<p>What one university (SMU) is doing to help out Tulane students:</p>
<p>August 31, 2005</p>
<p>Message to students from SMU President R. Gerald Turner and Provost Robert Blocker:</p>
<p>With the increasing reports of devastation from Hurricane Katrina, President Turner has determined that SMU will enroll Tulane University students from the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex for this fall semester on a space-available basis. In this time of tragedy, we ask your cooperation and compassion as SMU opens its doors to these students. The Office of Enrollment Management will receive inquiries regarding enrollment at 768-2058 after 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, September 1, and students must make contact with SMU by Tuesday, September 6. These requests will be evaluated, and the students will be counseled regarding their options. President Turner is continuing his efforts to reach President Scott Cowan of Tulane to personally extend the offer of SMU facilities to Tulane faculty should they be assigned to teach Tulane students in Dallas this fall and to work out other details of assistance. [end of email]</p>
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<p>In addition, the Tulane football team (as well as soccer and volleyball teams) will be working out at SMU over the next few weeks. These students, as well as about 50 international students from Tulane, are staying in local hotels. All are being given meal cards and phone and internet access. I haven't heard anything about them attending classes (not a big issue for the football players, certainly).</p>
<p>I am impressed at how quick the bureaucracy can be cut through, sometimes. Kudos to SMU and Tulane for this! (Okay, I'm the biased parent of an SMU frosh!)</p>
<p>we are in the SMU area, and S will check into seeing what arrangements have been finalized with Tulane. However, a gap semester may occur. Pokey, I understand your frustration and hope your son is able to finish on time or better yet is accepted early to med school. </p>
<p>I understand the frustration of parents on this board. There is a lot of sensationalism in the news. Accentuate the negative and don't let us see pictures of the Garden District to see the campus. There's just not a "hot" story.</p>
<p>What I don't appreciate are parents that have been negative about Tulane's situtation and free with advice to ditch the school for good because of mold or it will take too long or "life just won't be any good there any more" sentiments crossing over from the parents forum to the Tulane forum. We don't need negative right now, we need facts and this is where we head for those. I'm not really sure why the crossover. It's nothing short of salt in open wounds. We've laid awake at night wondering what the future will bring. We're trying to put our lives in order. Negative comments from non-Tulanians or their parents telling us to ditch the school doesn't help. </p>
<p>It's time to try to get some sleep now. I'm growing weary and cranky. We still have to work, take care of our families and deal with this. I hope that tomorrow brings more answers. But please, please, please, don't come to the Tulane threads to tell us to quit. Leave it for exchange of information that will help us to make our own decisions.</p>
<p>U of Arkansas is giving free tuition and fees to instate students, and in-state rate to oos students. the site says 13 have already taken advantage of the offer</p>
<p>I have to say that I didn't get the impression that people were abandoning Tulane for other schools. Please correct me, but I thought people were looking for alternatives if this semester had to be cancelled. </p>
<p>My D doesn't want to go to another school permanently. But she could collect a few credits until Tulane and NOLA got back on their feet.</p>
<p>So far, Rice, University of Arkansas, University of Louisiana Lafayette, University of Mississippi, and Southern Methodist University have agreed to enroll Tulane students. Feel free to add to this list.</p>
<p>I wish everyone luck. This is a difficult situation, but I think Tulane is handling this well, and so are the wonderful schools that are lending a hand.</p>
<p>Many thanks to all for your information. This board has been a great help and comfort during this time. We are also waiting to see what options Tulane will come up with. In the meanwhile, S will return to his summer job. He, as others, would like to volunteer, but curioser confirmed what I suspected, that they are not seeking untrained volunteers at this time. Please keep the info coming, and let us know of any opportunities for students to volunteer with the recovery efforts. </p>
<p>BTW, I'm surprised of the offer from Syracuse, since they were overenrolled by 500 this year and putting more students into existing dorms. Anyway, it is heartening to see that other universities are coming through with offers. A big thank you to the state of Texas who has opened up their state to the people affected by the hurricane. A big state with a big heart!</p>
<p>I will be away from this board for several hours, but want to second alongfor's frustration at those on this and other threads handing out their gratuitous advice about how untenable a Tulane education will be.</p>
<p>I want to thank all those who "are us" or are "with us" in coming up with ideas. I am sure more colleges and U's will be forthcoming with offers, and am anxiously waiting to hear Tulane's recommendations and plans.</p>
