Campus Mobilizes to Aid Katrina Victims

As Gulf Coast residents take their first steps to rebuild in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, UC Berkeley is preparing to find a spot for some 70 students displaced by the hurricane for the fall semester.

UC Berkeley will make room for 50 undergraduate students and 20 law students from campuses that have been shut down after the hurricane, which flooded cities along the southern U.S. coast and is believed to have killed thousands of people.

"We hope that everyone will be as flexible and accommodating as possible so that we may get these students here and in their courses as soon as possible. We expect that our 50 spaces will be filled by early next week," said Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Paul Gray in a statement released Saturday.

Students hosted for the fall semester will attend the university on a "visiting" status and will remain enrolled with their home institutions, said campus spokesperson Marie Felde.

As of last Friday, 10 displaced law students, most coming from Tulane and Loyola universities, accepted offers to study at the Boalt Hall School of Law for the fall.

Over the weekend, volunteers from the admissions office counseled students wishing to come to campus for the semester by phone.

Whether students are a good match for the campus depends on the availability of majors and courses, Felde said.

Students who have a connection to California-either as state residents or have family living in the state-will be prioritized, she said.

Since UC Berkeley runs on a semester system and classes have already begun, "we really need to get them into those classes next week," Felde said.

Students can also opt for spots at other UC campuses, which are also opening their doors to students who need a place to study while their home universities recover from the damage.

At UCLA, undergraduate students will be enrolled concurrently through UCLA extension, while UCLA law students will study as visiting students.

Stanford University is also accepting visiting students, and will give priority to students with origins in the Bay Area. The university will provide students with on-campus housing.

At UC Berkeley, however, with residence halls filled to the brim, students may need to rely on volunteers to offer housing.

The Greek system will open its houses to some displaced students, particularly those belonging to the same chapters, said Nithya Senra, Panhellenic vice president of philanthropy.

"The Greek community is looking to house as many students as possible," Senra said. "It really depends on how many decide to come to Berkeley, but we'll do our best to make sure they have a place to stay."

While detailed campus fundraising plans have yet to be formed, students on campus-including The American Red Cross at Cal and the ASUC-are also pitching in.

Ideas for either a week-long event are on the table, said junior Jojo Choi, one of the fundraising organizers.

"This is more of a grassroots effort," said Choi, who plans to coordinate with not just students, but academic departments and other members of the campus community. "It's not enough to have concern, but we need to have concrete action."

A welcome reception for the incoming displaced students and a day-long fundraising drive have been thrown out as ideas, said ASUC Executive Vice President Anil Daryani.

At Saturday's football game, a moment of silence was held to honor the victims of the hurricane and about $25,000 was collected in donations.

University officials have also been working to reach out to the some 70 UC Berkeley students and faculty who come from New Orleans and the Gulf Coast region through e-mail and counseling services set up through the Tang Center.

UC Berkeley is also pooling its academic resources and experts on the affected region to determine how to best aid any rebuilding effort.

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