<p>Tulane merchandise is available at Campus Colors in Highland Park, Illinois. Their phone numer is 847-433-2300. Their website is <a href="http://www.ecampuscolors.com%5B/url%5D">www.ecampuscolors.com</a> My son, a freshman at Tulane went out first thing Tuesday (after we finally arrived home) and purchased another Tulane t-shirt. He too is heartbroken and we are now looking for a temporary place for him this semester. He is adamant about returning to Tulane.</p>
<p>along-
Glad to hear your son is settled (as settled as these kids can be.) I still haven't decided if being a senior with only 5 classes left to graduate has been a plus or a minus. On the one hand my son will have a relaxing semester taking only 2 courses and working almost full time; on the other hand he is attending an urban university will very little campus, no student life to speak of. I hate that his senior year will be spent away from his friends, frat, home, and the usually hoopla that comes with the last year of college.</p>
<p>I think last night he finally realized that while he may graduate from Tulane, he might not attend a class there ever again. We will go to New Orleans as soon as it is safe to do so. First to pick up whatever belongings are available, but mostly for closure for son. If a spring semester is available in New Orleans, and housing is available, my son will be there! We have no clue if the house he was renting is livable or not.</p>
<p>University of Florida offering course on line. Great if someone wants to return to tulane</p>
<p>CD, I hope your son is able to continue his great service. Right now my S is adamant about not wanting to go to any other college for a semester. He only wants to work until he can get back down to NO. He has vested two good years there, has an apt, friends, job, etc. and is upset. He was hoping to work until he could return to help with the clean up operation. He is thinking more with his heart now than with his head. However, I was quite ready to let him work. The extra money would come in handy. He, like many others, are there because they received generous scholarships. If he lost the scholarship by not being enrolled at college this semester, the work may not be an option. What is the minimum number of units to keep the scholarship? If anyone has any other information in this regard, please post it. Thanks.</p>
<p>I believe it is 12 units to keep the scholarship. While I would imagine the Tulane administration would be lenient, I would hate to see anyone (my son included), act without prior approval and risk losing such a major scholarship.</p>
<p>As far as my son's team staying togther, I am not so opitmistic. I had one contact in Houston that I thought might be able to help find the Tulane administration, but that did not pan out. I am contemplating calling every hotel and just asking if Cowen is there.</p>
<p>But, it may just be whistling in the wind. So sad.</p>
<p>Pokey, I have tears in my eyes. I never knew your son was so "senior." I hope that he will be able to return to Tulane in the spring. I hope that Tulane will make arrangements and concessions for the seniors that will allow them to be together this last semester. While graduation in the Superdome might not be an option, graduation on campus with the usual celebration that only Tulane does would be nice also. Please give your son a hug for me. I truly hope all goes well for him.</p>
<p>Along-
Thank you for the well wishes. In my heart I believe that the class of '06 will have an incredible graduation somewhere. My guess is in the fine state of Texas as that is one state that has had an outpouring of support. It will be the Tulane graduation to top all Tulane graduations!</p>
<p>CD, I just refuse to believe that Tulane would deny your son his continued scholarship because he couldn't be in school this term under these circumstances. I understand your need for having that from the administration, preferably on paper, but it seems inconceivable that they would take it away from him whan THEY cancelled the semster. I hope you find out soon that that is correct.</p>
<p>Just a few months ago I was debating whether or not to attend Tulane, but in the end chose UCLA. Tulane is a wonderful school and it's a shame that such a catastrophe has struck the South. </p>
<p>I'm sure you parents/students already know about this, but UCLA I think is planning on enrolling students affected by Katrina. The URL is <a href="http://www.ucla.edu/bulletin/bulletin_story_45.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.ucla.edu/bulletin/bulletin_story_45.html</a></p>
<p>Good luck</p>
<p>Is the emergency web site down?</p>
<p><a href="http://emergency.tulane.edu%5B/url%5D">http://emergency.tulane.edu</a></p>
<p>I haven't been able to get into it for several hours</p>
<p>I had no trouble Stoic. Here are the last two updates:
September 3, 5 p.m.</p>
<p>Dear Tulane Friends, </p>
<p>I want to give you an update on our objectives for the next 48 hours. I share this information with you so that you will understand the complexity of the challenges we face. We monitor the blogs on a regular basis and make an inventory of the most frequently asked questions and issues of concern. In time, we will address all of these issues. However, time is of the essence and we have to focus on the most pressing issues to stabilize the university and resolve the most urgent issues facing our employees and campuses. </p>
<p>Right now we are focused on: </p>
<p>Identifying and resolving the urgent issues facing our employees
Restoring communications and our IT systems
Finalizing our housing and office space needs in Houston
Establishing task forces to deal with recovery and follow up issues (e.g. questions from students)
Attending to the needs of those still located on our campuses
Working with our insurance carriers and FEMA to document our losses
Addressing the personal needs of those Tulane staff who relocated to Houston to assist in our rebuilding effort.
