<p>The United Negro College Fund has set up a mechanism for support of the three historically Black institutions to receive donations for Katrina relief. All three - Xavier, Dillard, and Tougaloo - have tiny endowments. The first two, located in NO, will not have the wherewithal to rebuild and reopen without massive contributions.</p>
<p>As of last report, there is still no word about the 400 Xavier students trapped in the dorm without food and water on the 5th and 6th floor (with floodwater up to the 3rd floor at last report.)</p>
<p>Thanks Mini. I was pretty dismayed when I saw that CC had begun a sticky thread entitled "Tulane Hurricane Emergency" when, in fact, all of the Tulane Students has been evacuated. The emergency was finding replacement schools where students could take classes. "Hmmmm", I thought- "THIS is an emergecy when Xavier kids are trapped in the dorms without food and water and posts about that don't even garner a response?"</p>
<p>So, yes, it's good to hear that the Xavier kids have been rescued and we can all return to the "emergecy" at Tulane.</p>
<p>IMHO, this is symptomatic of the larger issue in NO. Honestly, seeing this thread as a sticky without any discussion of concern about the trapped students (even after you and I raised that before today) was very painful.</p>
<p>Fantastic news that the Xavier students have finally been evacuated. Imagine the pain that the parents of those freshmen have been going through!</p>
<p>The other good news is that two of the three large hospitals in downtown N. Orleans have, at long last, been emptied.</p>
<p>Now that Charity Hospital has been evacutated, I would recommend moving the Governor of Lousiana and her headquarters to that building so that she can get a little closer view of the urgency of the situation.</p>
<p>The Pres. of Xavier didn't get out until Wednesday night.</p>
<p>Folks in my Friends Meeting have taken this one on and are following it carefully. So much of the medical workforce in African American communities in the southeast, both future doctors and pharmacists, comes out of Xavier, that its loss would be devastating, and they have a tiny endowment. We will be continuing to follow it.</p>
<p>There is also now a fund set up to help Black families take in Katrina refugees, on the theory (of course, true) that they are less likely to be financially able to do so otherwise:</p>
<p>Xavier was one of the "Hottest" schools featured in that very recent Newsweek article about Hottest Schools for 2006 (Xavier was the hottest for pre-med, of course). More than half of the nearly 4,000 students are majoring in biology, chemistry or pharmacy. </p>
<p>I recall UPenn's Admissions Dir playing a game of trivia with an audience at an info session and asking which school does the best job at turning out doctors. People answered Yale, Harvard, Stanford, Penn.......but the correct answer was Xavier.</p>
<p>I feel much, much better knowing that the Friends have taken this on. You all represent what's right in this country.</p>
<p>Yes, momsdream, it's been bothering my husband and I quite a bit to see those left behind in NO in general. It doesn't matter whether one makes the distinction between its being the result of poverty or race. The two go hand in hand in the situation. The point is that those who were trapped at the Ritz had an armed escort out even though they were there for several days. They were fed and watered, and armed guards got them out. Then I look at the news and see the faces of those who couldn't afford to get out, and it's like the faces of the people taken care of by Food for the Poor in our neighbor islands. There's something really wrong that this situation has thrown into high relief, no sick pun intended.</p>
<p>Mini: Up until two days ago, I had never heard of Xavier, and I certainly had no inkling of its important role in educating future medical workers. In a catastrophic situation like this, its so hard to know where donations will have the greatest impact. Your posts have helped me answer that question.</p>
<p>Thanks. I learned from personal experience, both during the Santa Cruz earthquake and the tsunami, that it is important to think longer term. Although FEMA (and the Red Cross) have made a relative hash of things up to now, immediate, life-threatening needs will get taken care of one way or the other. But whether it be through "trickle-down" approaches (rebuild the businesses of New Orleans and everyone will benefit), or social welfare economics (extend unemployment benefits and social welfare - maybe even a little public housing, though I doubt it), the long-term needs of minority communities (Hispanics in Santa Cruz, Dalits in South India, African-Americans in the Southeast) will be close to the bottom of the political lists. And if you took all the African-American pre-meds and pharmacy students out of the top 100 private colleges in the country, it would likely have less impact than the loss of one Xavier, especially in the Southeast.</p>
<p>A former state Medicaid director in my state, a member of my Meeting, is beginning to organize public health docs in support. I plan to be in touch with UNCF - supporting the institution is more than my little group can handle, but I do want to see what we can do to support the students, and ensure they will be able to continue. (Remember, in the case of Xavier, many of the students' relatives and parents lost their homes and all their belongings as well - many have no place to go home to.)</p>
<p>
[quote]
I was pretty dismayed when I saw that CC had begun a sticky thread entitled "Tulane Hurricane Emergency"
[/quote]
</p>
<p>FWIW, it bothers me too. Tulane isn't the only school in New Orleans. Obviously it's the first on people's minds because of its size and because it's the kind of institution that CC readers tend to aspire to, but it's not the only campus in New Orleans and not the only one this disaster has affected.</p>
<p>It just seems a little shortsighted, is all.</p>
<p>I was watching CNN late yesterday afternoon and learned the source of the rescue efforts for Xavier-</p>
<p>The security guard for CNN has a freshman daughter at Xavier. They did a story on the Xavier situation and had him and his D in the studio being interiewed. It was obvious that CNN intervened on his behalf to enable a rescue of his D and her fellow students. He said that he had been calling various agencies seeking help prior to CNN's involvement, to no avail.</p>
<p>Xavier has taken a questionable approach to having it's students enroll elsewhere....</p>
<p>They have advised that classes will resume in early Jan as a start to the FALL semester. Then there will be a very brief break before the Spring semester starts (late Spring) and ends in August. They are advising against students taking their classes elsewhere. Parents are confused by this.</p>
<p>From what I understand, the approach Xavier has taken is based on the reality that a majority of their students are from the Gulf Coast area, including a substantial minority from New Orleans proper. Many of them have no homes to go home to, so the option of enrolling at a local U. and living at home isn't available to them. The students may be more needed to help their families navigate change. In addition, some schools like Johns Hopkins, have decided not to accept Xavier students (unless that has changed in the past 24 hours), and jumping into other schools' pharmacy and pre-med programs (which is like half the student body) is no picnic. </p>
<p>I expect, however, that may change. Unlike Tulane, Xavier was majorly hit and (from what folks are saying) sits on very low ground.</p>
<p>Mini,
I have been watching for news of the students at Xavier. So relieved to read that they are safe. I am so sorry to hear that the college took such a hit. They showed it on TV last night . . . a beautiful school in a nightmare scene.</p>
<p>Bowdoin College in Maine is taking a different approach from many others in responding to Katrina's effect on higher education. Bowdoin is making monetary donations to 3 HBCU's (Xavier, Dillard and Tougaloo) and has said that it is working to identify Visiting Professor opportunities on its campus for faculty from those institutions. I don't know how substantial this "drop" is to the "bucket" of issues facing these schools, but I am glad to see it. H and I are contacting Bowdoin to offer housing for a faculty member/small family if that can be of help.
<a href="http://chronicle.com/jobs/forums/read.php?f=19&i=137&t=137%5B/url%5D">http://chronicle.com/jobs/forums/read.php?f=19&i=137&t=137</a>
xmom- we could offer that housing to a student, also, but it would - of course - not be oncampus, so it may not be what you are seeking. PM me if it is of interest.</p>