New Orleans’ Black Colleges Prepare to Reopen in January
Dillard, Xavier awarded $2 million grants from Bush Foundation for recovery efforts
By Scott Dyer
BATON ROUGE, La.
Three historically Black colleges and universities in New Orleans are still reeling from the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina, but are planning to resume classes in January.
Hardest hit was Dillard University, a private four-year liberal arts college founded in 1869. Dillard President Marvalene Hughes has estimated damages at up to $400 million.
Hughes says Dillard is less than a quarter mile from one of the city’s levees, which failed when the hurricane struck on Aug. 29. According to Hughes, almost every building on the campus had flooding on the ground floor and many buildings were inundated with 5 to 8 feet of water, she says.
In addition, Hughes says three dorms on the campus were totally destroyed by fires two days after the hurricane hit. The cause of the fires has not been determined.
At this point, Hughes says she’s conservatively estimating that one-quarter of the colleges approximately 2,200 students will return to New Orleans to start a new semester in January.
