It’s a banner year for Tulane English professors — Zachary Lazar and Jesmyn Ward. Their novels have been selected as the 2019 books to read citywide in New Orleans and Philadelphia, respectively. Vengeance by Lazar is the “One Book, One New Orleans” selection. In addition to distributing free copies of the book to people who can’t afford to buy them, the program will present a series of events to encourage people to read and engage with the book, which is a tale of crime and imprisonment, where fact and fiction are hard to tell apart.

“Trauma psychology has emerged and evolved over the last 20 years.” -CHARLES FIGLEY, founder of the Traumatology Institute, in U.S. News & World Report, about the improvement in approaches, measures, assessments and treatment techniques in dealing with trauma.

A jubilant Head Football Coach Willie Fritz celebrates with team members in the Green Wave locker room after Tulane’s 40-24 win against Memphis in Yulman Stadium on Sept. 28. At Tulanian press time, Tulane had a 6-6 overall and 5-3 American Athletic Conference record and was headed to the Auto Nation Cure Bowl in Orlando, Florida.

More than 200 alumni and parents representing their industries, companies and careers connected with more than 150 students in New York during fall break at “Tulane Takeover,” a career conference coordinated by Tulane’s Office of Career Wave Programs. Tulane Takeovers also were scheduled for Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Atlanta, Miami, Boston, New Orleans and Chicago this year.

This fall, students are enjoying the university’s first outdoor classroom equipped with a chalkboard and bench-style seating. The classroom is located on Pierson Patio between Gibson and Tilton halls. Planning for the $99,000 project, which was fully funded by Undergraduate Student Government (USG), began in 2016. “This was a project created by students for students,” said John Alexander, School of Liberal Arts student, USG director of sustainability and lead on the project.

“People get more conservative with age. It occurred to me that parenting might have a role in this.” -NICHOLAS KERRY, PhD student in psychology in the School of Science and Engineering, in Futurity.

Harvard University Press offers an audio interview with emeritus professor of history Larry Powell discussing his book, The Accidental City: Improvising New Orleans. Powell’s book focuses on the founding of the city of New Orleans.

Can cleaning vacant lots cause a chain of events that curbs child abuse or stops a teen from falling victim to violence? That’s the provocative question behind a new research project to study whether maintaining vacant lots and fixing up blighted properties in high-crime areas reduces incidents of youth and family violence. The National Institutes of Health awarded Tulane a $2.3 million grant to test the theory in New Orleans.

The School of Architecture and the A. B. Freeman School of Business have initiated a double-track master’s degree program leading to a Master of Sustainable Real Estate Development and a Master of Business Administration. The A. B. Freeman School of Business’ new one-year Master of Business Analytics program provides students with the skills to transform large, complex data sets into the clear information managers need to make business decisions. The School of Social Work has a new online Master of Social Work program.