Tulane Talk December 02, 2011
TULANE TALK
December 2, 2011
Good Morning:
I am pleased to announce another important addition to Tulane University. Effective Jan. 17, 2012, Jon R. Barnwell will join the university community as our new superintendent of police.
Jon’s hiring is the culmination of a national search, led by Senior Vice President for Operations and Chief Financial Officer Tony Lorino. This search focused on finding the candidate who could most ably lead our officers and ensure that Tulane’s police continue to receive the best training, implement the best policies and employ the best practices for the safety and service of the entire Tulane community.
Jon has 15 years of experience in campus law enforcement, management and police administration. He is currently deputy chief of police at North Carolina State University, having risen through the ranks from his start as a patrol officer. Jon received a bachelor of science degree in criminal justice/criminology from Mount Olive College in North Carolina.
As superintendent, Jon will oversee the unification of the uptown, downtown and North Shore units of our police department under a single leadership. This unified force will mean better coordination, communication and allocation of resources, resulting in an even safer Tulane for everyone.
I am grateful to the search committee, which included representation from our student body, for attracting such a qualified and enthusiastic leader.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk November 18, 2011
TULANE TALK
November 18, 2011
Good Morning:
One of the main goals of a Tulane education is helping students develop the habits of the heart and mind that will make them engaged citizens committed to creating a better world. Gratitude, I think, is one of the most important habits of the heart and mind. So Thanksgiving, which we celebrate next week, is a real Tulane kind of holiday.
Among the countless things the Tulane community can be thankful for this Thanksgiving is the opening of the new $13 million Hertz Center, a state-of-the-art training facility for our basketball and volleyball teams.
Training in the Hertz Center will hopefully pay off as Tulane hosts a rare 12:30 p.m. matchup today between our men’s basketball team and Maryland-Eastern in Avron B. Fogelman Arena in Devlin Fieldhouse. Tomorrow, Tulane’s women’s basketball team takes on LSU at 7 p.m. in the building and the Green Wave volleyball team plays Houston at 7 p.m. tonight and Rice at 1 p.m. Sunday.
You can show your gratitude for our student-athletes by attending these and other games. It’s a great way to get into the holiday spirit.
If I don’t see you before then, have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family and friends.
Tulane Talk November 11, 2011
TULANE TALK
November 11, 2011
Good Morning:
Today, in honor of Veterans Day, Tulane will read aloud the names of the more than 6,200 American service men and women who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan since Sept. 11, 2001. This ceremony will coincide with similar readings at more than 100 universities around the country.
Approximately half of the names will be read from 8 a.m. to noon on the LBC quad. The remaining names will be read from noon to 4:30 p.m. inside McAlister Auditorium. Those names will include Sgt. First Class David James Todd Jr., a former Tulane Army ROTC instructor, who was killed Aug. 20, 2008 while on patrol in Afghanistan. At 1 p.m. we will observe a national moment of silence for Sgt. First Class David James Todd Jr. and all of our fallen heroes.
Honoring our veterans enjoys universal support among Americans and is very much in the spirit of next week’s meeting of the Bipartisan Policy Center at Tulane. This annual event, hosted by Tulane professor and Democratic political strategist James Carville and his Republican strategist wife Mary Matalin, will bring together major players from both sides of the political aisle to discuss how to remove the “poison from partisanship” for the good of all Americans. Former Sen. Trent Lott, former Clinton adviser Kiki McLean and Steve Schmidt, senior strategist for the 2008 McCain campaign, are just a few of the participants in this one-of-a-kind event.
The Bipartisan Policy Center summit will be held from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m., Nov. 16 in the LBC’s Kendall Cram Lecture Hall. It is free and open to the public, but http are required. The summit will also include a screening and panel discussion of The War Room, the critically-acclaimed documentary of the 1992 presidential campaign, at 7 p.m., Nov. 15, in the Woldenberg Art Center’s Freeman Auditorium.
Hope to see you at one of these events that celebrate our freedoms and honor those who safeguard them.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk November 04, 2011
TULANE TALK
November 4, 2011
Good Morning:
I am writing this from New York City. I grew up just across the Hudson River from here in Metuchen, New Jersey. Whenever I return to this area, I recall the opportunities that led me from a small town in central Jersey to the presidency of Tulane University. I never imagined back then the journey my life would take, but I always knew our country offered boundless opportunity for everyone.