<p>I am particularly interested in sharing stories of how we Tulane families are deciding and when we are deciding what to do. For instance, when I told H this morning that I read of Syracuse's offer before going to bed last night, he was anxious to hop on it but wanted to hear from Tulane first. Syracuse is a reasonable possibility for us, as it is reasonably close, the offer is not restricted to locals, it has strength in S' intended field. I feel no frustration at Tulane not having answers for us yet - the quickest response is not necessarily the best response and I fully trust that they are working night and day to come up with the best response. But it is hard to know whether to make interim plans for a semester elsewhere, a few credits elsewhwere, a gap semester or what.</p>
<p>And, of course, if we don't all have enough to worry about, thoughts about interim logistics invade the night: if S takes a semester elsewhere, how far behind will he be if we wait to decide, how much of the stuff in the dorm (including new computer) do we replace/how much do we wait to retrieve, etc. etc. </p>
<p>along-
I don't think other want to ditch Tulane for good; most are looking to just getting in a fall semester somewhere. It is obvious to me that there is no way for Tulane to have a Fall semester in New Orleans. My son for one is looking forward to spending his last semester in New Orleans this Spring (fingers and toes crossed!!) As far as new applicants, yes I believe Tulane and other NO school will see a huge drop in applicant leading me to wonder how Tulane will operate in the future. I only wish the best for Tulane and the city of NO; with much time, love and money the city can be rebuilt.</p>
<p>As far as mold, I can tell you that is a real problem. We had a leak in our office from an ice maker line in the office above. The line broke over the weekend and was discovered on a Monday AM. After closing the office and having a company come in with massive fans to dry out the carpet and wall, we were still forced to move so that the walls could be torn down and replaced. Men came in HASMAT suits and worked on the office for months with plastic covering all opening so that nothing traveled into the hallways. This office was closed for months before a new tenant could move in. Remember this was fresh water that leaked for two days tops, not stagnant water that is now carrying g-d knows what!!</p>
<p>DD's reaction was similar. She got home last night after 3 days in BR and the 18 hour drive and expressed a strong desire to stay at Tulane and follow its guidance for whatever options are available, but an equally strong desire to get her life in order and move on for the semester. She would like to go and do service at Tulane, but understands that they are not in a way to organize that. He brothers' colleges are both on the quarter system which I don't think is a tenable option, for different reasons in each case. </p>
<p>Most of the colleges in our area started in the last week, some the week before. I had already contacted the largest private university which was most gracious but not encouraging -- although I think its admissions office will be a bit embarrassed this am by the generous repsonses of the sourthern universities and Syracuse and Marquette (which due to its Jesuit heritage immeidately opened to Loyola students but has not restricted itself to them), since there are several students in this area who attend Tulane and, while the university's dorms are full, I imagine they are in the same consortium and could have made the same offer as Rice. Our local Jesuit university enrolled 2 Loyola of NOLA students for the semester yesterday and is willing to take her. Between the 2 of us we have/are contacting several private area colleges and being completely candid about the situation. It would be extremely helpful, obviously, to have more clarity from Tulane, but it is more than understandable that they have not pulled things together yet. I keep thinking that after a college process that lasted an entire year, we are suddenly trying to reorganize in about 3 days. I cannot even conceive of the task facing Scott Cowen and his team.</p>
<p>DD does not want to go back to her summer job and showed no interest in a couple of travel/service abroad programs I had found. I think she is still trying to process the situation and experience (as we all are, I'm sure) and is not ready mentally to encompass the idea of a whole new experience far away. She'd just like to go somewhere where she can live in a dorm, take some basic 1st year courses, and look forward to a return to Tulane.</p>
<p>jmmom, you always seem to speak my thoughts for me. My son is one of those who seems to have developed a serious loyalty to Tulane without ever having attended a first class there. Perhaps it's his appreciation for the DSA; perhaps because he wants to be part of the group that helps support the school in its renewal. Whatever the sources for his feelings, I'm behind him all the way.</p>
<p>I also wish people who have nothing to do with Tulane would stop telling us what we should and should not do. It's mean-spirited to try to destroy the optimism that may well turn out to be well-founded, even if all that means is there are a few advantages to waiting a semester for Tulane to create a new experience for this freshman class.</p>
