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SWACE Conference Report from New Orleans – Part II

Steven Rothberg AvatarSteven Rothberg
June 28, 2006


It is day two of the Southwest Association of Colleges and Employers (SWACE) conference in New Orleans. Attendees are happy, excited, and yet also uneasy. They’re happy to see each other and to have the opportunity to attend such a wonderfully put on conference. They’re excited about the material that they’re about to learn (perhaps even a few of them feel that way about my presentation on blogging and podcasting this afternoon). But they’re uneasy because the conference is in New Orleans.
The informal walking tour that a few colleagues and I took last night into the French Quarter revealed little visible damage remaining from Katrina (unlike my drive yesterday through the devastated St. Bernard’s Parish) but the number of people in the bars, souvineer shops, and on the streets was far fewer than in previous years. The garbage on the streets and the amount of construction seemed higher than in previous years. The consensus was that this city is coming back, but even in the least damaged areas, there is still so much to be done.
This morning a group of 27 of us took a guided tour of the American sector (downtown) and French Quarter. Our local guide was wonderful and quite colorful. He provided us with a lot of interesting information and, as all good guides too, quite a lot of trivia. At the end of his 1.5 hour tour, he told us that we were the first large group that he’s led since Katrina, which was almost 10 months ago. In addition to the damage this city took from the storm, it is also suffering from the damage caused by the drop-off in tourism.
New Orleans is a great city. It has survived and come back to prosper through hurricanes, fires, and other natural disasters. I hope and pray that this time will be no different. But for anyone who assumes that most of the damage has been repaired simply because we’re approaching the one year anniversary of Katrina, think again. Come down here and see for yourself. Get out of the downtown and French Quarter and into the areas such as St. Bernard’s Parish. See what is really happening. See how entire neighborhoods are virtually deserted and the only people who are living in them are living in FEMA trailers. How long will those trailers survive before they fall apart? And who would want to live on a block where every other home is deserted and infested with mold and wildlife?
Wendy’s is paying $11 per hour here and they add a $125 bonus for every week that you stay on the job. You simply cannot find enough people to do the work that needs to be done and with the neighborhoods in the condition they are, you have to wonder how the employers here are ever going to be able to entice the talent they will need in order to rebuild this majestic city.

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