Helping to ensure that such opportunity exists for the present and future generations is the reason I accepted the invitation to join New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, TIME Managing Editor Rick Stengel, CNN’s Fareed Zakaria and other business, media, political and nonprofit leaders for today’s http Nation Summit, a bipartisan effort to establish a new commitment to increasing opportunity and access to the American Dream.
Opportunity Nation’s goal is to convince our leaders, from the president and Congress to local governing bodies, to work together to create better skills, better jobs, better communities and better economic and social mobility.
Tulane is doing its part by being the country’s first and only major research university to integrate community engagement into its undergraduate core curriculum. We have also launched http Empowers, an effort to use the knowledge, expertise and energy of Tulane to increase opportunity and empower others to help their neighbors find successful pathways to education and jobs.
I believe, as Opportunity Nation does, that the zip code in which you are born, whether it’s in New Jersey or New Orleans, shouldn’t determine your destiny – you should. And we, as community members, have a responsibility to create communities of opportunity for everyone.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk October 28, 2011
TULANE TALK
October 28, 2011
Good Morning:
http Dat Youth Farm, a Tulane Empowers program, is NCAA eligible.
Representatives from the NCAA visited Grow Dat this week to assess Tulane’s proposal to include “Growing Opportunity” among the official community activities of the 2012 Final Four, which will take place in New Orleans March 31-April 2. Tulane is the Final Four’s host institution.
The NCAA representatives were blown away by their visit and pledged their full support for “Growing Opportunity,” an event in which schoolchildren, Tulane students and community members will plant fruit trees and learn about cultivation, nutrition, environmental stewardship and job opportunities at Grow Dat.
Located on a four-acre site in City Park, Grow Dat gives local high school students employment and invaluable experience in growing, marketing and cooking fresh produce. After school and during the summer, area high school students from diverse backgrounds clear land, till soil and plant crops. It’s hard work supplemented by classes on nutrition and cooking.
Come harvest time, the students reap the fruits of their labor. Then there’s more instruction as students apply math, business and interpersonal skills to sell their produce to local stores. The students also engage in leadership training and community service, preparing meals using their produce for local shelters.
In addition to the NCAA’s recognition, Grow Dat’s “Growing Opportunity” event will be part of Opportunity Nation, a nation-wide bipartisan effort that will be launched Nov. 3-4 from New York. I will tell you more about Opportunity Nation in next week’s Tulane Talk.
In the meantime, I wanted you to know how proud Tulane is to bring such well-deserved recognition to Grow Dat, one of our most important, and fertile, partnerships.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk October 21, 2011
TULANE TALK
October 21, 2011
Good Morning:
Get out your green hair dye and your blue and green sneakers. I’ve got mine ready. It’s Homecoming time at Tulane!
Join the fun at the http Hullabaloo and numerous other special events, concerts, reunions, lectures, firework shows, barbecues – you name it – happening around campus this weekend. The beautiful weather and all of the parents and alumni arriving from across the country only add to the excitement of this weekend.
As you read this, I am preparing for today’s Town Hall Meeting. At the meeting I will provide an update on Tulane and field questions from alumni, parents, students, faculty and staff beginning at 10:30 this morning in Dixon Hall. If you can’t make it to Dixon, you can still submit questions and follow the discussion, since we will be http live from the event.
I also hope to see all of you at the big Homecoming game against Memphis in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome at 2:30 p.m. Saturday. Tailgating, including music by Bag of Donuts, starts at 9 a.m. so get there early and help cheer our boys on to victory.
Have a great Homecoming Weekend,
Tulane Talk October 14, 2011
TULANE TALK
October 14, 2011
Good Morning:
http Week starts Monday! Parents and Green Wave alumni of all ages will return to Tulane for reunions, receptions, barbecues, art exhibitions, musical performances, special speakers and, of course, the big game.
Among the week’s many highlights is the Helluva Hullabaloo Auction and Party, benefiting Tulane’s student-athletes. I have been dreaming about this event. I mean that literally. Here’s the proof:
![[Click to play the video]](http://img.youtube.com/vi/wK2VI5FeebE.jpg)
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk October 07, 2011
TULANE TALK
October 7, 2011
Good Morning:
Do you know the story of Bea Field? In a university built by extraordinarily dedicated students, faculty, staff and alumni, Bea is in a class of her own. Affectionately known as “Miss Tulane,” Beatrice McMillan Field was appointed director of alumni activities in 1942, a position she would maintain until her retirement in 1977.
