If you’ve seen the iconic ‘LAFAYETTE’ sign in Downtown Lafayette, where locals step in as the missing ‘Y’, then you’ve seen part of Kate Durio’s impact on the community.
But her story goes beyond public art.
After moving away to earn her bachelor’s degree in journalism in Oregon, Durio returned to Lafayette in 2010. Over the years, she took on community-driven roles with ABC affiliate KATC TV3 and Downtown Lafayette and worked closely with past city administration to lead the CREATE initiative, which fused arts, culture, and economics to drive regional growth.
“I had to think about things like what our return on investment was going to be for every dollar spent. That was a really hard task,” she says. “Art is something that's so subjective to people. But there was real math and real accounting and real money that was benefiting Lafayette through arts and culture, and I needed to show that.”
When the CREATE initiative was discontinued in 2020, Durio was recruited by a London-based consulting firm specializing in culture plans for communities. She was soon offered a leadership role that required managing budgets and pricing strategies — revealing a gap in her business knowledge.
That challenge led Durio to pursue UL Lafayette’s MBA online program, where she found an opportunity to complement her creative, community-driven work with business expertise.
“My friend was surprised I felt the need for an MBA with all of my work experience,” she says. “But I told her, ‘Why not have both? Why not show that I can do the work and have the degree to back it up?’”
Mastering the Business Side of Creativity
Durio is no stranger to hard work and multitasking. When she applied to the online MBA program in the summer of 2023, her son was turning one. By her first semester, she found out baby number two was on the way.
Some people might take that as a sign to slow down. Durio did the opposite.
“I thought, ‘I’m working from home. I can handle this,’” she says. “So, I loaded up on courses and maxed out my schedule the whole way through.”
Durio brought plenty of experience to the table, from communication to project management to creative thinking. But what she needed were the hard skills: accounting, finance, data analysis — and the MBA delivered.
“I had to take my foundation courses because I didn’t have a business undergrad degree,” she says. “But that’s where I learned those accounting basics that I was looking for, like how to do a profit and loss (P&L) statement.”
Beyond the technical knowledge, Durio found value in the broader lessons, particularly in the ways that technology and sociology were shaping the modern workplace.
The program gave her a deeper understanding of a range of business topics, from organizational leadership to technology.
“There was a class about how technology and business are changing, and things to be aware of. I also appreciated learning about different people and how they work,” she says. “I think that knowledge is going to make me a more well-rounded professional.”
Unlocking Career Opportunities with an MBA
Durio’s time in the MBA program laid a foundation for new opportunities.
In a serendipitous turn of events, she landed a new job at UL Lafayette in September 2023, just before starting classes.
“Being a student and working there has been a unique experience,” she says. “It’s been interesting to see how academia differs from the private sector.”
Ready to level up your business knowledge? Learn more about the University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s online MBA program.
