaBar said.

Alm-LaBar’s new position is effective February 26, although she will begin onboarding immediately. Interim President/CEO Troy Cloutier will continue to serve and aid in the transition over the next several weeks.

“United Way of Acadiana has developed a new, streamlined organizational structure over the past year,” Scott Dominque, United Way of Acadiana board chair said. “As we enter our seventy-first year of service, we are ready for Carlee’s leadership and are looking forward to a bright, strong future.”

Alm-LaBar, who recently ran for Mayor-President of Lafayette Parish as a no-party candidate, said running for office helped her get a deeper level of understanding of the issues that face Lafayette and other communities in the United Way of Acadiana service area.

“I was blessed during the campaign to have connected with so many people,” Alm-LaBar said. “United Way has an amazing history of transformative change in Acadiana, and I’m thrilled to be a part of helping our citizens thrive.”

Alm-LaBar was most recently the Director of Traditional Neighborhood Developments for Southern Lifestyle Development. She worked for Lafayette Consolidated Government for eight years, serving in the Mayor-President’s office under Joey Durel and then Joel Robideaux, who appointed her the Director of Development and Planning. Prior to her roles in government, she worked more than eight years in the nonprofit sector. She is a graduate of Leadership Louisiana, a current board member and past chair of Leadership Institute of Acadiana, and the Community Vice President for the Junior League of Lafayette. Carlee has received several community honors including Acadiana’s 20 Under 40 Award and was recognized as a 2015 Women Who Mean Business honoree. She holds a Master of Public Administration degree from LSU and a bachelor's degree from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.

“Carlee’s collaborative leadership style, knowledge of our communities, and her desire to solve problems for the betterment of others makes her a perfect fit as the new President and CEO of United Way of Acadiana. I am grateful Carlee will leverage her experiences and talents to harness the caring power of people through United Way,” Sarah Berthelot, President/CEO of Louisiana Association of United Ways said.

“The board and Troy have done an amazing service to our community during the transition and search. I’m looking forward to working with all community stakeholders to help link organizations and individuals in need,” Alm-LaBar said. “As a community, our recent economic challenges make the need for all of us to work together with organizations serving our citizens even more important.”

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