September 2005

Responding to the Call of Katrina

BY THOMAS KOHOUT

In the weeks following the devastating impact of Hurricane Katrina and the resulting flooding and destruction in the Gulf Coast region, members of The George Washington University community donated time, food and supplies, and money to help residents pick up the pieces. Meanwhile the University opened its doors, sheltering students and administrators from the storm-ravaged region and enabling them to restart their academic lives.

A medical team of 19 healthcare professionals led by GW professors Christina Catlett, assistant professor of emergency medicine, and Yolanda Haywood, assistant dean for student and curricular affairs and associate professor of emergency medicine, left Sept. 12, en route to Baton Rouge, LA, to help victims of Katrina. The team will assist with medical needs by screening patients in the region’s shelters.

More than 175 members of the University community attended a Disaster Relief Volunteer Training seminar run by the American Red Cross in Ross Hall, Sept. 9. The seminar, compressed into a three-hour session with an additional three-hour online course, qualified volunteers to receive full disaster relief certification.
“The CEO of the capital area chapter of the Red Cross, Linda Mathes, attended the event as it was ending and she was thrilled by the turnout,” said Jeff Krumrine, a student in GW’s Graduate School of Political Management working toward a certificate in political action committees and political management. According to Krumrine, Mathes hopes to continue the cooperative arrangement with GW.

In further support of the American Red Cross’s activities, immediately following the disaster, the University initiated a hurricane relief effort under the jurisdiction of the Medical Center in coordination with the Red Cross. Just a week into the drive, John F. “Skip” Williams, University provost and vice president for health affairs, reported the drive raised more than $16,000 in hurricane relief donations. The Medical Center continues to collect donations in Ross Hall, 713 East.
“Our hearts go out to our colleagues at Tulane University and the other institutions suffering from the effects of Hurricane Katrina,” said President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg in a statement Sept. 1. “The almost Biblical circumstances that have affected all the people of New Orleans, as well as those of certain parts of Mississippi and elsewhere, are tragic indeed.”

Following news that the New Orleans area schools would be forced to cancel their fall 2005 semesters, the University announced students from affected schools could enroll at GW as nondegree students, on a space-available basis. As a result, GW received more than 275 inquiries, and, to date, 32 students, primarily undergraduates, enrolled at the University in addition to four midshipmen from Tulane who joined the campus as part of the NROTC program. GW Law School admitted 14 students from Tulane University and Loyola University law schools for this fall semester, and the School of Public Health and Health Services opened its doors to 29 displaced students from Louisiana State University and Tulane.

“What we’ve seen is that most of these students tend to be choosing schools closer to home,” said Craig Linebaugh, associate vice president for academic planning and developemnt.

GW is deferring up to $15,000 in tuition for visiting students who have already paid tuition to their home institutions for the Fall 2005 semester. These students would then pay their GW tuition when they receive a refund from their home institutions.

GW has offered residential and office space to administrators of flood-ravaged Dillard University and is now providing those services to one of the vice presidents of Dillard.

The University Counseling Center is offering counseling to students affected both directly and indirectly by Hurricane Katrina. Trained professional staff members are available to provide strategies for those struggling to cope from afar.

Confidential counseling services are available to all current students, as well as affected students from the Gulf area who elected to attend GW for the fall semester. The center also is providing helpful brochures, tips, and articles.

Send feedback to: bygeorge@gwu.edu