Ohio State to assist students displaced by Hurricane Katrina

COLUMBUS – In a continuing effort to help hurricane victims of the Gulf Coast, The Ohio State University will provide emergency assistance to Ohio State students from the region and accept displaced students for autumn quarter enrollment whose home universities have been closed. President Karen A. Holbrook noted, "as the nation's largest campus, our efforts to support victims of Hurricane Katrina can be done on a scale that brings substantial resources to bear on this great tragedy."

Barbara Snyder, executive vice president and provost, said university colleges and departments are mobilizing resources to ensure that students from the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina are able to continue their education on the Columbus campus. Autumn quarter classes begin Sept. 21.

"We want to be as accommodating as possible in providing assistance and a sense of stability to these displaced students," Snyder said. "We will work with every student on a case-by-case basis to ensure that their individual needs are met."

Bill Hall, Vice President for Student Affairs and Martha Garland, Vice Provost and Dean for Undergraduate Studies, are coordinating the efforts of the offices of Undergraduate Admissions and First Year Experience, Student Financial Aid, Student Advocacy and Student Affairs to assist students displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

The Student Advocacy Center will assist approximately 17 Ohio State students who maintained permanent residences in storm-ravaged areas.

"We are prepared to help in every way that we can," Hall said. "We anticipate that requests will range from the very basic necessities to the extraordinary based on the devastation incurred in the region."

According to Garland, academic and financial aid counselors and housing staff members began contacting more than 50 displaced undergraduates on Thursday (9/8) who have expressed an interest in Ohio State. Counselors will help students complete a modified admissions application, schedule classes, complete financial aid forms and find available housing. A special orientation will be held for new enrollees and include counseling to address their unique challenges.

A standard application fee will be waived and Ohio State tuition and fees will not be charged to in-state or out-of-state students who have already paid tuition at their home institution. Ohio State mandatory fees, which include COTA and RPAC fees, also will be waived. Students who select on-campus housing will be charged room and board.

Garland said that, because the university operates on a quarterly system and therefore begins classes later than semester-based universities, students have been able to make a thoughtful choice about attending Ohio State. She added that enrollment and support services are also being made available for visiting graduate and professional students, faculty and researchers.

Ohio State, with coordination from the Association of American Universities, the American Council on Education, and the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges, is working to identify and find appropriate space and equipment for displaced faculty who want to continue their work or research during this period of recovery.

"The compassionate response to this tragedy from the members of our university community has been tremendous," Snyder said. "Our size has truly proven to be our strength in this time of crisis."

A list of relief efforts from academic and administrative units throughout the university, the Ohio State Alumni Association and the OSU Medical Center follows:

Fisher College of Business: Admissions officials will be flexible in working with new students as visitors for the quarter. Additionally, the Fisher College of Business Staff Advisory Committee and the Bistro 2110 restaurant at the Blackwell, 2110 Tuttle Park Place, will sponsor a hurricane relief soup kitchen from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Tuesday (9/13). The menu will feature the rich cultural traditions of the Gulf Coast. All proceeds (minimum donation of $5) will benefit the American Red Cross. Reservations are requested By Monday (9/12).

Moritz College of Law: Second-year and third-year law students from Tulane University and Loyola University New Orleans will be accepted as visiting students for the current semester. Tuition will be waived for students who had paid fees at their home school.

College of Mathematical and Physical Sciences: Tuition-free enrollment will be offered for graduate students for autumn quarter. The college also will provide research facilities and office space for faculty; assistance with temporary housing; and complete facilities for science departments and programs that need temporary space.

College of Optometry: The College of Optometry will be hosting a number of fund-raising activities from Sept. 12 through Sept. 30 for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Donations of money, non-perishable food and household items, including clothing, blankets and toys will be collected. All proceeds will benefit the Columbus Red Cross and the Columbus Salvation Army.

College of Pharmacy: The college will assist fourth-year Pharmacy students from Xavier University and the University of Louisiana Monroe in placements for one-month clerkship rotations, which may include hospital pharmacy rotations in the Department of Pharmacy at the OSU Medical Center and community pharmacy/ambulatory care rotations in central Ohio. Limited space is available in OSU pharmacy courses for Xavier University Pharmacy students in their first, second, and third year of the professional pharmacy program. Prospective students should contact the Pharmacy Student Services office at (614) 292-3813. Information on the nationwide response by pharmacy schools to the disaster is being coordinated by the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy.

School of Public Health: The Association of Schools of Public Health is leading a coordinated effort to work with the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine to find appropriate places for students and faculty. Ohio State has been involved in setting up a nationwide system of placement and is willing to accommodate students in any of our specializations.

College of Social Work: Faculty and current and former students are mobilizing to serve a number of short- and long-term roles relating to assisting evacuees arriving in central Ohio. Students will meet with families and work with representatives from the Community Shelter Board and Franklin County Job and Family Services to help evacuees access community resources and orient them to their new community. Counselors also expect to provide brief crisis counseling.

College of Veterinary Medicine: Student chapters of the American Veterinary Medical Association are coordinating nationwide fundraising efforts to help affected students at Louisiana State University (LSU) and Mississippi State University, and the more than 1,000 displaced animals in the region. Faculty will donate part of each dog's fee from CERF clinic efforts to LSU.

Chief Information Officer: Data center facilities and support services will be provided to affected institutions and public agencies to assist in data recovery efforts.

University Libraries: Officials have implemented the following actions:
• Support library relief efforts, including the Louisiana Library Disaster Relief Fund to assist school, public and academic library restoration efforts in Southeastern Louisiana (LLA-Disaster Relief, 421 South 4th Street, Eunice, LA 70535).
• Offer free interlibrary loan services and free online reference assistance to students and faculty in Louisiana and Mississippi academic institutions.
• Offer library preservation and conservation expertise and resources to assist with damaged collections, especially water-damaged materials.
• Donate surplus or duplicative library material to help rebuild library collections.

Wexner Center for the Arts: The Wexner Center is co-sponsoring, with other Columbus arts organizations, a benefit performance on Oct. 18 at the Ohio Theater, 39 E. State St. Proceeds will go to aid arts organizations and artists in the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina. In addition, the center will earmark a portion of the proceeds from its reopening gala in late October.

WOSU: The station joined other radio and television personalities around the city in supporting "Columbus Unites," a citywide fund-raising relief effort held yesterday (9/8) outside Columbus City Hall. WOSU is also partnering with other PBS and NPR stations nationally to collect funds for staff members of affiliate stations in the region. Staff members will donate their time to assist the Mid-Ohio FoodBank in providing foods to families impacted by the hurricane.

The Ohio State Alumni Association: The Alumni Association, under the leadership of President and CEO Archie Griffin, is marshalling alumni to support the American Red Cross through the university's "September to Remember" fundraising campaign.

The OSU Medical Center: Medical and support staff from the OSU Medical Center are among those volunteering to provide services to the Gulf Region. The medical center is working with other central Ohio hospitals to provide medical teams that would provide vital care in the region during the next several weeks. Already, more than 300 employees have volunteered.

Students currently enrolled in a college or university directly affected by Hurricane Katrina who are interested in attending Ohio State should contact Christine Harper, Undergraduate Admissions, at (614) 292-2796 or harper.225@osu.edu; or Nance Hoza, Graduate and Professional Admissions, at (614) 292-0822 or hoza.3@osu.edu.Faculty members or researchers who need office or lab space, equipment or access to a research library should contact Matt Platz, faculty fellow in the Office of Academic Affairs at (614) 292-5881 or platz.1@osu.edu.

Updates and new efforts by Ohio State to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina will be available at http://www.osu.edu/katrina/