University honors Moody

UL Lafayette business college
named for B.I. Moody III

LAFAYETTE - Challenging teachers and competitive college peers. These are two groups Braxton “B.I.” Moody III credits for his successful career in business.
   These two groups, along with long term planning and reachable goals, have taken Moody to the top of the business ladder since he graduated from then-Southwestern Louisiana Institute following a tour in World War II.
    The University of Louisiana at Lafayette renamed its College of Business Administration after Moody in recognition of his service to the business industry in Acadiana as well as his community involvement.
   “I think this is the highest honor a student can ever receive,” said Moody, a U.S. Navy veteran. “I am humbled. I definitely never thought when I was hitchhiking from Rayne during my college days that I would some day receive this honor.”
   The UL System's Board of Supervisors approved the change during its monthly meeting. The college's new name is the B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration.
    “B.I. Moody is considered by many as the most diversified and successful businessman in Acadiana,” said UL Lafayette President Ray Authement. “He represents an unrelenting business sense that has brought him much success in the past and continues to endure today. He is the perfect example of someone with a sharp eye for what it takes to make business work.”
Currently, Moody is chairman of The Moody Company and of Louisiana State Newspapers Inc., both located in Lafayette.
   “Naming the college after such a successful businessman brings the college that much more prestige,” said Dr. Stephen Knouse, Acting Dean of Business Administration. “Mr. Moody has had a tremendous impact on Acadiana and we know the college will continue to benefit from his business expertise and experience.”
    Moody credits his studies and professors at then-SLI on his keen interest in business. “The professors were top-notch,” he recalled. “I and all of the veterans in my classes had the benefit of these dedicated professors. They helped shape our thinking about business in general and the role it plays in our society.
   “Dr. Paul Wayne Burnam was one of those professors who is still living today and one of the smartest CPAs I ever knew,” he continued. “And of course, I had the added advantage of Leon Moncla who carried me through all of my accounting courses.”
Intensely interested in people, Moody mixed humanitarianism with vision, razor sharp business skills and entrepreneurial spirit to produce enduring successes in banking, newspapers, restaurants, farming, oil and gas, real estate, public accounting and other business ventures. A hallmark of his multi-faceted career has been an unwavering willingness to help others achieve their goals, whether it be with financing, advice or a good word to the right ears.
   Moody graduated from Rayne High School and attended Auburn University.
His college career was interrupted by service in the United States Navy during World War II. After the war, Moody returned and entered then-SLI where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting.
   Following graduation, Moody was the founding partner in the CPA firm of Moody, Broussard, Poché & Guidry. He also served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Chart House Inc. in Lafayette and Chairman of the Board for First National Bank of Lafayette.
   His services on boards of directors include Rayne State Bank & Trust Company, First National Bank of Crowley, Acadia Savings and Loan Administration, First Commerce of New Orleans, Coastal Chemical Company of Abbeville, Lastarmco Inc. of Abbeville, Riviana Foods Inc. of Houston, Celeron Oil Company Inc. of Lafayette and Quantum Restaurants Inc. of New York.
    Moody’s combination of sound business judgment and loyalty to associates and employees alike was a formula that worked in a variety of enterprises.
   “Despite his demands for strict adherence to established, effective procedures and his unyielding drive for maximum productivity in all areas of business, Mr. Moody never lost sight of the fact that ours is a ‘people’ company, and his concern for every employee at every level in the organization has won for him great loyalty, respect and admiration from us all,” reads the citation in the annual report upon Moody’s retirement as Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Diversifoods, Inc.
   Moody is married to the former Thelma Hebert of Rayne and they are the parents of nine children and grandparents to 48 grandchildren. They reside in Crowley.

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