Tulane University

ALL THE HOOPLA IN THE PUBLIC EYE TIDINGS FROM Not all the action takes Melissa Harris-Perry CAMBODIA place on the court. has lots to say. A young alumna writes home. THE MAGAZINE OF TULANE UNIVERSITY TUlaneWINTER 2012 Swish! Tulane and NOLA score the 2012 Men’s Final Four®. PAULA BURCH-CELENTANO DUCKS Students don boots to slosh their way across campus after an early morning shower in November. Rain boots have become de rigueur apparel for some at the slightest hint of rain. Slam Dunk On the cover: Photo by Paula Burch-Celentano TULANE MAGAZINE WINTER 2012 1 PRESIDENT’S LETTER teaching and civic learning. Closer to home, a consortium of research Research in the Real World institutions led by Tulane University is slated to receive a $10.34 million grant from the Gulf by Scott S. Cowen of Mexico Research Initiative to help develop new dispersants that more favorably balance If you were to ask a group of university presidents to identify the mission effectiveness and toxicity in combating deep- of their institutions, most would say something along the lines of “the sea drilling accidents. acquisition, transmission and application of knowledge.” You may recall that in the wake of the Deep- Indeed, research, teaching and civic learning are central to Tulane’s water Horizon disaster in the Gulf there were mission. Of the three, the most seemingly rarified perhaps, is research. concerns regarding the environmental impact We’re all familiar with the process of teaching as all of us have been of the dispersants used to break up the oil. [See students in some capacity. And most of us have engaged in community page 6 for more about this research.] service of one form or another. Led by principal investigator Vijay John, Research, however, often takes place out of the public eye, in labo- Leo S. Weil Professor of Engineering, the team ratories equipped with mind-boggling technology. Its results are will study the role of dispersants and other sometimes understandable to only a few highly trained individuals. chemical compounds in mitigating the envi- Yet, research remains the heart of a university such as Tulane, and its ronmental impact of deep-sea drilling acci- product is much more tangible than you may imagine. dents on the marine environment. I can think of several examples of current research at Tulane that In another study related to the BP oil spill, strengthen the university’s overall mission. the Tulane University School of Public Health Just this January, Tulane received a $5 million grant from the Bill and Tropical Medicine was last summer award- and Melinda Gates Foundation that will allow us to help universities in ed $6.5 million from the National Institute of disaster-prone regions in Africa and Asia establish a network of educa- Environmental Health Sciences to study the tion and development programs in disaster resilience and leadership. potential health impacts of the disaster on THE DOOR TO Led by principal investigator Ky Luu, executive director of Tulane’s DISCOVERY pregnant women and women of reproductive Disaster Resilience Leadership Academy, Tulane will partner with re- Research creates that age living in Louisiana’s coastal parishes. gional networks representing 17 universities on two continents with most precious of Led by principal investigator Dr. Maureen resources: knowledge the goal of creating and sustaining leaders who are experts in disaster that leads to the Lichtveld, it is the first long-term study of how planning. What I like about this project is that it incorporates research, advancement of society. a major oil spill affects pregnant women. In a completely different area of research, Tulane last year received a $1.6 million grant to analyze motor coordination skills in babies during the first 18 months of life. Led by principal investigator Jeffrey Lockman, professor of psychology, and using digital motion-capture technology now commonly employed in films such as Avatar and Tron, Tulane psychologists are studying the early development of hand-to- mouth coordination in infants. Hand-to-mouth transport is a critical skill for babies and adults alike, enabling individuals to feed themselves, and early problems in this skill can compromise the quality of daily life. With the use of state-of-the art technology, researchers are assessing coordination development in a much more detailed way than has previously been done. From Africa to the Gulf, from the deep sea to the playpen, these are just a few examples of the myriad research projects at Tulane that are not only groundbreaking but are happening on the ground—in the real world. It is the kind of research that further strengthens our reputa- tion as a civic-minded, major research univer- GETTY IMAGES GETTY sity devoted to making a difference. 