Tulane University Successfully Reopens Campus, Resumes Classes

Classes began on schedule today as Tulane University welcomed back students and staff following the city"s evacuation due to Hurricane Gustav.

Tulane successfully resumed operations on Saturday after ground crews worked tirelessly to get the university"s uptown and downtown campuses ready for business as usual. All residence halls opened doors to students on Sunday; Tulane houses roughly 3,300 undergraduates in 13 residence halls on its Uptown campus and 400 graduate students in university facilities downtown and in the Garden District. The majority of Tulane"s 4,950 staff and faculty reported back to work on Monday, according to university officials.

Tulane recently began its academic year by welcoming 1,564 new students in the Class of 2012 — one of the largest and most academically qualified freshman classes in the university"s history. Applications spiked 100 percent last year and interest continues to rise. More than 500 prospective students packed a Saturday admissions reception outside of New York City, and roughly 350 attended a similar event in Chicago on Sunday.

All Tulane-affiliated medical facilities are open and operating under normal business hours. These include: Tulane Medical Center, Tulane-Lakeside Hospital in Jefferson Parish and the clinics of Tulane Medical Center, Uptown Square, Tulane Institute for Sports Medicine, Tulane-Lakeview and Tulane-Lakeside. Call 504-988-5800 for more information on scheduling and appointments.

In addition, the Tulane Community Health Center at Covenant House, 611 Rampart St., and the Tulane Community Health Center in New Orleans East, 4626 Alcee Fortier Blvd., are open as well as the mobile medical units of the New Orleans Children"s Health Project, which travel to schools in Mid-City, Lower Ninth Ward, Gentilly and Chalmette.