DILLARD Today: A Monthly E-Newsletter From Dillard University September 2012

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A Monthly E-Newsletter From Dillard University September 2012 ________________    Quick Links Give to Dillard Admissions Bleu Devil Athletics News & Events ________________    Alumni Links Job Opportunities National Alumni Association Alumni Contact Info Update Alumni Making News ________________    Calendar of Events 9/10-9/16 -- International Week 9/15-9/29 -- "The Zeitgeist Chronicles,"  Cook Theatre 9/19 -- "Does Hip-Hop Hate Women?" Georges Auditorium, 7 p.m. 9/20 -- AT&T Texting and Driving Demo, Kabacoff Plaza, 12-2 p.m. 10/5 -- Nursing Panel Discussion 10/7 -- "More Than Me... It's a Girl Thing" (Benefit Showcase), Lawless Chapel, 7 p.m. 11/11 -- Founders' Day Click here for more events. ________________     ________________   Join Us Online   Visit Our Social Media Page ________________   Contact Us   Dillard Today 2601 Gentilly Boulevard New Orleans, LA 70122 dillardtoday@dillard.edu ________________     Welcome to the September 2012 edition of the Dillard Today E-Newsletter. Hurricane Isaac made for an eventful beginning to the year, delaying the start of classes by one week and causing power outages throughout New Orleans. Fortunately, Dillard students, faculty and staff were safe throughout the storm, and the campus sustained only minimal damage. Now the semester is in full swing, and there's plenty happening on the Avenue of the Oaks. Read on to learn all about it. Ex fide fortis! Sincerely, Mona Duffel Jones Senior Director, University Communications   Centenary Hosts DU Students During Isaac   On Monday, Aug. 27, with Hurricane Isaac rapidly approaching New Orleans, 150 Dillard students -- those residential students who had not already left campus -- and six staff took buses to Centenary College in Shreveport, La., as part of Dillard's emergency evacuation plan. Due to traffic, the buses didn't arrive at Centenary until after 2 a.m. on Tuesday morning. But when they finally made it, Centenary students and staff gave them a warm welcome. "It was such a pleasant arrival. They were out there to greet us and assist us with our bags and make sure we had everything we needed," said Jakarah Porter, '13, Dillard's SGA president. "They were excellent hosts the entire time." An incredible outpouring of support -- not only from the Centenary community, but also from Dillard alumni in Shreveport, Miss Louisiana, the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and many others -- made DU students as comfortable as possible under difficult circumstances. Students kept busy with games and orientation exercises, and they attended the Grambling vs. Alcorn State football game, free of charge. By the time they returned to DU on Sept. 2, many of them had bonded. "We made the best of everything," said Porter. "We played pillow fights and flashlight tag. Everybody was on their best behavior, representing Dillard well. It caused each of us to go outside of our circles and branch out. It was fun."   "The Zeitgeist Chronicles" Debuts Sept. 15 "The Zeitgeist Chronicles," a brand new play about the 2008 Obama/McCain presidential election, will debut at Dillard University on Saturday, Sept. 15, at 8 p.m. The show was written by local playwright Stephen Montagne and features a 13-member cast of local, professional actors. It runs through Sept. 29. "This production examines a time of real hope and an opportunity to be engaged, involved and proactive," said producing director Ed Bishop. "It reminds us of what happened in 2008 and how it affected our lives." The show, produced by the American Theatre Project, hopes to have audiences talking all the way to the voting booth in November. For dates and to learn more, click here.   Panel: Does Hip-Hop Hate Women? Dillard University will host "Does Hip-Hop Hate Women? A Conversation About Sex, Love and Gender Politics in Today's Pop Culture" on Wednesday, Sept. 19 at 7 p.m. in the Georges Auditorium of the Professional Schools Building. This town-hall-style meeting conducted by leading hip-hop intellectuals is free and open to the public. "By using hip-hop as the vehicle to drive this discussion, students will be able to directly and critically think about visual literacy, identity, black masculinity, homophobia, perceptions of women, and how they overlap in media and public policy debates," said event organizer Michael Wilson, instructor of African world studies at Dillard. To learn more and to see a full list of panelists, click here.     Message in the Middle Returns to Lawless Message in the Middle, a weekly, non-denominational worship service and lecture held in Lawless Chapel in the middle of the week -- on Wednesdays at noon -- has returned to Dillard for the fall semester. This is consistently one of the most inspiring, high-energy programs on campus, and students, alumni, faculty, staff and friends are all encouraged to attend. Each week features a different guest preacher, and the fall series kicked off on Wednesday with William Emmanuel Hall of the Apostolic Church of God in Chicago. Hall founded CommuniGize, a Chicago nonprofit organization, to serve marginalized youth ages 5 through 19 in the areas of community leadership, entrepreneurship, and nutrition. Click here to learn more about CommuniGize.     DU Launches African Music and Dance Class As part of its International Week celebration, Dillard University launched a community class in African music and dance on Sept. 10. Going forward, the class will be held on Sundays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Dent Hall throughout the fall semester. It is free and open to the public, and the community is invited to attend and participate.   Dillard's Office of International Students and Study Abroad Programs is presenting the series in conjunction with Nfungotah Inc., a New Orleans nonprofit organization dedicated to the survival, education, and promotion of music and dance culture rooted in the African diaspora. It will focus on West African music and dance and feature a variety of instructors and musicians. To learn more, contact Esailama Henry at (916) 705-8842 or nfungotah@aol.com, or Dr. Kimya Dawson-Smith at (504) 816-4926 or ksmith@dillard.edu.