John Q Barnidge is the senior vice president and chief financial officer of Prime Medical Services, Inc., a publicly traded health service provider and manufacturer operating in thirty-four states and in Europe.
Barnidge graduated from Louisiana State University with a bachelor of science degree in general business administration in 1973 and earned a master's degree in accountancy from Georgia State University two years later. A certified public accountant (CPA), certified fraud examiner (CFE) and certified valuation analyst (CVA), Barnidge has extensive professional experience with business valuations and mergers and acquisitions.
Earlier in his career, Barnidge worked with Arthur Andersen & Co., where in only one and one-half years he was promoted to senior auditor and later to audit manager. After working at Andersen, Barnidge acquired an exising Houston-based accounting practice and quickly merged it to form Simonton, Kutac and Barnidge, a forty-six-person CPA firm with offices in Houston and Dallas. Later, Barnidge joined Prime Medical in Austin, Texas.
Barnidge is a member of the American Institue of Certified Public Accountants and the Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants. He is a Life Member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners and belongs to the American Board of Forensic Accounting and the National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts.
Barnidge's service to LSU has been lengthy and generous. In 1988, he co-founded the Texas Tiger Golf Tournament, which has funded and pledged more than $500,000, primarily for endowed scholarships at LSU, including two in the E.J. Ourso College of Business Administration. He is a member of the E.J. Ourso College of Business Administration Partners for Excellence Board, as well as the Department of Accounting Advisory Board. He was president of the Greater Houston Chapter of the LSU Alumni Association for two years, a former Board member and Advisory Board member of the Tiger Athletic Foundation, and a member of the Advisory Board of the LSU Alumni Association and LSU Foundation. Barnidge has represented LSU at numerous high school recruitment functions in the Houston area. He is also the recipient of the LSU Alumni Association's Distinguished Service Award.
Barnidge and his wife of twenty-seven years, Nancy Hall Barnidge, have three children, Kate, Matt and Chris.
Personal Reflections
My initial attraction to LSU came via John Ferguson, the incomparable "Voice of the Tigers." Listening to his broadcasts on fall Saturday nights is something that I will never forget. As if that were not enough, my first visit to campus for a football game really did the trick. Driving in on Dalrymple Drive, I remember seeing the lakes and the students milling about in front of the fraternity houses. Continuing on through the canopy of oaks in front of Pleasant Hall, I then saw the fabulous architecture of the core campus buildings. The closer I got to Tiger Stadium, the more electric was the atmosphere. I remember thinking that this was like nothing I had ever experienced. Little did I know what was in store for me once I got inside! I was convinced after that visit that this was truly a magical place. It must be because it still has that same impact on me today!
The experiences I had as a student, and later as a fairly active alumnus, were just as positive. As a student I remember the close-knit atmosphere within the College of Business (which was then housed in Himes Hall) especially among the upper-division students. In between classes there was always a buzz of activity in the quadrangle outside of Himes and extending past the front of the main library.
The organizational skills that I developed at LSU have been invaluable to me in my professional career. The rigors of the College's business curriculum, along with a full academic load, absolutely required it. These lessons have served me well during my entire professional career.
The number of my LSU-related friends and associates increased substantially after I graduated from LSU and left Louisiana. It began with my involvement with the Greater Houston Chapter of the LSU Alumni Association, and then to the establishment of the Texas Tiger Tournament (along with my close friends, Bill McCorkle and Billy Tidwell) and on to my participation on several academic and athletic advisory boards within the University. At every turn I met wonderful people who had the betterment of LSU in mind. There is a deep affection for this school throughout our LSU family. I am fortunate to have had the opportunity to be a small part of it.
You have no idea how much this night means to me! I am so very humbled, and at the same time grateful, for this induction into the Ourso College's Hall of Distinction, especially when I consider those who have been inducted before me. I was right forty years ago; this is truly a magical place. Thank you so very much.