Social Innovation: Changing the Way We Think About Change

Guest blogger: Max Seidman

 Just a semester ago Tulane’s Center for Engaged Learning and Teaching (CELT) created the Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship minor, devoted to finding creative, innovative solutions to social problems. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past 7 years, you’d know that New Orleans plenty to go around: public education, crime rates, etc. When I heard about this minor, I instantly set up an appointment with Rebecca Otten over at CELT to discuss the minor. I loved this opportunity so much that I declared my SISE minor that day. Visit the site below to see the curriculum for this rapidly growing program:

http://tulane.edu/socialentrepreneurship/sise-classes.cfm

I’m taking the intro to Social Innovation course, SISE 2010, right now. In one word, the class is Inspiring. Now let’s use a few more words.

 First of all, my professor is Dr. Richard Aubry, 23-year Director of Rubicon Programs, an organization devoted to providing people with jobs who are mentally disabled, homeless, or economically disadvantaged. Dr. Aubry’s extensive knowledge and integrative teaching style makes the class very interesting. He focuses the class on analyzing different social enterprises. For example, we first studied a company called Fair Trade USA, which seeks to empower family farmers around the world, while enriching the lives of those struggling in poverty. Who knew there was so much to learn about trading coffee and bananas? Other organization’s we’ve studied include Common Ground Collective, Kickstart, and my favorite social venture of ALL TIME: Playworks.

Playworks is a national nonprofit organization that transforms schools by providing play and physical activity at recess and throughout the school day. For the service learning component of this class, the professor presents several social enterprises, and the students choose which of the  many companies they would like to work with. Some kids chose Propeller, some chose The Green Project, I chose Playworks. I work with the Playworks branch at Akili Elementary School where I play with kids at recess once or twice a week. Boring, right? Here’s the best part. I got to meet the founder of Playworks, Jill Vialet, when she came to our class to give one of our many guest lectures. In fact, when Jill came, I had the chance to ask her for some advice about a program I created here on campus called Play & Learn. Play & Learn organizes and hosts events at the Boys & Girls club where a diversity of Tulane organizations—The Ultimate Frisbee Team, The Fencing Club, The Hip-Hop Team, etc.—teach the kids something about their talent. As it says in the name, Play & Learn’s goal is to get the kids playing and learning at the same time!

If you couldn’t tell by this last paragraph, I have a passion for child development and working with kids; but for this class, it doesn’t matter what you are interested in. SISE allows you to engage in service related to your specific passion, regardless of what that passion may be.

The diversity of students’ majors in my class is astounding: psychology, business, English, architecture, biology, environmental studies, etc. The only required interest for this class is that you want to make a difference in the world.

If you want to know more about my experience with the Social Innovation minor, feel free to shoot me an email at mseidman@tulane.edu or contact Rebecca Otten, the Social Innovation program coordinator at rotten@tulane.edu

(!Hello from Amman, Jordan) مرحبا من عمان الأردن

Guest Blogger: Peyton Smith

After two and a half years at Tulane, I thought I had it all. A major I was passionate about, the best friends a girl could ask for, a Frisbee team that had my back, and a comfy off campus house. So when I decided to study abroad in Amman, Jordan, I was terrified. I was leaving New Orleans for a life in a conservative, Middle Eastern city to study and live with a new family. First thing you should know is that New Orleans is my favorite place on the planet, so leaving was sad enough, but leaving for a place so outside of my comfort zone was probably the scariest thing I have ever done. But after being in Amman for three months now, I can genuinely say that studying abroad was the second best decision I have ever made; only second to choosing Tulane. Here is a little about about my experience in a Middle Eastern country. 



My abroad program is amazing. While here, I took two different Arabic courses, a course on modernization and social change in Jordan, and a class on research methods and ethics. You may ask, "Why would you take a class on research while you were abroad, Peyton?" Good question, I'll tell you why: I get to conduct my own research and write my own undergraduate research paper! For an entire month, I have no classes; its just me, lots of Arabic coffee, and my research. In fact, I am procrastinating my research paper by writing this blog post for you! It isn't often that undergraduates get to conduct their own research, especially in another country, so this a once in a life time opportunity. I am graduating next year, so I am hoping I can use this research to get me into graduate school!

