News

Metro lends helping hand to Hurricane Katrina victims

By Matt Quane
mquane@mscd.edu

Metro will be taking part in the efforts to provide relief to the survivors of Hurricane Katrina which devastated parts of Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana, while flooding the city of New Orleans last week.

According to Metro spokesperson Cathy Lucas, several in the Metro community are looking to help the hurricane victims.

Nancy Rich in the Metro Human Services department is a post-traumatic stress expert and is looking to donate her services as a grief counselor to the affected areas. Rich would also like to train people in the area to counsel online or on-site.

Metro's aviation department is looking to do a fund-raiser to charter a plane that can deliver supplies to the affected areas.

The alumni association will have their annual meeting on Sept. 14, at which they will be taking donations from those in attendance.

Metro Interim Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Joan Foster said the college has already enrolled two students from Tulane University in New Orleans, as of Sept. 6.

On Sept. 5, officials from Tulane contacted Metro Vice President of Technology George Middlemist to ask for backup with the server because they use the same software called Banner.

At press time, Metro President Stephen Jordan was considering what Metro would do as far as letting students in and said he would be consulting with the Board of Trustees at their monthly meeting Sept. 7.

Rick O'Donnell, executive director of the Colorado Commission on Higher Education, has asked all state colleges and universities to open their enrollment to students attending schools affected by Hurricane Katrina and announced Sept. 6 that the CCHE would be setting aside $750,000 for affected students.

Although the actual hurricane hit over a thousand miles away, the after-effects of Katrina's wrath hit close to home.

CCD student Donald Blanchard plans on heading home to Mississippi to help his parents clean up after the disaster.

"My parents said they had random couches a couple blocks down the road. Things are all over the place," Blanchard said in an interview with the Met Report.

"That region gets hit by hurricanes all the time," Blanchard said. "Most people assume they're going to be coming all the time."

Blanchard said there are many people in the area who are less fortunate than his family. "Luckily, their house is one of the few left standing in the region."

But he urges everyone to give what they can-no matter how little it may be.

"When major disasters like this happen, it really does do a lot for people to help. People think, 10 bucks isn't going to do jack, but it really does help."