Bea’s energy and enthusiasm were truly remarkable. She became a national leader in the field of alumni affairs. Under her leadership, the Tulane Alumni Association won numerous awards and honors, and she was elected president of the American Alumni Council, one of the first women to hold that position.
In 1954 Bea established the Tulane Educational Conference. These “educational road shows” brought Tulane faculty to alumni club cities throughout the country to discuss their research and other scholarly topics. In 22 years these conferences traveled to 24 cities throughout the U.S. and to Mexico City. Bea also established the Tulane Alumni Fund, another project of hers that received national recognition.
Upon her retirement, the New Orleans States-Item declared that, “No one person, of any rank in the university, has done more for Tulane than did Bea Field in the 32 years since she began her alumni duties.”
Even after her retirement Bea remained at Tulane as a consultant to Tulane President Sheldon Hackney and my predecessor Eamon Kelly. During this time she also compiled http: An Assortment of Tulane’s People and Places, which is a wonderful source for historical information on the university. Shortly before her death in 1986, her devotion to Tulane was recognized when she received Newcomb’s Lifetime Service Award.
On Oct. 23 at 1 p.m., we will officially dedicate the Bea Field Alumni House in honor of this great woman and friend of Tulane. A reception will follow the dedication and all alumni, parents, students, faculty, staff and members of the community are encouraged to attend. The dedication will also celebrate the return of the Office of Alumni Affairs to its Willow Street home after a six-year struggle to rebuild after Katrina.
I think Bea would have admired their fight.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk September 30, 2011
TULANE TALK
September 30, 2011
Good Morning:
I need your help. I am hosting a Tulane Town Hall Meeting for alumni, parents, students, faculty and staff from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., Oct. 21 in Dixon Hall. Questions from the audience will play a major role in this meeting. So please http your questions to me on anything you would like me to address at the meeting.
Even if you don’t attend the Town Hall Meeting in person, we will be http blogging from the event so you will have a chance to hear your question answered.
The Town Hall Meeting is one of many activities planned for Homecoming Week, Oct. 17-23. Alumni and parents from all over the country will return to campus to enjoy reunions, special speakers, art exhibitions, barbecues, brunches, tailgating and, of course, the big game against Memphis.
Homecoming Week highlights will include the Spirit Competition, Family Weekend, an address by National Organization for Women President and former Tulane law professor Terry O’Neill and a panel discussion by alumni who are now Hollywood heavyweights. For a schedule of Homecoming events, visit http.edu/homecoming/
On another topic, last September, I boldly wrote that I was going to lose 15 pounds by this September as part of my commitment to wellness. The good news is that I did lose weight during the year; the bad news is that I only attained 50 percent of my goal. In essence, I failed.
So what do I do now that I have made this public confession? I will increase my efforts this year and lose another 15 pounds, which includes the 7 pounds I did not lose last year. I hope you will consider joining me by committing to achieve your own optimal weight and wellness level. It’s one of the greatest gifts we can give to our loved ones and to ourselves.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk September 23, 2011
TULANE TALK
Good Morning:
The Tulane community suffered a great loss this week as our dear friend, Albert J. Weatherhead III, passed away while recovering from an illness.
Many will remember Al for his extraordinary generosity to Tulane and to numerous other universities and organizations throughout the country. In the last two years alone he and Celia, a Newcomb alumna and member of our board, pledged $100 million to Tulane, which will benefit outstanding students with distinguished records of community engagement, and help recruit and retain faculty who have made outstanding contributions as artists, researchers or scholars.
I, too, will remember Al for his generosity, which helped transform so many lives and institutions. But I also will remember him because of his joyous mischief and big heart, for his vision and high expectations, which inspired those of us who knew him to try to excel at whatever we did.
I also will remember him for his ability to overcome adversity in his personal life and to become a true “difference maker” for so many. I will remember him for his grit and determination and for his ability to lift the spirits of everyone around him, even during the darkest times.
Mostly, I will remember him as my friend and mentor, and for his and Celia’s guidance in encouraging me to come to Tulane 14 years ago.
My deepest sympathy and heartfelt prayers are with Celia and all who knew and loved Al. He and Celia made a significant difference in my life as well as the life of Tulane University. I will really miss Al.