But here in Jordan, I am not just studying Arabic and doing research all day. I have had the chance to experience life in the Middle East and to become a temporary Jordanian. As part of my program, I get to live with a home stay family. I am currently living in a three bedroom home with seven other people: my mother, father, two brothers and three sisters. There is no such thing as privacy or personal space here. But I got used to it and grew to love my new family as if they were my own. We eat every meal together (the most delicious Middle Eastern food you've ever tasted), sing ridiculous amounts of tribal music, smoke hookah until all hours of the night and laugh at how bad my Arabic is. They are my big, fat, Arab family.

I have also had the chance to see some of the most beautiful sights in the world. During one of our excursions to the south of Jordan, I checked off one of the seven wonders of the world: Petra. The ancient city of Petra is an entire city carved into the most beautiful, red rock. It was absolutely breathtaking. But my fun didn't stop there! I went to Wadi Rum, slept under the stars and listened to the silence of the desert. The best part about that was the camel ride the next morning. Camels are awesome, by the way. Perhaps the coolest cultural thing I have had the chance to do is that I lived with a Bedouin family for a week. I left my home in Amman for a week to live in the village of Umm ar-Rasas (mother of bullets) with a Bedouin tribe. My family spoke absolutely no English, but that made it all the more interesting. My host mother taught me to make homemade bread, herd the sheep and milk the goats. I also drank the most delicious Bedouin tea, which consisted of tea, way too much sugar and fresh, warm goats milk. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

Although I was terrified to be leaving NOLA, I am getting sadder and sadder every day to leave Amman. In just four months here, I have learned and experienced more than I ever thought possible. It will be hard to leave the hospitality and kindness this country has showed me. But I find comfort in knowing that I am leaving it for the best city in the world. And the fact that I can finally eat po-boys again.

Katie Cleghorn, a new Tulanian

The first thing you should know is that I am an incredibly awkward person. 

Now that we've gotten that out of the way, I shall continue with my introduction. 

My name is Katie. Okay, all right, it's technically Savannah but, as much as I love my parents, their decision to name me after Jimmy Buffett's daughter isn't one I'm particularly proud of. I am a high school senior (less than two months until graduation!) and, as of about a month ago, I will be attending Tulane next year. 

My vert best friend

So, I'm a huge nerd. I'm just going to put that out there right now. I skipped eighth grade and so I'll be barely seventeen when I start school next fall. I am planning on double-majoring in political science and neuroscience and, being as geeky as I am, I've already picked out which classes I'm going to take next semester. I'm also really into biographies and stuff of the like, so I'm thinking about minoring in history. I'm mildly obsessed with Harry Potter and England. I'm actually going to London for the first time this summer. I'm really into YouTube and will be going to VidCon in Anaheim this summer. I'm also a musician and I've opened for a bunch of really great musicians, although I'm not sure how exactly that happened.

This is me playing last February after Billy Currington!  

While in high school (okay, I'm still technically IN high school but a girl can pretend), I changed schools five times. Yeah, I know. That's a lot. For the most part it wasn't my choice. The homeschool I went to freshman year kind of fell apart and my family and I moved back to Nashville after my sophomore year. The other changes were purely me, though. (Just for future reference, don't agree to go to boarding school unless you're absolutely sure.) Because I changed schools so often, I never really got involved in school activities. When I get to Tulane, I'll probably go insane with all of the choices. I really want to join a sorority (for some reason unbeknownst to me) and the student government. I'm also up for any Harry Potter clubs or club sports. I find the Hullabaloo really interesting, too. (I realize that kind of rhymed. It was not meant to.) If you couldn't tell, I'm ridiculously excited for this fall. 

Okay, so that's me. I'm going to end it here before it gets too unbearably awkward. Thanks for listening! Or reading, I guess…

NOLA Active Life

Juese Wang

Hometown: New Orleans

Major: Marketing and Legal Studies

Email: jwang7@tulane.edu

Your freshmen year is just around the corner and I bet you can’t wait to see what the buzz is all about! 

