Fort Bend Lifestyles and Homes Magazine Oct 2009: Feature

The United States Junior Chamber (Jaycees) announced that Jacqueline Baly Chaumette has been named as one of the 2009 Ten Outstanding Young Americans. The presentation of the 71st annual black-tie awards ceremony was held Sept. 26 in Orlando, Fla.

President and CEO of BalyProjects, LLC, 40-year-old Jacqueline Baly Chaumette is also a councilmember for the city of Sugar Land. Through BalyProjects, she is working with public officials, independent school districts and the corporate community in the development of public education programs. One of her company ’s projects, Adopt-A-School Bus, is aiding local school districts in replacing their aging, diesel school buses with new, clean-fuel buses.

As the only woman, only person of color and youngest person on the Sugar Land city council, Chaumette helps oversee the city ’s policies and budget. With a master’s degree in city planning, Chaumette planned Town Square. With this new development, she won several awards including Outstanding Development by the American Planning Association and Exceptional Design by the Association of Certified Planners. Chaumette revised codes and ordinances, with a focus on making Sugar Land more comparable and desirable for community development.

Chaumette has spent many years working with top governmental and elected officials on the Houston region ’s State Implementation Program. She currently

serves as Sugar Land council’s liaison on environmental programs and has pushed for environmental stewardship in the city.

As a result, Sugar Land was credited for an ongoing partnership with Keep Sugar Land Beautiful and its inaugural 2008 Environmental Week, a campaign that focused on litter prevention and cleanup, education and publicity of environmental issues and community beautification that led to the 2009 Government Project Award for efforts to protect the environment.

Other awards won by Chaumette include: Entrepreneur of the Year (the Houston Chronicle’s) Woman on the Move and Most Influential Woman of Houston.

Chaumette is also quite active in the community including serving as president of the Fort Bend Boys ’ Choir, gala chair and board director for the Fort Bend Education Foundation, board director for (Houston) City Hall Fellows and serving on

both of her sons’ PTA boards. She lectures on urban politics and public policy at her alma mater, University of Houston, and is featured on several radio and television stations discussing policy matters.

Chaumette, her husband, David, and their children, Raphael and Alexandre, reside in Sugar Land.

The Ten Outstanding Young Americans program is one of the oldest and most prestigious recognition programs in America. Annually since 1938, The United States Jaycees has sought out the 10 young men and women who best exemplify the finest attributes of America ’s youthful achievers.

The TOYA selection process begins in the spring of each year. Following the submission deadline, all nominations are forwarded to a panel of screening judges who, working independently, select and rank their top 20 choices. The top 20 point getters become the finalists. The finalists ’ nominations are forwarded to a panel of finalist judges who rank their top 10 choices. The task of judging the nominations is arduous.

Each nominee’s accomplishments and contributions are also judged in relation to the Jaycee Creed: “…That earth’s great treasure lies in human personality, and that service to humanity is the best work of life ” and they must meet certain qualifications: age (18-40, inclusive), American citizenship (or application therefore) and agree to attend the TOYA Awards Ceremony.