<p>jmmom - I'm with you and I agree that a hastily developed plan is not a good plan. I'm sure the university is working with state and national officials to develop a good alternate plan. Since Tulane is the largest employer in NO, it is vital to the economy to get it up and running as soon as possible. The final plan may be worth a few days wait. Good luck to all during this difficult time.</p>
<p>I think if my son was a freshman we also whould go with the wait and see approach, but because he is a senior we don't have that luxury. If admitted to his medical school of choice he will begin in August. He really needs to graduate by July and would prefer May as he has a big trip to Europe planned with a group a buddies. Attending a local college for this semester just feels like the right thing to do.</p>
<p>Pokey and others, I do appreciate that most of the latter talk on this thread has been about a semester at another school. I totally understand this as my son is exploring the SMU offer. And I certainly understand your plight. Your son is a senior and a medical school applicant. His circumstances are a different set than my sons, and thus you will probably come to a different decision based on your family's needs. That is the point I intended to get across. Apparently, I didn't do a very good job. These kids are academic refugees and I really did understand the posts concerning attending another institution for a semester. I was just put off by comments that went past that and hinted that Tulane and New Orleans should just throw in the towel.</p>
<p>I understand mold is a problem. We have it here in Texas too. But, no one is suggesting that Texas is uninhabitable or somehow less because it can be found here. We also have mosquitoes, West Nile, menengitis, the occasional case of tuberculosis and any other disease that is endemic in Mexico and Central and South America that finds its way across the border. I was just voicing an opinion (and once again, apparently not well) that these problems can be dealt with. It's less than perfect, but our health officials deal with it. The people in Tulane's School of Tropical Medicine as well as the medical school folks from Tulane and LSU have a lot to work with, but it's what they've been training for, and the City of New Orleans will benefit from their expertise.</p>
<p>"I want to thank all those who "are us" or are "with us" in coming up with ideas." Thank you jmmom. That is the spirit of what we need. I would like to also thank posters such as keelee that have brought links to the kind of information we are so hungry for. Knowledge is so empowering, and I thank everyone that has given us bits and pieces that help us to move on.</p>
<p>My D is a sophomore at SMU and told me yesterday that the entire school had been made aware of the situation for the incoming Tulane students and asked some of them to help with a welcome reception.
It is a wonderful, caring institution and it doesn't surprise me at all that they would be so generous in supporting these kids.</p>
<p>My S is still not willing to concede that the semester is lost. Indeed the latest from Mr. Cowen was encouraging. </p>
<p>He was interviewed on the Today show this am. When asked by Matt Lauer whether students should assume that the semester was "lost", he said it was still too early to conclude this. He apparently is there, on site. He commented that while the campus was damaged some--broken windows, some roof damage, trees down and some flooding--he also felt the school fared quite well in comparison to other places in
NO. </p>
<p>One thing that I did wonder was whether he had a good assessment of the overall situation in NOLA--ie infrastructure issues, the mayor's comments that it will be 2-3 months before people could come home, etc. Obviously he is personally somewhat out of touch. He admitted to being "hunkered down" there.</p>
<p>Nonetheless, his commentary was positive and hopeful. I, for one, need a little optimism right now. </p>
<p>In the meantime, S will probably take a couple classes. He'll live at home and continue to wait for further word from Tulane. He too has developed a loyalty to this campus and city, seemingly strengthened by the catastrophe. He's got my and H's full support.</p>
<p>PS For those of you in the Dallas area, just wanted to mention that SMU was scheduled to play Tulane for the Parent Weekend football game on 9/24. Since the football team is now at SMU using their practice facilities etc, I'd concur they're planning to play this game. It would be great to go and show your support of this team. (I'll have trouble knowing who to root for with D at SMU and S a freshman at Tulane!)</p>
<p>(Cross-post) I am willing to offer my home as a place to stay for up to two students who need to get in a full semester, if they can get admitted to Georgetown, Catholic, GW, AU, Howard, or the University of Maryland. </p>
<p>I'm in metro DC area - suburban MD - and my son is off to the UK in the fall, so I have plenty of room.</p>
<p>You beat me to the keyboard concerned! As a DFW resident, I have always had the greatest of respect for SMU. It's a terrific institution and my son has friends there. I will go to the game and cheer for all! (Of course, I will wear green!)</p>
<p>Who knows who we could meet from the extended Tulane family!</p>