At Tulane University, your social life will be filled to the brim with the great nightlife of New Orleans, the French Quarter, Mardi Gras, Camellia Grill, Crawfest, Jazz Fest, The Riverwalk, Dat Dog, Canal Place, and exploring this fabulous city. At the center of these activities are food…food… food… and MORE food! Strawberry lemonades, pounds of crawfish, jambalaya, beignets, po’boys, Canes, Snowballs, king cake, gumbo, and undoubtedly more than a few Bruff trips to round out your New Orleans College diet.

While it’s great to enjoy the countless activities and delicious cuisine New Orleans has to offer, it’ll be a smart idea to take a step back every now and then and see what you’re feeding your body. That strawberry lemonade is yummy…. but do you know how much sugar is in it? And who can resist a fried oyster po’boy?! But what is it doing to your heart? Just being mindful of what the food you’re putting into your body consists of is a great start to avoiding that fabled freshman 15. 

In addition to being aware of what you’re munching on every day, get active with your life! Tulane is located in the uptown area of New Orleans and is just minutes away from Audubon Park.  It has running and biking roads lined with exquisite oak trees, lagoons, and if that’s not enough incentive for you…did I mention the ducks and swans just chilling there? Yeah, this is real life. Now get moving!

If you’re more of an indoor person (read: treadmills, cross trainers, weigh room…) Tulane’s got you covered. The Reily Student Recreation Center has 5 basketball/volleyball courts, 7 racquetball/squash courts, 2 tennis courts, a 7000 square foot weight room, an Olympic sized swimming pool, an elevated indoor track, multi-purpose aerobic rooms, a cardio area, a spinning room, a social pool, a sundeck, an outdoor track…Feel free to stop me at any time! With all those options available at just a walking distance away, you have no excuse to not get moving! And if your excuse is that you’ll miss the newest episode of How I met Your Mother…. 1). Reily has T.V.s pretty much like it’s a Best Buy and 2). If you didn’t find out in the first 7 seasons, chances are…. Ted is still ranting on about that wonderfully elusive mother of his children.

Hidden Gems in New Orleans

Blogger: Michael Marchese

Hometown: Irvine, CA

Email: mmarches@tulane.edu

So you’ve already eaten at Café du Monde, strolled through Audubon Park, and had your photo taken in front of St. Louis Cathedral. New Orleans certainly has a ton of great tourist destinations, but once all those bases have been covered, where can a new NOLA resident go to blend in with the locals and experience some true New Orleans gems? Luckily, I’m here to answer that question for you with a list of my own favorite “Hidden Gems in New Orleans.”

1.     Coop’s Place

This restaurant and bar on lower Decatur in the French Quarter has all the makings of a true New Orleans hole-in-the-wall.  The dining experience which awaits the customers willing to brave the sketchy exterior and intimidatingly long line is absolutely worth the wait. In my opinion, the rabbit jambalaya served here is second to none, even the plates served at the city’s ritzier establishments. The shrimp creole and fried chicken are also some of the best I’ve had, so try the combo plate and get all three, plus red beans and rice. Coop’s Place’s low prices, authentic ambience, and high quality local cuisine make this local favorite stand out in a city that’s known for its food.

 

2.     Oak Street

Because most tourists generally don’t make it very far outside of the French Quarter, I consider all of Oak Street upriver from Carrolton to be a “hidden gem.” That’s because this street has recently become a gentrified avenue of trendy clothing stores, coffee shops, local and international cuisine, and bars featuring some of the city’s best live musical performances. Jacques-Imo’s is a Tulane favorite for creole and Cajun specialties, especially during parents’ weekend and around graduation. Squeal and Cowbell offer fantastic barbeque and burgers for all you meat lovers, and Zotz and Rue de la Course both offer great coffee (and a great place to study). During the fall semester, the street comes alive for Po-Boy Fest, a street fair honoring New Orleans’ favorite sandwich.