We are making progress by the hour and are totally committed to rebuilding Tulane University, New Orleans and our personal lives as soon as possible. I ask your patience as we attempt to answer as many questions as we can, as swiftly as possible. </p>
<p>I will communicate again at noon CST on Sunday, September 4 th. </p>
<p>Scott Cowen</p>
<p>September 3, 1 p.m.</p>
<p>Dear Tulane colleagues,</p>
<p>First of all, I want you to know how much I admire and respect your courage during these difficult times. We have all been through a terrible ordeal and I realize that many of you have lost all of your personal possessions. My heartfelt sympathies to each and everyone of you.</p>
<p>It is now time to address the most immediate issues facing our 6,000 employees and they are numerous. We are doing our best to address them as quickly and correctly as we can. I do not have many answers for you today but promise that I will as we continue this process.</p>
<p>Our goal is to try and eliminate as much uncertainty as possible about the future operations of the university and to assist you in rebuilding your professional careers and personal lives.</p>
<p>In this spirit, our immediate priorities are:</p>
<p>Payroll. The storm interrupted our payroll system. We need to obtain new contact information for each and every employee. We are collecting records and building an online database for you to provide this information.</p>
<p>Some employees did not receive their checks for the month of August. We have your checks and are working on a means of delivering them to you. We are in the process of sorting out payroll issues for the month of September, specifically, the delivery of payroll checks. Electronic deposit systems were affected by the storm and we are working to overcome obstacles to direct payment and automatic deposit. Once we resolve these most immediate issues, we will focus on longer-term issues related to payroll. </p>
<p>Health Benefits. United Healthcare is your insurance carrier. Use your coverage as you would in New Orleans . If you have any questions, call them directly at 1-866-633-2446 or online at <a href="http://www.myuhc.com%5B/url%5D">www.myuhc.com</a> With this being the Labor Day weekend, the university will likely not have much specific information about the administration of health benefits before Tuesday, September 6th. We are working on it nonetheless and will keep you apprised of any new information we are able to secure.</p>
<p>Your Personal Recovery . We know a lot of you lost property and we are working on ways to help you recover. We are investigating many sources of assistance to help your families recover, ranging from hotlines to help in locating missing family members.</p>
<p>We are making progress by the hour as we mobilize our satellite operations here in Houston . Our team is working to bolster our emergency website, which had to be relocated to Houston . In coming days, it will serve as a useful clearinghouse for all of our constituencies students, faculty, and staff. I beg your patience as we continue to tackle these many issues that are so important to all of us.</p>
<p>I will communicate again at 5:00 p.m. CST and have another update specifically for employees tomorrow.</p>
<p>Scott Cowen</p>
<p>The temporary website is now operational: <a href="http://www.tulane.edu%5B/url%5D">www.tulane.edu</a></p>