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Created page with "{{Infobox officeholder | name=Curtis Joseph Joubert | nationality=American | office=Mayor of Eunice in Evangeline Parish, Louisiana | term_s..."
{{Infobox officeholder
| name=Curtis Joseph Joubert
| nationality=[[United States|American]]
| office=[[Mayor]] of Eunice in Evangeline Parish, [[Louisiana]]
| term_start=1981
| term_end=December 31, 1994
| succeeded=Hubert "Kutch" Rougeau
| office2=Louisiana State Representative for Evangeline and St. Landry parishes
| term_start2=May 1968
| term_end2=May 1972
| preceded2=Two-member district:>
Steven J. Dupuis<br>
Sidney S. Sylvester
| succeeded2=Multi-member district:
Armand J. Brinkhaus<br>
Joseph E. Coriel<br>
Louis Dischler, Jr.<br>
Steven J. Dupuis
| birth_date=May 1931
| birth_place=Lawtell, St. Landry Parish
| residence=Eunice, Louisiana
| death_date =
| death_place =
| death_cause=
| resting_place=
| party=[[Democratic Party|Democrat]]
| alma_mater=Lawtell High School (defunct)<br>
University of Louisiana at [[Lafayette]]
[[Louisiana State University]]
| occupation=[[Educator]]
[[United States Army]] in [[Korean War]]
| spouse =Kristine Kimball Joubert
| children=Candace Joubert Khalifa<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.katc.com/news/eunice-family-trapped-in-egypt/|author=Maddie Garrett|title=Eunice Family Trapped in Egypt|date=January 31, 2011|publisher=KATC-TV|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref><br>
Jonathan James Joubert}}
'''Curtis Joseph Joubert''', also known as '''J. Curtis Joubert''' (born May 1931),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://voterportal.sos.la.gov/home.aspx|title=Click By Voter, Curtis Joubert, May 1931|publisher=voterportal.sos.la.gov|accessdate=June 8, 2020}}</ref> is a retired [[educator]] and [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] [[politician]] of [[France|French]] ancestry from [[Louisiana]]. He served as both a state representative and as the [[mayor]] of Eunice in Acadia and St. Landry parishes.
==Background==
Joubert was born in [[rural Lawtell]] in St. Landry Parish to Edmond Joubert and the former Julia Prejean. Edmond died when Curtis was only six years old, and the child entered public schools speaking only French. In 1948, he graduated from Lawtell High School, an entity of the St. Landry Parish School Board, since reconfigured to Lawtell Elementary School. In 1951, Joubert served in the [[Korean War]]. Thereafter, he graduated from the University of Louisiana at [[Lafayette]], formerly known as the '''University of Southwestern Louisiana''' or USL, from which he obtained a Bachelor of Science and a master's degree, both in the field of education. He undertook further graduate studies at USL and [[Louisiana State University]] in [[Baton Rouge]]. In 1988, USL honored Joubert as its "Outstanding Graduate in the College of Education". In 1999, as part of its centennial celebration, USL designated Joubert one of its top sixty graduates during the preceding century.<ref name=bio>{{cite web|url=http://www.acadianmuseum.com/legends.php?viewID=86|title=Living Legends: Curtis Joubert|publisher=acadianmuseum.com|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>
==Educational and political career==
In his educational career, Joubert worked as a classroom teacher, [[basketball]] [[coach]], counselor, and assistant principal at Eunice High School. He is the former director of the Eunice Vocational Educational Center.<ref name=bio/> In 1961-1962, Joubert was named the "Southwest Louisiana Coach of the Year."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eunicetoday.com/local/files-november-1962|title=From the Files of ''The Eunice News''|date=November 1962|publisher=eunicetoday.com|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>In 1967, he was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives and served a term during the second administration of [[Governor]] [[John J. McKeithen]] from 1968 until 1972, alongside fellow Democrats Armand Brinkhaus, a lawyer from Sunset in St. Landry Parish and a strong advocate of the French language and culture,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.acadianmuseum.com/legends.php?viewID=188|title=Living Legends: Armand Brinkhaus|publisher=acadiamuseum.com|accessdate=May 23, 2014}}</ref> and H. B. DeJean.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://house.louisiana.gov/H_PDFdocs/HouseMembership_History_CURRENT.pdf|title=Membership in the Louisiana House of Representatives, 1812-2024|publisher=Louisian House of Representatives|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>Thereafter in 1980, under Superintendent [[J. Kelly Nix]], he was appointed to the State Department of Education in charge of statewide [[Elementary and Secondary Education Act|ESEA Title I]] programs.<ref name=bio/>
