UWM in New Orleans

UWinteriM in New Orleans Scholarships 2010 Name Scholarship From April Stracener School of Education - Community Education Cua Vang School of Education Edward Nwagbaraocha School of Information Studies - Information Resources Margaret Kubek College of Letters & Science Stephanie Ehlert College of Letters & Science Beth Krueger College of Letters & Science Andrew Held College of Letters & Science Claire Rothe Cultures & Communities Andrea Ledesma Peace Studies Long Chang McNair Scholar Research Support Carol Carlson School of Social Welfare - Social Work Holly Wasechek School of Social Welfare - Social Work

When Hurricane Katrina struck the city of New Orleans in August 2005, UWM, joining many universities nationwide, mobilized to provide assistance. In the midst of this immediate response, however, there was recognition of two factors that called for a longer term, more sustained response. First, the hurricane's devastation was so severe that it would take years, not months, for New Orleans to recover. Second, Katrina exposed racial and socioeconomic cleavages that challenge our sense of what it means to be living in America in the 21st century. These disparities are also felt in Milwaukee and in other U.S. cities, but in New Orleans they are inescapably apparent, creating a powerful setting for teaching and learning about race and poverty.

At UWM we have a unique opportunity to build a sustained response to a national disaster. The need is great, and the learning opportunities are unparalleled. As an urban university we can organize our resources to support faculty in the areas of curricular development and collaborative research. Courses in New Orleans offer students a residency experience where students' classroom knowledge is augmented by real life understanding.

To date, we now have in three schools and colleges that offer students the opportunity to participate in a residency in New Orleans. The three departments involved in this campus wide initiative are Anthropology, Architecture and Social Work. In Fall 2009, students enrolled in Prof. Harry Van Oudenallen's Arch. 600-800 Traveling Design Studio class in the School of Architecture and Urban Planning began the semester with a 10 day visit to New Orleans lower 9th Ward community. Students interviewed residents, learned about the city's architectural styles. The thematic focus of the class will be design affordable buildings (housing, businesses and churchs) for the lower 9th Ward community. Winterim courses scheduled for January 2010 will be offered through the College of Letters and Science (Anthropology) and the School of Social Welfare (Social Work). Dr. Cheryl Ajirotutu will be offering two Anthropology courses and Social Work Liaison Wendy Volz Daniels will offer three social work courses. This will expand the course offerings for Winterim 2010 to five classes with a residency in New Orleans. Students enrolled in these Winterim courses will have service learning placements in the Lower 9th Ward community.