Dear Tulane Community,
The start of a new academic year is a special time at Tulane: The energy is palpable as students fill our campuses and encounter novel ideas, fresh possibilities and new horizons. Tulane's unique trajectory allows us to reimagine our university and soar to greater heights each year.
With top-ranked students, world-class faculty, devoted staff and engaged alumni, we are truly a campus on the move. This year promises to be transformative as we work to support an increasingly diverse community and engage in interdisciplinary, pioneering research and scholarship.
Joining our new Class of 2022 - the most academically qualified and diverse class in our history - are new deans at four of Tulane's schools: internationally acclaimed architect Inaki Alday at the School of Architecture; leading global scholar Brian Edwards at the School of Liberal Arts; pioneering researcher Kimberly Foster at the School of Science and Engineering; and Thomas LaVeist, a national expert on equity and health, at the School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. Renowned neuroscientist and HIV/AIDS researcher Jay Rappaport also joins Tulane as the director and chief academic officer of Tulane's National Primate Research Center. These academic superstars are also quintessential Tulanians: groundbreaking scholars who have spent their careers crossing boundaries among disciplines to make the discoveries that create a better world.
Speaking of groundbreaking, as the bulldozers and hard hats in front of Howie-T make clear, Tulane is also busy creating a physical campus just as creative and forward-thinking as the people who call it home. This summer, we opened Mussafer Hall, a one-stop shop housing all ofTulane's academic and career advising services, as well as a 24/7 Collision Space for students to gather and collaborate.
And, just one year from now, the magnificent Commons will open for business. Connected to the Lavin-Bernick Center for University Life, the Commons will house 77,000 square feet of classrooms, meeting spaces, the Newcomb College Institute and - last, but not least - a new dining hall!
Our remarkable progress is possible thanks to the support of Tulane alumni and other donors who made this another record fundraising year - topping even last year, which previously held the record. At a time when most universities are struggling to find their footing, and alumni support is waning, Tulane again breaks the mold with our alumni supporters increasing by 22 percent this year.
All of this has the common goal of making Tulane the strongest, most inclusive and welcoming community it can be. Together we will cross boundaries to discover models of collaboration and understanding that will help solve today's most pressing problems, while unleashing the opportunities and promise of tomorrow.
Ours is a spirit nearly 200 years in the making, a legacy of the founding Tulanians, a group of doctors who wanted to help humanity. Pushing society forward with innovation and ambition is part of our collective DNA.
That's how I know - even during these exciting times of transformation and renewal - a few things will never change:
We are Tulane.
We are changing the world.
We are doing it together.
Roll Wave.
