University of New Orleans alumni and faculty figure prominently among local professionals recognized by New Orleans CityBusiness for having distinguished themselves both as professionals in the fields of medicine and law and as leaders in the local community. Alumnae Kristin Callahan and Cheryl Myers and professor Elyria Kemp are among the 2018 class of “Health Care Heroes.” Alumni Lynn Luker, Tristan Manthey and Scott Schneider and professor Dinah Payne have been named to the 2018 class of “Leadership in Law.”

Kristin Callahan is an assistant professor and child psychologist with the LSU School of Medicine, where she is director of the assessment clinic in the Department of Psychiatry. In that role, she conducts psychological and developmental assessments for primary care offices, outpatient clinics and schools systems across New Orleans. According to New Orleans CityBusiness, Callahan credits her graduate faculty adviser, Laura Scaramella, with her career development.

Cheryl Myers, executive dean at the Delgado Charity School of Nursing, received her Ph.D. in educational administration from the University of New Orleans in 2010. In the New Orleans CityBusiness article, Myers describes a recent challenge she faced-and met-when licensing standards for nursing changed. According to the piece, Meyers led a multi-faceted effort to enhance Delgado's nursing curriculum so that program graduates could meet more difficult standards for situation-specific critical thinking skills.

Elyria Kemp holds the Bank One Endowed Professorship in Minority and Emerging Business at the University of New Orleans. Before entering academia, she worked in the music industry where she directed strategic marketing efforts for symphonic organizations and presenting arts organizations. She also worked in music licensing for the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP).  Kemp’s research interests are in the areas of emotions and decision-making, healthcare, consumer well-being and artistic consumption.

Lynn Luker studied psychology at the University of New Orleans before going on to Tulane University Law School. She was admitted to practice in 1981 and became a partner at Adams and Reese LLP in 1987. She went on to earn advanced degrees in maritime and energy and environmental law. Luker opened her own firm in 1999 and worked there until she was appointed by the Louisiana Supreme Court as Judge Pro Tempore for Civil District Court in 2014. More recently, she has engaged in mediation and arbitration working with Perry Dampf Dispute Solutions and continues her litigation work with Stanley, Reuter, Ross, Thornton and Alford LLC.

Tristan Manthey is a member of Heller, Draper, Patrick, Horn & Manthey LLC. His concentration is in Chapter 11 reorganizations, debt structure negotiations, insolvency litigation, corporate bankruptcy and creditor’s rights since 1998. He serves on the boards of the Fore! Kids Foundation and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and on the State Board of Certified Public Accountants of Louisiana.

Scott Schneider specializes in higher education law at Fisher and Philips, which means he spends a great deal of time helping universities across the country deal with sexual misconduct issues. Prior to joining Fisher and Philips, Schneider served as in-house counsel at Tulane where his expertise was valuable in helping students navigate difficult situations. Having seen legal issues affecting higher education from both sides, Schneider is a resource for administrators and student groups alike. He blogs and tweets about developments in higher education law.

Dinah Payne is a management professor in the College of Business Administration at the University of New Orleans, where she has worked since 1988. She has been licensed by the Louisiana Bar Association since 1986. Her teaching and research interests are in the fields of business ethics, domestic and international law and management. Her awards include the UNO College of Business Administration “Favorite Professor” and “Professor of the Year” awards and the Gordon “Nick” Mueller International Service Award. Payne says her chief professional joy is working with, teaching and learning from wonderful students.

Pictured, clockwise from upper left: Kristin Callahan, Cheryl Meyers, Elyria Kemp, Lynn Luker, Dinah Payne, Scott Schneider and Tristan Manthey.