 

3.     La Crêpe Nanou

For a classy night out on a college student’s budget, this is the place to go. Perfect for date night or celebrating the end of finals with your friends, La Crepe Nanou offers French cuisine in a beautiful art nouveau building located in the Garden District, not far from campus. The Crepe Bourgogne and the Ratatouille are my favorites, but the menu boasts provincial cuisine for a wide range of palettes, including daily seafood specials. A friendly orange cat greets those waiting outside for a table every night, and local art depicting nearby antebellum mansions grace the walls.

 

4.     Piazza d’Italia

This large public space located on Poydras Street in the Central Business District is even unknown to most New Orleanians. A celebration of the city’s Italian heritage and the various architectural styles which were pioneered on the Italian peninsula, this plaza was hailed as a postmodern masterpiece even before its completion in the 1970s. Even after its restoration in 2004, it’s not a popular spot; every time I’ve wandered in, I’ve been the only visitor, and have had free reign of the fountains and gardens to myself. However, it’s a beautiful plaza, and in my opinion deserving of more attention and use.

Have you found these gems yet, and do you agree that they’re worth the search? Are there any gems that you think I’ve missed? Let me know in the comments!

Ready to Call it Home Sweet New Orleans?

Deborah Yim

Hometown: Chicago, IL

dyim@tulane.edu

Finally, after experiencing the luxury of Sharp and Monroe, the option of living off campus becomes available! Do you start looking for an apartment or pick which dorm you want to live in next year? After living in Mayer my sophomore year, I decided to venture out and get a place to call my own for the remainder of my college career. I was excited to live with my close friends and have my own room.

Before my roommates and I found and signed a lease for the place we now call home, we had a checklist of things to cover. Figuring out on-campus housing at Tulane can be stressful. We worry if our lottery time to sign up for a room will be soon enough to get our first choice dorm, and if the people we plan to live with will commit under the varying circumstances. Similarly, many Tulane students are out looking for that perfect apartment, just like you are. And most landlords will give their lease up on a first come, first serve basis. It’s a rush to find an apartment, but we wanted to be sure to find the right one for us.

The off-campus housing options around Tulane have varying amenities. One of the first things my roommates and I did was make a list of what we were looking for in an apartment. Our list considered the following:

●      What is our budget for rent?

●      How much will utilities, Internet, and cable cost?

●      How far away are we willing to live from campus?

●      Does the unit have central air and heat?

●      Does the unit have a washer and dryer?

These questions served as guidelines that helped us pick and choose potential apartments. To find out what was available, we looked for listings online at sites like Craigslist, walked around the neighborhoods that we would consider living in to find “For Rent” signs, and asked upper classmen for their landlords’ contact information, or if any seniors were graduating and looking for new tenants to take their place.

After seeing multiple apartments, my roommates and I finally found a place we agreed on. Personally, I really enjoy living off-campus. I was really excited to have my own room, and just the general comfort of a “home.” Bruff is really convenient, but I also like to cook, so I looked forward to having a kitchen to prepare meals and bake. Living off-campus also offers a sense of freedom. There are no RAs around to check up on you, or make sure you’re moved out by a certain date. It was nice to be able to stay in New Orleans a few days after finals and just hangout with friends and explore the city.

As you become more a part of the New Orleans community, you may become less a part of the Tulane community. You’re no longer eating every meal at Bruff or the LBC and spending all hours of the day on campus, which can lead to a slight disconnect. It’s up to you to stay in tune with what’s happening on campus. Living in an apartment may give you more freedom, but it also brings along more responsibilities. If you lived in the dorms, you wouldn’t have worry about paying rent and bills, going to the grocery store, and cleaning the bathroom or kitchen. You can no longer call Service Wave if the air conditioner is broken or rely on the front desk for more toilet paper.

Based on all the pros and cons to living on and off campus, decide which option you think will better suit your lifestyle. Living off-campus gives you more flexibility and freedom, but comes with more responsibilities. For me, having my own place has been really fun and served as a good life lesson. I learned to manage my finances better, budgeting for rent, utilities, groceries and spending money. I also gained knowledge on overall household tasks that I would have never been exposed to living in the dorms. Be sure to weigh out all your options and decide if living off-campus is right for you.