Brian McNamara (’08)

“One of the most fun memories I have is that I would wear a CBU basketball jersey almost every home game when cheering on the Buccaneer men’s basketball team. Joe Nadicksbernd, the CBU Athletic Director at the time, bought an insurance policy to put on a halftime promo where one lucky student per game would have a winning ticket for a chance to make shots on the court and win $10,000. I came VERY close, but missed the half-court shot. The video is still alive in my heart and on YouTube, thanks to former Assistant Athletic Director Kyle Bone.”

Brian McNamara came to CBU from Lafayette, LA, to play midfielder on the Buccaneer soccer team. He played in 73 games during his four years as a Buc, and he regularly made the GSC Academic Honor Roll for his performance in the classroom as a Business Administration major concentrating in Finance. He also met his future wife, Nikki Dunn McNamara (Psychology ’09)/ “We would say ‘hi’ to each other and talk briefly for years before we ever started spending more time with each other and dating,” he recalls. “I also enjoyed playing soccer on Signaigo field, attending CBU games for all the sports teams, talking with the Brothers (especially about math and life with Brother Wally at softball games), watching March Madness, and many, many other things about CBU.”

After graduating with his BSBA in 2008, Brian returned to Louisiana and earned his MBA from Louisiana State University. He then put his financial expertise to work in the higher education field as a Budget Analyst at LSU, Assistant Dean of Budget and Finance of the E.J. Ourso College of Business at LSU. He also served on the adjunct faculty for courses in general business, accounting, and information systems. He has served on the LSU Ourso Dean’s Advisory Council to bridge connections with the business community; served on multiple committees at LSU for diversity and inclusion, finance, and operations; and was recognized with the LSU Ourso Staff Excellence Award.

In July 2022, Brian accepted a new position as Assistant Vice President for Academic Resource Management at the University of Texas at San Antonio, wherein he serves as the financial officer over the Academic Affairs scope of the university.

Throughout his career, Brian has served as a business mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs through LSU and community programs, such as iCorps and Ignition, and has mentored students and young alumni with curriculum, career path, and business decisions. He chaperoned a student entrepreneurship trip to Seattle, facilitating discussions with company executives during on-site visits and advising students on their career and entrepreneurial interests. He also served as an Associate Board Member of Campus Federal Credit Union.

As a CBU alumnus, Brian also expresses a willingness to give back support to the CBU family. “With my university-related experience, I’m happy to be a resource for university leadership in the strategic, finance, or operations areas,” he says. “I’m also happy to get involved with student mentorship, programming development, or helping to build bridges between the classroom and career opportunities.”

Easily the biggest lesson I learned at CBU is to respect people, no matter what. Attending CBU tremendously expanded my personal exposure to a diverse group of people and cultures. I was fortunate enough to live on campus for four years and make lifelong friends with people from all over the world… different races, backgrounds, cultures, and experiences that so many different people brought to campus. Being able to have conversations with so many different people, to learn about their perspectives, has helped me grow so much as a person.