On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina wrought widespread destruction, resulting in the prolonged closure of the city of New Orleans and many of its institutions. The University of New Orleans fared better than most, as the only college in the city that offered courses that fall, serving 7,000 students in several onsite courses at its “Jeff Center,” a satellite campus in Metairie (now shuttered and sold), as well as many online classes, starting October 1. Sadly, UNO failed to advertise this accomplishment. Most locals had no idea it was open, while the national media, familiar mostly with the prestigious Tulane University, wrongly reported that all colleges in New Orleans were closed. Sixteen years later, on the anniversary of Katrina's landfall, Hurricane Ida, a Category 4 storm, inflicted severe damage upon coastal communities west of New Orleans. These communities had suffered Category 5 Rita (2005), Category 4 Gustav (2008), and Category 2 Zeta (2020), which left the region in a protracted state of recovery. Nicholls State University, situated sixty miles west of New Orleans in Thibodaux, was directly hit by Hurricane Ida, and closed its doors for the entirety of September 2021. Primarily serving as a commuter school, the university grappled with the dual challenges of academic continuity and community recovery, as students returned to campus with their attention often divided between their academic pursuits and the pressing needs of their families--the urgent repairs to their families’ homes often took precedence.

In this session, a panel of four professors will undertake a comprehensive examination of the declining enrollment trends evident within these two public institutions of the University of Louisiana system, both of which also have been dealt serious blows not just from hurricanes but from state-wide budget cuts dating from c. 2008. The two universities have experienced reductions in student numbers; however, the situation is more dire at the University of New Orleans. Over the span of eighteen years, the combined graduate and undergraduate student populace has witnessed a decrease exceeding 10,000 students. Walking distance from the shores of Lake Pontchartrain, the University of New Orleans boasts an expansive and well-appointed campus characteristic of many major urban educational institutions, complete with sprawling grounds, large multipurpose buildings, an array of academic offerings, and even a concert arena. Nevertheless, despite these amenities and being located in a city that draws visitors from around the world, the University of New Orleans campus evokes a sense of desolation akin to a ghost town, with a mere 6,615 undergraduate and graduate students. The University of New Orleans had more than 17,000 students in 2005. A regional commuter school, Nicholls State University, has also faced a perceptible decline in student enrollment, albeit less dramatically than its counterpart in New Orleans. From a student population of 7,700 in 2005, the figures have dwindled to 6,258 as of 2023. Notably, the afternoon exodus of students from the campus, coupled with an increase in online course enrollments, render Nicholls' halls and quadrangle eerily deserted by 2 p.m.

In 2016, the New York Times labeled the residents of a small town, Isle à Jean-Charles, as America's first climate refugees. The island, a sliver of land nearly engulfed by the Gulf of Mexico, is part of the Nicholls State University community. We are undeniably encountering unprecedented challenges along the Gulf Coast. The aim of this discussion is not to bemoan the deserted hallways of academia but to delve into a scholarly analysis of the intersection between natural disasters and severe budget reductions, which have significantly transformed the educational environment of the region.