Raven Ancar, a School of Liberal Arts student majoring in sociology and digital media practices, has filmed and directed a feature-length documentary, The Veil, about the experience of Black students on Tulane’s campus. In January 2019, during her first year at Tulane, Ancar filmed several sit-down interviews with fellow students to explore W. E. B. Du Bois’ notions of “the veil” and “double-consciousness,” as presented in his 1903 book The Souls of Black Folks. Ancar’s film probes topics of diversity, inclusion, racism and white supremacy culture.

The rigorous schedule for testing for the novel coronavirus continues on the Tulane campuses this spring. Students are required to participate in ongoing surveillance testing throughout the semester regardless of vaccine status or the presence of antibodies from a previous COVID-19 infection. Masking and social distancing guidelines are also still in effect. The COVID-19 Dashboard on the Tulane website tracks the results of the testing, both positive and negative, for students, faculty and staff.

Tulane Dining Services donated $8,000 in nutritious bars, cookies and snacks to Second Harvest, a food bank that fights hunger in South Louisiana. During the last hurricane season, Tulane Dining had purchased these shelf-stable foods for students so they could shelter in place during the storms. Second Harvest provides food and support to over 700 community partners and programs across 23 parishes. Its staff and volunteers distribute the equivalent of more than 32 million meals to over 210,000 people a year.

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Tulane’s COVID-19 Dashboard, which is updated daily, includes the total coronavirus tests administered to faculty, staff and students, the number of cumulative positive tests vs. active cases, daily testing results and comparisons to state and local positivity rates. It’s been receiving good reviews, including an “A+” rating from the Twitter account “We Rate COVID Dashboards,” as it helps the university diligently monitor COVID-19.

To assist faculty with the new enhanced learning technology implemented this fall, the Student Support Squad was created to provide on-campus and online support. The squad provides opportunities for student employment while helping faculty deal with Zoom classes and other technological educational challenges.

For the 12th year, architecture students built a sukkah on the uptown campus. Constructed by Oct. 1, the temporary structure for Sukkot, a Jewish fall harvest festival, had to go up quickly because of COVID-19 restrictions. Made of pine and measuring 10.5 feet by 12 feet, it had two walls to facilitate safe passage, instead of the traditional three, and built-in seats that allowed four people to sit socially distanced.

With COVID-19 restrictions in place, an in-person commencement ceremony was postponed for the Class of 2020. But that didn’t stop Tulane from celebrating the academic achievements of the class with a virtual celebration on May 16. “TUgether — Connecting the Class of 2020” featured Ellen DeGeneres, Madeleine Albright, Drew Brees, Hoda Kotb, Kelly Ripa, Apple CEO Tim Cook and many others who saluted the graduates.