Shawn Wilson, a native of New Orleans, earned a B.A. in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette) in 1993 and a Master of Public Administration and Ph.D. in Public Policy from the Nelson Mandela School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs at Southern University. While at UL Lafayette, he helped establish the National Pan-Hellenic Council (Black Greeks) on campus and served as the first African American SGA president. In 2004, when he was president of the UL Lafayette Alumni Association, Dr. Wilson spearheaded the Pillars of Progress Memorial, which honors the first African American students enrolled at the University.

In 2016, Dr. Wilson was appointed by Governor John Bel Edwards to become the Secretary of Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD), after having worked in the department since 2004. Accomplishments include securing funds to widen Highway I-10, investing $1.7 billion to improve infrastructure, and procuring $650 million in Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicle (GARVEE) bonds for Urban Interstate Reconstruction and Louisiana’s first Public Private Partnership.