Saturday, November 7th began with clouds and ended with pouring rain. Inside the SLA tent during tailgating, however, the mood was bright; the visitors were sunny. Students and parents expressed their delight in the Tulane experience. We heard of exciting classes, decisions about possible majors, and of course, restaurants they were planning to visit on Saturday night. Returning alumni, some of whom graduated after Katrina and many of whom completed their studies before the renewal plan, still discussed the importance of their liberal arts experience, the range of majors they had taken, and the classes and faculty who had engaged and inspired them.
Reading this month’s newsletter, it is not hard to understand their passion for Tulane or the School of Liberal Arts. Our faculty members bring the excitement of their research into the classes, providing such opportunities as working with rare books, speaking directly with students in Brazil, or providing a unique historical perspective to the refugee issue. They inspire generations of students who will return years later to Tulane to recall these unique classes as life changing experiences.
Not surprisingly, then, as our slideshow illustrates, visitors to Tulane eagerly donned our SLA fedoras and wore them proudly as a symbol of the vibrancy of the liberal arts. To them all, we say, hats off for SLA!