In 1981, Joubert was elected mayor of Eunice; he unseated the incumbent and defeated two other challengers as well. In his last election in 1990, Joubert defeated in the nonpartisan blanket [[primary]] his fellow Democrat Hubert "Kutch" Rougeau, 48 to 39 percent. Rougeau withdrew from a runoff electio] which he could have contested with Joubert.<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, October 6, 1990.</ref> In 1994, Rougeau was elected mayor to succeed Joubert, who did not seek another term. Rougeau took office on January 1, 1995.<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, November 8, 1994.</ref>
Mayor Joubert helped to establish the Eunice [[Mardi Gras]] celebration, considered the largest small-town gathering of its kind in Louisiana. He coined the nickname for Eunice, "Prairie Cajun Capital." Numerous journalists covering the 1988 [[Republican National Convention]] in [[New Orleans]], which nominated the [[George Herbert Walker Bush|Bush]]-[[Dan Quayle|Quayle]] ticket, took side trips to Eunice to sample the authentic Cajun culture. In the process of doing so, many interviewed Joubert; such coverage brought national attention to the Acadiana region.<ref name=bio/>
Joubert founded the World’s Championship Crawfish Cook-off Contest. He has his own popular recipe for crawfish étouffée. He was instrumental in the development of the Prairie Acadian Culture Center, one of three sections of the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve. In 1986, he successfully spearheaded the renovation of the Liberty Theatre in downtown Eunice, which features the weekly "Rendez-vous des Cajuns" [[radio]] music program in which all the selections are in French.<ref name=jouhouse/> He worked for the establishment of the Eunice Depot Museum. He joined with the faculty at Louisiana State University at Eunice, a junior college, to establish the Cajuin Prairie Wildflower Habitat. He is a member of the board of the Council for the Development of French in Louisiana, widely known as CODOFIL.<ref name=bio/>
After his tenure as mayor, Joubert was executive assistant to the Louisiana Public Service Commission, the regulatory body for transportation, utilities, and communications, of which several future governors, including [[Huey Long|Huey Pierce Long, Jr.]], [[Jimmie Davis]], John McKeithen and [[Kathleen Blanco]], were once members.<ref name=bio/>
In 2008, Republican Governor [[Bobby Jindal]] appointed Joubert, along with the New Orleans restaurateur Paul Prudhomme, to the Louisiana Tourism Development Commission, an entity created to foster employment opportunities in the travel and hospitality industries of the state.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://gov.louisiana.gov/index.cfm?md=newsroom&tmp=detail&articleID=163|title=Governor Bobby Jindal Appoints Members to the Louisiana Tourism Development Commission|date=April 17, 2008|publisher=gov.louisiana.gov|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>
==Legacy==
Joubert and his wife, the former Kristine Kimball, have resided since 1999 in a 7,000-square foot house which occupies an entire block on West Park Avenue in Eunice. The house was built in 1981 by Thomas E. Powell, a former member of the Louisiana Public Service Commission from Eunice. The vanities in the bathrooms are onyx; the floors, marble, and the kitchen cabinets, walnut. A large oak tree shades the brick courtyard between the main house and guest cottage. An office contains the many awards that Joubert has received over the years.<ref name=jouhouse>{{cite web|url=http://www.myneworleans.com/Louisiana-Life/Summer-2005/Six-Blocks-from-Liberty/|author=Bonnie Warren|title=Eunice's former first couple's trophy house|publisher=myneworleans.com|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>As of 2013, Mrs. Joubert was the principal of the Eunice Career & Technical Education Center.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eunicetoday.com/lifestyle/turner-industries-donates-equipment-ectec|title=Turner Industries donates equipment to ECTEC|date=November 13, 2013|publisher=''Eunice Today''|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>
In 1995, Joubert was featured in an article in ''Southern Living'' magazine.<ref name=bio/> In 2003, he worked in the planning of the bicentennial celebration of the [[Louisiana Purchase]]. On November 29, 2003, Joubert was inducted as a "Living Legend" by the Acadian Museum in Erath in Vermilion Parish.<ref name=bio/> He is also an inductee of the Louisiana State University at Eunice Hall of Fame for his longstanding work in promoting Bengal team athletics.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lsue.edu/site.php?pageID=109&newsID=90|title=Joubert inducted in Bengal Hall of Fame|publisher=lsue.edu|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>
In 2005, Joubert was inducted into the [[Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame]] in Winnfield. Other Louisiana mayors inducted into the Hall of Fame include [[Chep Morrison]], Victor H. Schiro, [[Maurice Edwin Landrieu|Moon Landrieu]], and Ernest Nathan Morial, all of New Orleans|, Kip Holden]] of Baton Rouge, [[Ned Randolph]] of [[Alexandria, Louisiana|Alexandria]], [[George Dement]] of [[Bossier City]], [[Joe Sampite']] of [[Natchitoches, Louisiana|Natchitoches]], and [[Hyram Copeland]] of Vidalia in Concordia Parish.
