Tulane Talk April 23, 2010
TULANE TALK
April 23, 2010
Good Morning:
This week I had the opportunity to meet with senior members of President Barack Obama’s administration including Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health; Melody Barnes, the president’s domestic policy adviser; and John Holdren, adviser to the president for science and technology.
These meetings, with the exception of the one with Melody Barnes, which was held in the West Wing, were part of the Association of American Universities’ spring meeting, a gathering of 63 select research universities. Through these meetings we learned the Obama administration’s priorities for the nation in terms of science, technology and domestic policy and the role AAU universities can play in achieving them.
The meeting with Melody Barnes proved particularly fruitful, as she showed much interest in Tulane’s work in the areas of social innovation and entrepreneurship, especially our efforts to continually broaden and strengthen Tulane’s community engagement initiatives. Melody Barnes plans to visit Tulane in the fall to learn more about these efforts and share her insights.
I will cap off this exciting week by meeting tomorrow with Honduran President Porfirio Lobo and the leaders of New Orleans-area universities. The meeting will focus on expanding educational opportunities for Honduran students.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk April 16, 2010
TULANE TALK
April 16, 2010
Good Morning:
Like a thousand of you, I attended Carlos Fuentes’ talk at McAlister Auditorium Monday night.
I was intrigued not only with the great writer’s words but with the way he chose to present his message. A master of the written word, he returned to the basics, using the 26 letters of the alphabet as the jumping off point for each of his themes. “A” was for “amour” and so on.
His method impressed me so much because I am constantly searching for new ways to tell a story or communicate a concept. His approach to making his points and the powerful content of his messages are great reminders to all storytellers.
Fuentes’ appearance was the latest in the English Department’s Great Writers Series, a most impressive program that has brought literary greats such as Toni Morrison, Salman Rushdie and Joan Didion to campus. Fuentes was a perfect addition to this list.
I doubt, however, that I will ever adopt the A to Z approach he used when I attempt to tell the story of the scholarship, research and community of Tulane University. There are simply not enough letters. But here is a start: “A” is for amazing, “B” is for bold, “C” is for courageous, “D” is for determined, “E” is for engaged, “F” is for fantastic, “G” is for gifted, “H” is for…
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk April 09, 2010
TULANE TALK
April 9, 2010
Good Morning:
U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin, a graduate of Tulane University, is one of three remarkable individuals who will receive honorary degrees at our 2010 Unified Commencement.
Dr. Benjamin’s life is a story of firsts. She was the first physician under age 40 and the first African-American woman to be elected to the American Medical Association Board of Trustees. She was also the first African-American female to serve as president of a state medical society. She was associate dean at the University of South Alabama College of Medicine and past chair of the U.S. Federation of State Medical Boards. But it was her work as founder of the Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic (where she accepted oysters, home-cooked meals or whatever patients could afford as payment) that garnered her national attention and the well-deserved title of “America’s doctor.”
Geoffrey Canada, another honorary degree recipient, has devoted his career to improving the lives of Harlem’s children. He is president and CEO of Harlem Children’s Zone which, through parenting workshops, a pre-school program, three charter schools, child-oriented health programs and more, nurtures the academic life of young people in a 100-block area of Harlem. Having seen its success, President Barack Obama has announced plans to replicate the Harlem Children’s Zone model in cities across the nation.
Our third honorary degree recipient is Dr. John Ruffin, director of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. In this position Dr. Ruffin has developed programs to increase the number of minority scientists, physicians and other health professionals while attracting a diverse group of researchers to study the differences in health among the races. His efforts have brought about change in local, regional, national and international communities. Dr. Ruffin has received numerous honors for his work, including the Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Award for National Service and the Samuel L. Kountz Award for increasing minority access to organ and tissue transplantation.
These three lives attest to the difference one life can make and are excellent examples for our graduates and for all of us. I hope you will be present when we honor them.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk April 01, 2010
TULANE TALK
April 1, 2010
Good Morning:
I hope you all have a wonderful holiday weekend in the company of your family and friends.
Tulane Talk March 26, 2010
TULANE TALK
March 26, 2010
Good Morning,
This has been a gratifying but particularly hectic week, so today’s Tulane Talk will be brief.
The theme of this week has been community engagement. I met with prospective students interested in Tulane because of our community engagement commitment and with student groups from other universities who are spending their spring break in New Orleans to help the city recover.
These student meetings have buoyed my spirits and reminded me again about the idealism, passion and commitment of young people, especially their desire to make a difference in the world. These young people are dedicated to developing the habits of the mind and heart necessary to be engaged citizens and leaders in their communities. Their devotion is why I truly love what I do and why I have hope for the future.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk March 19, 2010
TULANE TALK
March 19, 2010
Good Morning,
Tomorrow is a big day for Tulane. Our women’s basketball team will begin its march into March Madness, taking on the Georgia Lady Bulldogs in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at 9:30 p.m. in Tempe, Ariz. The game will be televised live on ESPN2.
Like all of Coach Lisa Stockton’s teams, these players are disciplined and dedicated. But what makes this team special is the adversity it has had to overcome. It fought through a season plagued by injuries to win 10 of the last 11 games, winning Conference USA’s regular-season championship and the Conference USA Tournament to head back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2002.
Most importantly, these student-athletes also make the grade academically. The Green Wave is one of only 16 women’s teams in the 64-team tournament to boast a 100 percent graduation rate. Now that’s what I call a real Sweet Sixteen. Moreover, Coach Stockton, who was named Conference USA’s Coach of the Year this season for the second time in four years, boasts that every player who’s completed her eligibility in the 16 years she has been at Tulane has earned a degree.
