BECi Director J. R. 'Ronnie' Hickman elected president
of statewide electric co-op association
 BECi
director J. R. "Ronnie" Hickman, who also serves as the Co-op's
representative on the board of directors of the Association of Louisiana
Electric Cooperatives, Inc. (ALEC), was elected as president of the
non-profit group's board at its annual meeting held July 21-23 in Baton
Rouge. Hickman is a retired agriculture teacher of the Beauregard Parish
School system. He served ten years as Assistant Principal at DeRidder
High School. He attended McNeese State University, University of Louisiana
at Lafayette and Northwestern State University earning a B.S., M.A.,
+30 in Education. He has served on the boards of the High School FFA
Rodeo, Farm Bureau, Beauregard Parish Fair, Beauregard Cattleman's Association
and the APEL (Associate of Professional Educators in Louisiana). He
started the APEL in Beauregard Parish, serving as president. Mr. Hickman
has been a member of the BECi board of directors for the past 10 years
and has served as vice president of the board of directors of ALEC.
He attends Grace Church in DeRidder and is a 32° Mason and Shriner.
Mr. Hickman is a member of a Beauregard Parish pioneer family.
The association is a statewide organization composed of 12 Louisiana
electric cooperatives that provides regulatory support, education, public
relations, safety/loss control, legislative, legal and a variety of
communications services to its member electric cooperatives. Hickman
had been serving as the association's vice-president. ALEC functions
on the state, regional and national level in the interest of Louisiana's
electric cooperatives and their nearly one million members.
Serving as vice-president of the board is Mike Heinen, general manager
of Jefferson Davis Electric Cooperative based in Jennings, La. Re-elected
at the group's secretary-treasurer was Jerry D. Williams, manager of
Claiborne Electric Cooperative, headquartered at Homer, La.
Stepping down as president of the association board was veteran rural
electric leader Corlis Henry, who has served as an electric director
of Northeast La. Power Cooperative for 33 years. Henry has served on
the ALEC board as both a director and officer since 1980.
Among the statewide programs that cooperatives participate in through
ALEC is the Lower Operating Cost (LOE) energy conservation program,
the Gift of Learning public education enhancement program, the annual
Washington D.C. Rural Electric Youth Tour, and assorted 4-H, FFA and
community involvement efforts. ALEC is also active in consumer protection
issues, electric utility reliability, economic development efforts and
job creation programs that benefit rural areas across the state. ALEC,
like the electric cooperatives it serves, is dedicated to advancing
"quality of life" programs that benefit electric Co-op members.
Member cooperatives of ALEC include Beauregard Electric Co-op, DeRidder;
Claiborne Electric Co-op, Homer; DEMCO, Baton Rouge; Jefferson Davis
Electric Co-op, Jennings; Northeast La. Power Co-op, Winnsboro; Pointe
Coupee Electric Membership Corp., New Roads; South La. Electric Co-op
Assn., Houma; Valley Electric Membership Corp., Natchitoches, and Washington-St.
Tammany Electric Co-op, Franklinton. Panola-Harrison Electric Co-op
in Marshal, Texas is an associate member of ALEC.
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