<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.louisianapoliticalmuseum.com/fame.php|title=Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame|publisher=louisianapoliticalmuseum.com|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>
In 2013, Joubert obtained an historical marker to commemorate the [[Germany|German]] [[prisoner of war]] camp at Eunice during [[World War II]]. A number of the former POWs visited Eunice decades after their confinement, some during the time that Joubert was mayor. Each reported kind treatment by the people there.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eunicetoday.com/eunice-wwii-pow-camp-grounds-slated-historical-marker|author=Todd C. Elliott|title=Eunice WWII POW camp grounds slated for historical marker|date=July 14, 2013|publisher=eunicetoday.com|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>
==References==
{{refist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Joubert, Curtis}}
[[Category:Louisiana People]]
[[Category:Educators]]
[[Category:Politicians]]
[[Category:Mayors]]
[[Category:Democrats]]
[[Category:Cajuns]]
[[Category:Catholics]]
[[Category:Catholic Politicians]]
[[Category:Korean War]]
[[Category:United States Army]]
[[Category:Inductees of the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame]]
| name=Curtis Joseph Joubert
| nationality=[[United States|American]]
| office=[[Mayor]] of Eunice in Evangeline Parish, [[Louisiana]]
| term_start=1981
| term_end=December 31, 1994
| succeeded=Hubert "Kutch" Rougeau
| office2=Louisiana State Representative for Evangeline and St. Landry parishes
| term_start2=May 1968
| term_end2=May 1972
| preceded2=Two-member district:>
Steven J. Dupuis<br>
Sidney S. Sylvester
| succeeded2=Multi-member district:
Armand J. Brinkhaus<br>
Joseph E. Coriel<br>
Louis Dischler, Jr.<br>
Steven J. Dupuis
| birth_date=May 1931
| birth_place=Lawtell, St. Landry Parish
| residence=Eunice, Louisiana
| death_date =
| death_place =
| death_cause=
| resting_place=
| party=[[Democratic Party|Democrat]]
| alma_mater=Lawtell High School (defunct)<br>
University of Louisiana at [[Lafayette]]
[[Louisiana State University]]
| occupation=[[Educator]]
[[United States Army]] in [[Korean War]]
| spouse =Kristine Kimball Joubert
| children=Candace Joubert Khalifa<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.katc.com/news/eunice-family-trapped-in-egypt/|author=Maddie Garrett|title=Eunice Family Trapped in Egypt|date=January 31, 2011|publisher=KATC-TV|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref><br>
Jonathan James Joubert}}
'''Curtis Joseph Joubert''', also known as '''J. Curtis Joubert''' (born May 1931),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://voterportal.sos.la.gov/home.aspx|title=Click By Voter, Curtis Joubert, May 1931|publisher=voterportal.sos.la.gov|accessdate=June 8, 2020}}</ref> is a retired [[educator]] and [[Democratic Party|Democratic]] [[politician]] of [[France|French]] ancestry from [[Louisiana]]. He served as both a state representative and as the [[mayor]] of Eunice in Acadia and St. Landry parishes.