That is quite an accomplishment and this is quite a team that is worthy of our admiration, emulation and support. Let’s cheer our team on to victory tomorrow.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk March 12, 2010
TULANE TALK
March 12, 2010
Good Morning,
Tulane’s commencements are unique and well-known throughout the higher education community.
Our stellar graduates, acclaimed speakers, world-class jazz musicians and one-of-a-kind New Orleans traditions are all part of what makes our commencements so special. Harnessing and harmonizing these disparate parts into a memorable expression of scholarly achievement is the responsibility of our commencement staff and the cadre of volunteers who support them each year.
I honestly don’t know how they do it. I only know that from the stage it appears as a seamless, almost dreamlike production. We already have more than 50 volunteers for this year’s commencement which will take place on Saturday, May 15. If you’d like to join them please sign up on the http website.
All volunteers will receive a commemorative pin, breakfast and lunch the day of Commencement and a wonderful thank-you party with great food and drink the following week at Rock ‘n’ Bowl. Best of all, you get to work with some of the friendliest and most dedicated people at this or any other university.
A reminder to graduates: GradFest will take place March 16 and 17 from noon to 6 p.m. in the Qatar Ballroom on the second floor of the Lavin Bernick Center for University Life. This is the opportune time for you to get everything you need for graduation including your cap and gown, graduation announcements, ring, diploma frame and more. It is also a chance for you to meet with representatives from Accounts Receivable, Career Services and Financial Aid. For more information, call University Services at 504-862-8064 or visit the http 2010 website.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk March 05, 2010
TULANE TALK
March 5, 2010
Good Morning,
March is shaping up to be an exciting month at Tulane, one jam-packed with community events and appearances by some of the nation’s most thought-provoking speakers. Below are just a few of the highlights.
Today at 2 p.m., the lobby of Tulane Medical Center will be filled with young patients cheering on more than 100 Tulane medical students and volunteers as they shave their heads in support of children battling cancer. The event is part of St. Baldrick’s Day fund-raising activities taking place worldwide. I am so proud of our medical students who have raised more than $120,000 since 2008 for childhood cancer research.
On March 8 at 7 p.m., Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Rita Dove, the country’s first African-American poet laureate, will read and sign copies of her works at McAlister Auditorium.
On March 9 at 5:30 p.m., Blake Mycoskie, founder of TOMS Shoes, which gives a free pair of shoes to a needy child for every pair it sells, will speak in the Kendall Cram Lecture Hall of the Lavin-Bernick Center for University Life.
On March 15 at 7:30 p.m., acclaimed short story writer Amy Hempel, whose Collected Stories, was named one of the best books of 2006 by The New York Times, Newsweek, The Boston Globe and The San Francisco Chronicle, will read from her works in the Kendall Cram Lecture Hall of the Lavin-Bernick Center for University Life. Hempel’s appearance marks the 25th anniversary of the Zale-Kimmerling Writer-in-Residence program.
On March 16 at 7 p.m., best-selling author and NOVA host Brian Greene will speak in Tulane’s Dixon Hall. A renowned physicist, Greene’s book, The Elegant Universe, popularized the string theory, which holds that all matter is generated by the vibrations of microscopic loops of energy.
These events, which are free and open to the public, would be considered a whole semester’s worth of community and intellectual engagement at many universities but are part of just one special March at Tulane.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk February 26, 2010
TULANE TALK
February 26, 2010
Good Morning,
This week we brought a little of the Big Easy to the Big Apple with “Beads on Broadway,” our second annual Mardi Gras gala for the many alumni, family and friends of Tulane University in the New York metro area.
Held at Manhattan’s historic Chelsea Piers (once the destination of the Titanic and other great ships of yore) the night featured a reception, dinner and entertainment by the Broadway cast of the Tony award-winning Jersey Boys. The “Boys in Concert” was a huge hit with everyone in attendance, regardless of age.
The evening also gave me a chance to share Tulane’s progress and ongoing challenges and opportunities. One thing I made clear is that I have never been more optimistic about the future of Tulane as I am today. My brief remarks were followed by a special presentation by Vartan Gregorian, president of the Carnegie Corporation and former president of the New York Public Library and Brown University. Vartan is a legend in higher education and he spoke beautifully about New Orleans and Tulane. His remarks made us all proud.
The night made our alumni and friends aware of both our triumphs and aspirations for the future. It was also as big and as fun as New York itself. As a proud New Orleanian, Tulanian and Jersey boy, I’d say the evening was a smash hit.
Have a great weekend,
Tulane Talk February 19, 2010
TULANE TALK
February 19, 2010
Good Morning,
I hope you will join me for our Staff Appreciation Family Fun Day at Tulane’s track and football practice field Saturday, February 27.
The day will begin with a walk for staff members and their families at 11 a.m. (registration begins at 10 a.m.) followed by plenty of free jambalaya, fruit, beverages and other snacks, along with games for the kids and fun for the whole family. At 1 p.m., staff members and their families will get free admission to Turchin Stadium as the Green Wave hosts the Bisons of Lipscomb University.
Because the health of our staff is so important, there will also be free screenings for high blood pressure, obesity, elevated lead levels and depression along with information about skin health, skin cancer, reconstructive surgery and more. For more information and to RSVP for this well-deserved thank you, please visit this http.
Showing appreciation will always remind me of my friend Bobby Boudreau, whom I wrote about a few weeks ago. I am sad to report that Bobby passed away early in the morning of Super Bowl Sunday. I will truly miss Bobby and his e-mails and good humor.
As part of his love for all things Tulane, Bobby had great respect and gratitude for our faculty, students and staff. He often mentioned this in his many messages to me, which he would invariably end with “Roll Wave,” “Roll Tulane Faculty,” “Roll Tulane Students” or “Roll Tulane Staff.” His spirit and love for Tulane will always be with us. Bobby will roll forever in my memory.
Have a great weekend,