SUMMARY: Lena Kelley, a finalist for Remarkable Woman, has spent 53 years inspiring students as a high school equivalency educator in Louisiana. Starting as a junior high teacher, she later transitioned to GED instruction. Kelley finds immense reward in hearing from former students whose lives she has positively impacted. Outside teaching, she is passionate about quilting, using an Underground Railroad-inspired quilt as a classroom teaching tool. Kelley attributes her dedication to her mother’s influence and values perseverance, creativity, and selflessness. She was surprised to be named a finalist, as she has always volunteered without seeking recognition.

Remarkable Women: Lena Kelley

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Wind energy holds promise for Louisiana if Landry ignores Trump bluster

by Greg LaRose, Louisiana Illuminator
March 20, 2025

We might not be Oklahoma, where I’m told the wind comes sweepin’ down the plain, but Louisiana is poised to make a mark in the burgeoning offshore wind energy sector. It arguably already has.

More than a decade ago, Gulf Island Fabricators in Houma built five jackets (think of the base of an offshore oil derrick, but for windmills) for the nation’s first-ever commercial offshore wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island. The company leaned on its extensive background in deepwater oil and gas platform fabrication for the project, which Keystone Engineering of Metairie designed.

As for offshore wind energy development in Louisiana waters, we’re lagging behind other states  for multiple reasons. For starters, the Gulf Coast simply isn’t as windy when compared to the oceanfronts of Northern California and New England. Plus, the fossil fuel sector has been, and continues to be, the driving force in energy development.

But change definitely is in the air based on conversations at Monday’s meeting of the Louisiana House Committee on Natural Resources and Environment. Its members heard from renewable energy advocates and state officials on prospects for solar and wind development.

The discussion took place as President Donald Trump has brought to a stop all wind energy development for federal land and waters. His executive order, signed on Inauguration Day, resulted in a 60-day suspension of “any onshore or offshore renewable energy authorization” that ends Friday.  

It’s no secret Trump holds great disdain for wind energy and has spread disinformation to steer public opinion toward his side on the topic. Without anything resembling proof, he has blamed wind turbines for causing cancer and killing whales and argues they lower property values.

To this point, Louisiana officials have not let the president’s bluster steer their views on wind energy. Trump’s order doesn’t affect leases in state waters 3 miles off the coast, and there has been bipartisan support for state legislation to pave the way for offshore wind farms.

Perhaps most notably, Louisiana lawmakers thwarted an effort in 2022 to keep solar and wind farm developers from taking part in the state’s lucrative Industrial Tax Exemption Program.

Maybe the most encouraging words from Monday’s legislative hearing came from Blake Canfield, executive counsel for the Louisiana Department of Energy and Natural Resources. It’s the closest thing we’ve heard to an endorsement for wind energy development from Gov. Jeff Landry’s administration. 

“We are known worldwide we’re being an energy state and for having done many years of oil and gas activity,” Canfield told the committee. “A lot of the technical expertise, manufacturing and other attributes that make us … very good at oil and gas, I think also can carry over to offshore wind.”

Admittedly, the proliferation of wind energy development in Louisiana still faces significant obstacles. Chief among them is getting electrical utilities to link their transmission systems to the new offshore power sources — and who will pay for those connections.

Still, it’s encouraging to hear state lawmakers entertain the option of renewable energy sources. It’s a conversation that needs to continue, especially as Louisiana residents and businesses see higher utility bills and lower reliability from a power supply largely dependent on fossil fuel generation

Louisiana Illuminator is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Louisiana Illuminator maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Greg LaRose for questions: info@lailluminator.com.

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