Project Hope Initiatives for Victims of Hurricane Katrina and its Aftermath

On August 29, 2005, at 6:10 a.m., Hurricane Katrina, weakened to a Category 4 hurricane, hit the Gulf Coast of the United States, in the area east of New Orleans. Lives of millions of people were changed as a result of this storm and its aftermath. The city of New Orleans was evacuated, and towns to the east were destoyed, killing hundreds of people and destroying thousands of homes.

In a series of letters to the Rensselaer Community, President Shirley Ann Jackson outlined Rensselaer's immediate response to the natural disaster. Hurricane Katrina Disaster Response" describes the university's donations totalling $35,000 for the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army and America's Second Harvest, and encourages the members of the Rensselaer Community to contribute to a relief agency of their choice. President Jackson also announced that Rensselaer opened its doors this semester to 100 undergraduate and graduate students from Tulane and Xavier universities, which had to cancel classes for the semester due to flooding and environmental conditions in the affected areas. As of September 15, 64 students enrolled at Rensselaer as full time non-matriculating visiting students in the Gulf Coast Visiting Scholars Program.

Within days of the disaster, the Student Senate established the Project Hope initiative. It passed the Gulf Coast Relief Resolution, on September 7, challenging the student body to exceed the contributions made by the administration and is keeping an up-to-date thermometer of the current total funds raised by students at Rensselaer on its Web site. Project Hope is being coordinated by the students in RPI Relief and the Senate's Community Relations Committee who began meeting within a week of the disaster to plan initiatives that will aid in the University's response to the disaster. Various Rensselaer clubs and organizations have already begun fundraising activities. Through its Community Service initiatives, the Office of the First-Year Experience is supporting the initiatives by keeping an up-to-date Web site of all the student events and initiatives to raise awareness and fundraising activities in support of the relief effort. It has also agreed to be the repository of all funds raised and to disburse these funds to the charities of the students' choice throughout the semester. In addition, by virtue of it's mission to positively transition new students to Rensselaer, FYE is providing support to the visiting scholars so that they can successfully navigate Rensselaer and beyond.

At the October 10, RPI Relief meeting, students decided to split the Project Hope Donations evenly between the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army and Habitat for Humanity.

• Hurricane Katrina Disaster Response
  A Letter from Shirley Ann Jackson, Ph.D., President, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
  
  

  Gulf Coast Relief Resolution
  A Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Student Resolution
  
  

• Events

  • RPI Relief Meetings will be held on Monday evenings at 7 p.m., in Academy Hall Suite 4100. The next meeting is on Monday, November 21, 2005.

  • Lally School of Management Hurricane Relief T-shirt sale! Sales continue at the Pittsburgh Building. Also, through contacting thompr@rpi.edu.

  • The Community Advocates present IMPACT: Hurricane Katrina - A Portrait of a Disaster from mid-October through December 2005, in the Shelnutt Gallery in the Student Union.

  
  

• Support to Date

  • $2,090 for Catholic Relief Services: The Chapel + Cultural Center collected this money at the 9/3-9/4 weekend services.

  • $1,000 will be donated to American Red Cross: The seniors from the Football Team will be donating this money to assist in Hurricane Relief efforts.

  • $2,058 for Catholic Relief Services: The Chapel + Cultural Center collected this money at the 9/10-9/11 weekend services.

  • $223.46 for Catholic Relief Services: The Chapel + Cultural Center collected this money to date in the cans located in the Rensselaer Union, as of 9/11.

  • $632 for Katrina Relief. The Muslim Student Association raised this amount as of 9/9/05 at their Friday Congregationals.

  • $922.05 for Hurricane Relief. Alpha Phi Omega raised this money during the EMPAC 360 event, and in collection cans in the Union, as of 9/17.

  • $3,700 for the BushClintonKatrina Relief Fund. PSYC-2730 sold raffle tickets during the week of 9/12 through 9/17, including at the Homecoming Football Game to raise money in the Hurricane Katrina relief effort.

  • $5,000 for Project Hope. The Rensselaer Alumni Association over Homecoming Weekend voted to donate this in support of the student initiative to raise money for Hurricane Katrina victims, on September 17.

  • $44.03 for Project Hope. Sheer Idiocy collected this at their show on Saturday, September 17.

  • $500 for Project Hope. The Navy ROTC raised this money washing cars on Sunday, September 18, from 12 noon to 6 p.m.

  • $354.61 for Hurricane Relief. Alpha Phi Omega raised this additional money in their efforts throughout the Union, between 9/17 and 9/19.

  • $120 for Project Hope. The Rensselaer Bengali Community raised this money at a food sale on September 14, selling pakoras, samosas and mango juice.

  • $600 for Project Hope. Brendan Kavanagh used some of the money he won in the "Change the World Competition" to assist in a fund raiser at the Ruck on 9/18. $300 was raised at the event, and his fraternity, Theta Chi, matched the funds raised.

  • $500 for Project Hope. Service Fraternity Alpha Phi Omega allocated a matching gift in this amount on 9/20, in support of Project Hope.

  • $470.24 for Project Hope. APO reported that these additional funds were collected in its office and at the "Big O" Bake Sale, through 10/4.

  • $184.90 for Project Hope. IPAC sold pumpkin pie slices, apple cider and donuts at Fall Fest, on Saturday, October 15, and the total represents all sales and donations at their booth.

  • $47 for Project Hope. The Rensselaer Bengalese Community collected this money at their Bazaar at Fall Fest on Saturday, October 15. An additional $120 collected was designated for Pakistan Earthquake Relief. Unsold items are being donated locally.

  • $2,090 and Clothing for GCVS Relief. NYSERDA Community Service Committee and Friends from RPI collected these funds and a number of basic supplies and clothes in support of the visiting scholars at Rensselaer.

  • $95.53 for Project Hope. APO reported that these additional funds were collected in its office through 10/25.

  • $1,400 for Project Hope. The Rensselaer Alumni Association collected these funds from its Board of Directors in support of the student initiative. A portion of this donation will go to Catholilc Relief Services.

  • $63.50 for Project Hope. The DDR Club raised this money from the entry fees for the DDR Tournament, held at the Union on Sunday, November 6.

  • $2,542 for the American Red Cross. The Graduate Management Students have been selling t-shirts this semester. The total represents sales through November 11.

  • $2,090 for Project Hope. The Community Service Committee raised this in ticket sales and with the underwriting support of the Presidents' Office, VP of Student Life, Rensselaer Dining Services, Finance Division, Career Development Center, Information Technology, Hewlett Foundation, and the Polytechnic, at the Thanksgiving Benefit Dinner on Friday, November 11.

  • Clothing for GCVS Relief. The Rotary Club of Columbia, South Carolina collected and shipped winter clothing to the GCVS. The sisters of Alpha Gamma Delta helped to distribute these items among the community.

  • 100 units of whole and 21 units of double-red blood collected at the Katrina Blood Drive, sponsored by Phi Gamma Delta, Tuesday, September 13.

  • TOTAL: $26,727.32, as of November 14, 2005.

  
  

• Student Groups involved in RPI Relief

  • Alpha Gamma Delta

  • Alpha Phi Omega

  • CAVE

  • Circle K

  • Community Advocates

  • Community Service Network - OFYE

  • DDR Club

  • Graduate Management Students

  • Interfraternity Council

  • IPAC

  • Navy ROTC

  • Newman Catholic Fellowship

  • The Rensselaer Alumni Association

  • The Rensselaer Bengalese Community

  • The RPI Football Team

  • Rensselaer Union

  • Student Senate

  • Theta Chi

  
  

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