==Background==
Joubert was born in [[rural Lawtell]] in St. Landry Parish to Edmond Joubert and the former Julia Prejean. Edmond died when Curtis was only six years old, and the child entered public schools speaking only French. In 1948, he graduated from Lawtell High School, an entity of the St. Landry Parish School Board, since reconfigured to Lawtell Elementary School. In 1951, Joubert served in the [[Korean War]]. Thereafter, he graduated from the University of Louisiana at [[Lafayette]], formerly known as the '''University of Southwestern Louisiana''' or USL, from which he obtained a Bachelor of Science and a master's degree, both in the field of education. He undertook further graduate studies at USL and [[Louisiana State University]] in [[Baton Rouge]]. In 1988, USL honored Joubert as its "Outstanding Graduate in the College of Education". In 1999, as part of its centennial celebration, USL designated Joubert one of its top sixty graduates during the preceding century.<ref name=bio>{{cite web|url=http://www.acadianmuseum.com/legends.php?viewID=86|title=Living Legends: Curtis Joubert|publisher=acadianmuseum.com|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>
==Educational and political career==
In his educational career, Joubert worked as a classroom teacher, [[basketball]] [[coach]], counselor, and assistant principal at Eunice High School. He is the former director of the Eunice Vocational Educational Center.<ref name=bio/> In 1961-1962, Joubert was named the "Southwest Louisiana Coach of the Year."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eunicetoday.com/local/files-november-1962|title=From the Files of ''The Eunice News''|date=November 1962|publisher=eunicetoday.com|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>In 1967, he was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives and served a term during the second administration of [[Governor]] [[John J. McKeithen]] from 1968 until 1972, alongside fellow Democrats Armand Brinkhaus, a lawyer from Sunset in St. Landry Parish and a strong advocate of the French language and culture,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.acadianmuseum.com/legends.php?viewID=188|title=Living Legends: Armand Brinkhaus|publisher=acadiamuseum.com|accessdate=May 23, 2014}}</ref> and H. B. DeJean.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://house.louisiana.gov/H_PDFdocs/HouseMembership_History_CURRENT.pdf|title=Membership in the Louisiana House of Representatives, 1812-2024|publisher=Louisian House of Representatives|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>Thereafter in 1980, under Superintendent [[J. Kelly Nix]], he was appointed to the State Department of Education in charge of statewide [[Elementary and Secondary Education Act|ESEA Title I]] programs.<ref name=bio/>
In 1981, Joubert was elected mayor of Eunice; he unseated the incumbent and defeated two other challengers as well. In his last election in 1990, Joubert defeated in the nonpartisan blanket [[primary]] his fellow Democrat Hubert "Kutch" Rougeau, 48 to 39 percent. Rougeau withdrew from a runoff electio] which he could have contested with Joubert.<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, October 6, 1990.</ref> In 1994, Rougeau was elected mayor to succeed Joubert, who did not seek another term. Rougeau took office on January 1, 1995.<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, November 8, 1994.</ref>
Mayor Joubert helped to establish the Eunice [[Mardi Gras]] celebration, considered the largest small-town gathering of its kind in Louisiana. He coined the nickname for Eunice, "Prairie Cajun Capital." Numerous journalists covering the 1988 [[Republican National Convention]] in [[New Orleans]], which nominated the [[George Herbert Walker Bush|Bush]]-[[Dan Quayle|Quayle]] ticket, took side trips to Eunice to sample the authentic Cajun culture. In the process of doing so, many interviewed Joubert; such coverage brought national attention to the Acadiana region.<ref name=bio/>
Joubert founded the World’s Championship Crawfish Cook-off Contest. He has his own popular recipe for crawfish étouffée. He was instrumental in the development of the Prairie Acadian Culture Center, one of three sections of the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve. In 1986, he successfully spearheaded the renovation of the Liberty Theatre in downtown Eunice, which features the weekly "Rendez-vous des Cajuns" [[radio]] music program in which all the selections are in French.<ref name=jouhouse/> He worked for the establishment of the Eunice Depot Museum. He joined with the faculty at Louisiana State University at Eunice, a junior college, to establish the Cajuin Prairie Wildflower Habitat. He is a member of the board of the Council for the Development of French in Louisiana, widely known as CODOFIL.<ref name=bio/>
