First and Earthquake, now a hurricane

Hurricane Irene is making its way up the East Coast: supposed to hit the DelawareValley on Sat. night with plenty of winds and rain; already La Salle officials are meeting to implement emergency plans, strategies, etc.

Yesterday was freshmen move-in day and for the first time in my 14 years here it rained! The picnic was moved indoors and lines were long, but students and their parents were incredibly patient. Channel 29 showed up early but by 10ish no other stations had showed up to film the scene; I thought they were all down the shore on hurricane alert; turns out Channel 6 showed up and aired a report. I guess they swung by on their way back from the Jersey coast.

Freshmen convocation featured SGA president Amy Esselman addressing the fresh and parents (she was great) and alum Frank Cervone talking about the "Essential Question" that all freshmen must read/study/write. He finished brilliantly.

Today is sunny and warm: the literal calm behind the storm.

Earthquake

I was at my desk typing on my computer when my it seemed as if the desk was moving side to side...Was I dreaming and coming out of sleep, I wondered, but then I realized it must have been an Earthquake. It was: a 5.8 Richter scale beauty in Virginia that stretched up to Rhode Island. Some people left our building. I got on the phone and called Geology Prof. Hank Bart, who's our Earthquake expert; he wasn't in his office or home.

9/11/2011: Ten years

Sunday, Sept. 11 marks the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. I recall when/where I was when I first heard, and then watching the TV for hours on end and being horrified at the images. The American media is already at work planning special sections, stories, broadcasts, etc. I've tapped into a few experts to see what they have to say and recall. Two professors went to NYC later that day to counsel not only survivors but counselors who had been working with survivors. As Sept. 11 falls on a Sunday, the University will be having a memorial service. Also, an annual event here is the planting of more than 2,700 flags on the campus quad, one flag for each person who died in the attacks.

I've asked Dr. James E. Moore, Vice President for Student Affairs/Dean of Students here, for his thoughts on how college students have been affected by 9/11, from the day it happpened until now. There are professors here who specialize in Islamic theology/philosophy; I'm curious as to what they might have to say on the topic from a variety of perspectives.

The class of 2015

On Thursday the freshmen move into the dorms: nearly 800 or so. They will be the class of 2015. I can't believe the summer has gone by this quickly. Oh well, it's the nature of things. We have two sets of brother-sister twins coming here, one pair from England and the other from Nigeria.

TV loves covering the move-in story: lots of pictures of parents and children lugging furniture, TVs, computers, etc. up flights of stairs. Some of the athletic teams are given the day off from practice if they help the families with the moving. La Salle is one of the first colleges in the area to have students move into dorms, so we're lucky on that score. Among the incoming freshmen are several Eagle Scouts, a New Jersey life guard who rescued a drowning swimmer this summer, a student who illustrated a children’s book, a student who was class president for four years at their high school and one who was the MVP in Philadelphia Catholic League for soccer.

BTW, reporters are already working on stories about the "back to school" shopping season. We're hoping that Prof. Swee-Lim Chia of the marketing department can be useful for this (he has in the past).