The School of Liberal Arts launched three innovative summer programs this year that gave students the opportunity to meet studio heads in Hollywood, reawaken a “sleeping language” in rural Louisiana and conduct policy research at New Orleans City Hall.
“We wanted to give our students unique summer experiences that can’t be found anywhere else,” says School of Liberal Arts Dean Carole Haber.
Minor in U.S. Public Policy
Tulane Political Science Professor Celeste Lay conceived of the new public policy minor, offered for the first time this past summer, to give students a real-world look at policy-making.
“In public policy, students learn how theories they were taught in political science, history or economics classes are really relevant to the political world,” says Lay. Public policy students were required to take five courses, including two foundational courses, two electives and a unique course that took them to New Orleans City Hall. There, they researched and wrote policy briefs on one of three topics—the short-term rental market, homelessness in New Orleans, and fire safety for businesses.
For senior Elizabeth Hanlon the research project at City Hall was an especially meaningful opportunity. “As someone with no previous experience in local politics, it was really interesting to watch City Hall’s elaborate balancing act—from appeasing competing interests groups to timing the short term rentals debate in relation to the ride-sharing debate,” says Hanlon. “We discuss policy all the time in other political science classes but almost never at the micro-level.”
Tulane to Hollywood
In another first-time and one-of-a-kind experience, 14 Tulane students got a realistic look at the inner workings of Hollywood.
Professors Connie Balides, director of Tulane’s film studies program, and Mary Blue, director of the digital media program, traveled with the students to Hollywood for an exhilarating week meeting with Tulane alumni who are successful in the entertainment industry.
“This was absolutely the best opportunity for students who want to be filmmakers I have ever known,” says Blue. “The direct access to so many people and places in all parts of the film industry provided them with insight and understanding in one week that might not otherwise be accomplished in a lifetime.”
Before the Hollywood trip, students spent two weeks of class at Tulane. Then the students traveled to Los Angeles for a week, returning to campus for a final two-week course. During their time in California, students met with writers, producers, recent alumni and studio heads and visited NBC/Universal and 20th Century Fox Studios. They also spent a day shadowing a professional in their chosen field.
At Tulane, Blue taught about the purpose and practice of the movie business, and Balides taught a course about the contemporary Hollywood film industry that gave “students a background in film scholarship…that will help shape the way they understand their interactions with film professionals in LA and their direct experience of Hollywood as a place.”
Many students said the shadowing experience—getting to see what a working professional does all day and make a personal connection—was their favorite part of the trip.
Allison Margolis, a senior majoring in communication, says that the trip convinced her to pursue a career working in event planning or marketing in the movie industry. “I thought it was a great opportunity and a great experience,” Margolis says.
Language Revitalization
While Margolis and her classmates learned to speak the language of film, another new summer course offered students a look at “Louisiana’s sleeping language”—Tunica.
The last native speaker of Tunica died 50 years ago, but Tulane Anthropology Professor Judith Maxwell has been helping foster language revitalization for the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana for the past four years.
This summer, Maxwell’s students studied for two intensive weeks. During the first week on Tulane’s campus, seven undergraduate students explored language death and revitalization and practiced teaching Tunica. Then, the undergraduates, two graduate students and Maxwell traveled to Marksville and helped with language lessons and camp activities at the Tunica Language Summer Camp.
“It was clear that everybody was very excited about the opportunity to learn the language and culture,” says Maxwell. She says it was inspiring to watch all the campers—from the youngest students who loved singing “The Hokey Pokey” in Tunica (Huyu-Hipu) to the teenagers who were passionate about their heritage.
This is the first year that Tulane undergraduates have assisted at the summer camp.
“The Tulane students enjoyed working with the children and helping make the language accessible to them,” says Maxwell.
Maxwell’s Tunica summer course was a success, with several Tulane students already volunteering to return to the camp next summer and others signing up for the Tunica-Tulane Revitalization Working Group this fall.
Looking Ahead
The three summer programs that were offered in summer 2014 are all expected to be offered again next year, and even more opportunities are to come. One, the Stacy Mandel Palagye and Keith Palagye Program for Middle East Peace, will select 15 undergraduates to participate in a unique and donor-supported summer immersion opportunity.
Following the close of the spring semester, students will take two weeks of intensive course work at Tulane. They will then travel to Israel for three weeks, where, through a partnership with the Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, they will gain a first-hand view of the issues and individuals engaged in the peace process.