BS: State Universities Doing Their Part

Subject: BS: State Universities Doing Their Part
From: LilyFestre
Date: 02 Sep 05 - 06:55 PM

Fourteen state universities in Pennsylvania are extending a helping hand to students from Pennsylvania who were expecting to attend college in the areas that have been devasted by Katrina. The state university system is offering those students free tution to any one of the 14 state universities.

I think it's GREAT idea and am wondering if any other states are doing the same type of thing.

You can read more about it here: Pennsylvania Universities Helping Out


Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: State Universities Doing Their Part
From: LilyFestre
Date: 02 Sep 05 - 06:57 PM

Oops....make that devastated.

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: State Universities Doing Their Part
From: GUEST,mg
Date: 02 Sep 05 - 08:03 PM

Washington is helping out at least with Washington residents...
I think they have neglected their part to be honest in disaster planning, in education programs that teach teachers to teach students "to be useless" as my former department chair said. I call for anyone in higher, lower, middle education to take this as a call to action. We can't afford to play dumb after this.

Here is what I just wrote to our university president after getting a message he sent out.

Dear _____:

I appreciated your email and am glad to know that we will be taking in students and are encouraged to contribute financially.

As a major agricultural university, I will say we need to do way more. We need to be coordinating with government officials and asking why are we still paying farmers to grow or not grow tobacco when we obviously do not have the stores of surplus food that we need for emergencies.

We need to have all departments involved with architecture, construction, and perhaps most of all, transportation planning, get really serious about all of this. Perhaps they are..I just do not know.... but if as a country we can't drop a few hundred plastic rowboats into shallow, calm water so people could help evacuate each other to various points..we haven't been doing something right. If in bayou country we can't mobilize and commander private boats, barges, cruise ships etc., we are pretty well doomed as a country.   

Where were the school buses? Where were the trains?

Departments of education throughout the country need to get serious about the world the students live in, and prepare them for disaster. First of all, skills need to be distributed throughout the population, regardless of employment opportunities afterwards..this means a return to serious vocational education for all students. Our high school students, at least juniors and seniors, should be able to set up tents, administer first aid, run radio equipment, do some construction, get flooded cars going etc. One hero of this situation is the high school student who took over an empty bus and drove 100 people out of New Orleans to Houston..

There has to be a way, and your data departments can figure this out..for people to know where their family members are. I have not heard of an official web site or whatever...who is responsible for collecting lists of who has died? Who is in what hospital or campground?

Anyone in the public services has to realize that there will be chaos, there will be looting, etc. They have to figure out how to set things up to minimize this...for one things, good video equipment or even disposable cameras so criminals know they are going to be caught...Martial law has to be declared immediately.

Communications are rotten. They are using National Guard runners to run messages here and there..or so I heard. They were joking about balloons and carrier pigeons. The day might come...

Construction needs to be less idiotic...more cement, higher living spaces...no wood in hurricane alley...

Well, I could go on. I think this is beyond a wake-up call. I encourage you to get the whole university thinking about this..I live in Long Beach on a sand spit and I think all of the time of what can happen here and I pretty much know...

Let us use these horrible experiences that people are having to take our collective fingers out of the sugar bowl before it is too late..and before the terrorists etc. have seen very clearly just how non-responsive we are. Mg

Subject: RE: BS: State Universities Doing Their Part
From: artbrooks
Date: 02 Sep 05 - 09:24 PM

The University of New Mexico, whose fall semester began 10 days ago, is extending the late admission deadline (which had been today) so that any student from NM who had been planning to attend a Gulf Coast school can get in. Also, each current student with an address in the Gulf area will be contacted to see if they need assistance.

Subject: RE: BS: State Universities Doing Their Part
From: GUEST,Dale
Date: 02 Sep 05 - 09:54 PM

According to a report I read, The University Of Arkansas was the first to respond with concrete offers of help. This much is for sure: The state's 11 public universities announced Wednesday that they will grant waivers for tuition and fees to Arkansas residents who intended to enroll at several New Orleans-area campuses.

Students from other states who were registered at the qualifying campuses including Dillard University, Loyola University-New Orleans, Our Lady of the Holy Cross College, Southern University at New Orleans, Tulane University, University of New Orleans and Xavier University of Louisiana will receive regular in-state tuition rates for the fall semester at Arkansas universities. ~~ from The Arkansas Democrat Gazette.

Various non-public colleges in Arkansas are offering similar similar helping hands as well.

Numerous public school districts are already accepting high school and elementary students with no paper work and are basically prepared to educate them for free, including free breakfast and lunch.

Subject: RE: BS: State Universities Doing Their Part
From: bobad
Date: 02 Sep 05 - 10:39 PM

McGill to admit Tulane University first-year students affected by Hurricane Katrina

McGill University is joining other members of the American Association of Universities (AAU) in relief efforts to accommodate students from Tulane University in New Orleans who have been affected by the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. McGill and Tulane are among members of the AAU, which groups the top universities in North America.

McGill will admit freshmen students from Tulane into a regular undergraduate program, where feasible, until September 13, 2005, which is the end of our course add/drop period. After that date, students will be considered for admission to the January 2006 term. Applications to professional or specialized programs with limited enrolment, such as law, will be considered on a case-by-case basis to ensure that we can accommodate additional students while continuing to offer the highest quality teaching programs.

As well, transfer students or graduate students may be fast-tracked, and will be considered on an individual basis.

Subject: RE: BS: State Universities Doing Their Part
From: PoppaGator
Date: 03 Sep 05 - 02:39 AM

Southern Illinois Univesity in Carbondale ~ very close to Paducah KY where I've spent the last couple of days ~ is providing a similar deal.

My son Mike just enrolled as a full-time student at the University of New Orleans. We don't think he'll be able to take advantage of any of these offers because the timing is just too difficult; we're still moving around the country, not settled anywhere.

His girlfriend is an employee of Whole Foods Market (the currently-underwater Metairie, LA, location), and her company is providing four weeks paid leave plus a guaranteed job at another store. She somehow managed to get a guaranted job for Mike, too, if they find a location that'll make room for both of them together. Their first choice was Austin TX but it looks like Plano (Dallas suburb) will be more likely to accommodate them.

He has already investigated the possibility of "instant transfer" from his hurricane-zone school to UT at Austin, but the offer is only good for "Texas residents." Well, he may well become a Texas resident soon, but he's not one now.

UT Arlington would probably work great if he moves to Plano or environs, but there's no way he'll be there in time to start this semester. Wonder if it'll work for next semester.?

Then there's the issue of the payments already made to UNO and the loans he has already signed for. One more complication in starting lives over...

Subject: RE: BS: State Universities Doing Their Part
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 Sep 05 - 09:04 AM

I have a futon in the front room, and I'll PM you, PoppaGator. Classes at UTA start on Tuesday for LA students. They're lifting many of the paperwork restrictions to get students into classes. If he has a car that would help, because I commute about 25 miles, but we can get him started until he finds something closer to campus, if he wishes.

Maggie (SRS)

Subject: RE: BS: State Universities Doing Their Part
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 Sep 05 - 10:46 AM

I sent a detailed answer to PoppaGator, and sent a copy of it to WesleyS, another Fort Worth Mudcat member.

UTA and UNT are both arranging to admit students late with limited paperwork to start.

http://www.uta.edu University of Texas at Arlington (Arlington, Texas)

http://www.unt.edu University of North Texas (Denton, Texas)

Even our local community college is setting up to charge in-state tuition to displaced LA students. I don't know if they are arranging for late enrollment. http://www.tccd.edu/ Tarrant County College

Offers like this are turning up all over the country, not just in adjacent states.

SRS