The inaugural Zachary Mardi Gras announced Regena Hartley Beard and Doug Williams as the grand marshals of the 2026 Zachary Mardi Gras Parade, taking place at 2 p.m. Feb. 15.
Regena Hartley Beard, the 2026 Louisiana teacher of the year, is a is a fifth grade science and sixth grade robotics and STEM educator at Copper Mill Elementary in Zachary.
She is a recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching, the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government for STEM educators, as well as the Louisiana Science Teachers Association’s outstanding science teacher of the year…