Alumni investments are helping transform Newcomb Hall into a renewed home for the School of Liberal Arts.
Tulane University’s School of Liberal Arts has received a $1 million gift from Tulane alumna, parent and marketing executive Alison Friedman Brod (NC ’91) to support a media and communication wing in the newly renovated Newcomb Hall on the university’s uptown campus.
Brod is the founder and owner of Alison Brod Marketing + Communications, one of the country’s most influential public relations and brand marketing firms. She is also a Tulane parent and serves on the President’s Council and the university’s Family Leadership Council. She credits her Tulane education with helping set the stage for her entry into the communications and creative industries.
The space, which will be named the Alison Brod Media and Communication Wing, will include media production studios, a digital editing lab, flexible collaboration spaces, a recording studio and technology that supports emerging forms of storytelling and scholarship. From film editing to podcast creation, from digital journalism to multimedia research, the wing’s resources will mirror professional standards and prepare students to engage meaningfully with the rapidly evolving landscape of communication and media.
As the founder of a major New York agency known for launching early-career talent, she has long been an enthusiastic supporter and employer of young professionals—including fellow Tulane graduates—who pursue careers in public relations, marketing and media.
“Tulane opened doors for me in ways I could never have imagined as a student,” said Brod. “This gift is my way of honoring that experience and ensuring future generations have access to the most forward-thinking spaces for creativity, communication, and collaboration. I’m thrilled to support the renovation of Newcomb Hall and to help create a wing that will inspire students for decades to come.”
Brod’s gift is one of several major investments preparing Newcomb Hall for its next chapter as the home of the School of Liberal Arts.
Reimagining the First Floor
Support from Doris Seelig Davis (NC ’48), Robert (A&S ’92) and Lynne Wolfberg, Barry (A&S ’91) and Tomm Miller and family, John Isakson (A&S ’92), Benjamin Bohlmann (A&S ’82) and his wife Ellen Kanner and the Argenti family helps us transform the first floor of Newcomb Hall around a vision for the future of liberal arts education. The first floor features state-of-the-art gathering spaces, collaborative rooms and meeting spaces, and a fully reimagined Dean’s Office with flexible spaces for the School’s many interdisciplinary programs. Together, these gifts will restore the building’s role as a flagship of the School of Liberal Arts, welcoming students, faculty, alumni, and visitors into a shared space for conversation, scholarship, and community.
Creating the Media Hub of the Fourth Floor
Additional support from Wayne Teetsel (A&S ’87) and Louis Jung (A&S ’68) complements Brod’s vision for the fourth floor. New production studios, editing suites, and flexible teaching spaces will bring together communication, journalism, film, and digital media in an environment designed for collaboration and creative practice.
“Newcomb Hall has always been at the center of liberal arts education at Tulane,” said Dean Brian T. Edwards. “Thanks to the generosity of these alumni and families, it will once again be a place where students and faculty come together to learn, create, and discover.”
Together, these gifts are updating one of Tulane’s most iconic buildings while realizing a renewed vision for Newcomb Hall—one that brings back the openness of James Gamble Rogers’ original design, breaks down barriers between disciplines, and creates state-of-the-art spaces where students and faculty can learn, discover, and connect for decades to come.