After his tenure as mayor, Joubert was executive assistant to the Louisiana Public Service Commission, the regulatory body for transportation, utilities, and communications, of which several future governors, including [[Huey Long|Huey Pierce Long, Jr.]], [[Jimmie Davis]], John McKeithen and [[Kathleen Blanco]], were once members.<ref name=bio/>
In 2008, Republican Governor [[Bobby Jindal]] appointed Joubert, along with the New Orleans restaurateur Paul Prudhomme, to the Louisiana Tourism Development Commission, an entity created to foster employment opportunities in the travel and hospitality industries of the state.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://gov.louisiana.gov/index.cfm?md=newsroom&tmp=detail&articleID=163|title=Governor Bobby Jindal Appoints Members to the Louisiana Tourism Development Commission|date=April 17, 2008|publisher=gov.louisiana.gov|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>
==Legacy==
Joubert and his wife, the former Kristine Kimball, have resided since 1999 in a 7,000-square foot house which occupies an entire block on West Park Avenue in Eunice. The house was built in 1981 by Thomas E. Powell, a former member of the Louisiana Public Service Commission from Eunice. The vanities in the bathrooms are onyx; the floors, marble, and the kitchen cabinets, walnut. A large oak tree shades the brick courtyard between the main house and guest cottage. An office contains the many awards that Joubert has received over the years.<ref name=jouhouse>{{cite web|url=http://www.myneworleans.com/Louisiana-Life/Summer-2005/Six-Blocks-from-Liberty/|author=Bonnie Warren|title=Eunice's former first couple's trophy house|publisher=myneworleans.com|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>As of 2013, Mrs. Joubert was the principal of the Eunice Career & Technical Education Center.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eunicetoday.com/lifestyle/turner-industries-donates-equipment-ectec|title=Turner Industries donates equipment to ECTEC|date=November 13, 2013|publisher=''Eunice Today''|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>
In 1995, Joubert was featured in an article in ''Southern Living'' magazine.<ref name=bio/> In 2003, he worked in the planning of the bicentennial celebration of the [[Louisiana Purchase]]. On November 29, 2003, Joubert was inducted as a "Living Legend" by the Acadian Museum in Erath in Vermilion Parish.<ref name=bio/> He is also an inductee of the Louisiana State University at Eunice Hall of Fame for his longstanding work in promoting Bengal team athletics.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lsue.edu/site.php?pageID=109&newsID=90|title=Joubert inducted in Bengal Hall of Fame|publisher=lsue.edu|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>
In 2005, Joubert was inducted into the [[Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame]] in Winnfield. Other Louisiana mayors inducted into the Hall of Fame include [[Chep Morrison]], Victor H. Schiro, [[Maurice Edwin Landrieu|Moon Landrieu]], and Ernest Nathan Morial, all of New Orleans|, Kip Holden]] of Baton Rouge, [[Ned Randolph]] of [[Alexandria, Louisiana|Alexandria]], [[George Dement]] of [[Bossier City]], [[Joe Sampite']] of [[Natchitoches, Louisiana|Natchitoches]], and [[Hyram Copeland]] of Vidalia in Concordia Parish.
<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.louisianapoliticalmuseum.com/fame.php|title=Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame|publisher=louisianapoliticalmuseum.com|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>
In 2013, Joubert obtained an historical marker to commemorate the [[Germany|German]] [[prisoner of war]] camp at Eunice during [[World War II]]. A number of the former POWs visited Eunice decades after their confinement, some during the time that Joubert was mayor. Each reported kind treatment by the people there.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eunicetoday.com/eunice-wwii-pow-camp-grounds-slated-historical-marker|author=Todd C. Elliott|title=Eunice WWII POW camp grounds slated for historical marker|date=July 14, 2013|publisher=eunicetoday.com|accessdate=December 9, 2013}}</ref>
==References==
{{refist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Joubert, Curtis}}
[[Category:Louisiana People]]
[[Category:Educators]]
[[Category:Politicians]]
[[Category:Mayors]]
[[Category:Democrats]]
[[Category:Cajuns]]
[[Category:Catholics]]
[[Category:Catholic Politicians]]
[[Category:Korean War]]
[[Category:United States Army]]
[[Category:Inductees of the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame]]