2 WINTER 2012 TULANE MAGAZINE TUlane CONTENTS Air Michael Fans in the Super- dome witness Michael Jordan’s game-winning shot in the 1982 Final Four championship. 2 PRESIDENT’S LETTER Research on the ground 6 NEWS Drumming heals psyches • A better dispersant • Posse rides • Who dat? Michael White • The lure of TV • Knowl- edge is power • Value by design • Substance abuse care • Baritone • Dialing East Africa 12 SPORTS • New head football coach • A future stadium 30 TULANIANS © BETTMAN/JERRY LODRIGUSS/COR BETTMAN/JERRY © Youth Rebuilding • Alumni survey • Bob Devlin • Rod Chapel Jr. • Jeffrey Gruen 14 All the Hoopla 32 WHERE Y'AT! Class notes After conducting a full-court press to receive the bid to host the 2012 NCAA® men’s basket- ball Final Four®, Tulane and New Orleans brace for one of the biggest sporting events of the 37 FAREWELL year. By Nick Marinello Tribute: Arthur Q. Davis Sr. 38 TULANE EMPOWERS 20 In the Public Eye Adopt a med student • Richardson renovation Amid the 24/7 slugfest of political punditry, Melissa Harris-Perry comes out swinging. • Gulf Coast music • By Mary Ann Travis Empowers progress • Home Field Advantage 40 NEW ORLEANS 24 Tidings from Cambodia Angus Lind goes fishing Half a world away, a budding journalist writes home about her adventures. By Faine Greenwood, ’10 TULANE MAGAZINE WINTER 2012 3 DORM LIFE Good times in Phelps Hall go back to 1954. The residence hall near Bruff Commons has been renovated a few times and still houses students today. YEAH, YOU WRITE THAT’S MY ROOM! as the parent of a student, it is very for the anthropologists, filmmakers nucleus of that camaraderie, but the In the “Letter from the Editor” gratifying to see some of my work still and writers who came through the memories are preserved. Wick, we miss column [fall 2011] you mention that in use and exciting to observe all the Mexican Highlands. you. There hasn’t been an accurate Irby Hall was built in 1956. Actually new projects under way. While dorm She and Frans had become the pitch count kept in the stands since Irby and Phelps were completed in life is certainly a rite of passage, with protectors of the Lacandon Indians, you left us. the summer of 1954. stories that will be shared for years, a Mayan tribe that had never been Jerald L. Album, A&S ’69, L ’73 I was an incoming freshman that I’m glad those reminiscences will con- conquered by the Spaniards and still Metairie, La. year and I arrived during the first tinue to be enjoyed at the alum events lived in a world ignorant of Colum- week of September and they were in the Bea Fields Alumni House. bus. (It is said that in the ’30s they LETTERS FAN still painting the doors on Phelps. My Karen Kersting were hunted for sport by the big-city Sometimes the letters are a lot more room was on the second floor facing New Orleans Mexicans.) The Bloms became the interesting than the original articles. the quad the second door from the guardians of their jungle home as well. “You can call me Ray or you can end of the building on the street end. ROLE OF ARCHITECTURE SCHOOL They arranged for their medical treat- call me Jay ... or you can call me Ray- You can see my room in the article As an alumnus of the Tulane School ment and brought the Lacandones jay … but just don’t call me Johnson.” [“Modern Love,”] with the picture of of Architecture, I always enjoy articles out of the jungle to stay at Na Bolom I prefer Tulanian but whatever is cool Phelps from 1961. that feature some aspect of the school while they were treated at the hospital or with-it. … Although I never took advantage of or regional architecture. Thus, I want in San Cristobal, where the Bloms had Did not read the Newt piece and al- the lack of inside halls, I understand to thank you for the well-written article found a translator. though I would never vote for the guy that a lot of guys were able to bring [“Modern Love,” fall 2011] on modern- You can imagine my enchantment I would think you could write a book their dates to their rooms in raincoats. ism and the loss of modern architec- to be seated at dinner next to people on that guy, maybe two books and not Thanks for great content. Wish ture in New Orleans. from the far-distant past, a small man wear out the subject. He is good for I could get down for homecoming Unfortunately, I think you missed in white hand-woven clothes, speak- few laughs. I had no idea he went to sometime and play in the Alumni an opportunity to illustrate the ing pre-Columbian Mayan to his tiny Tulane.

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