“Where y’at, dawlin’?”

I chuckle to myself as I write that. This greeting, quintessential in some New Orleans neighborhoods, does not roll easily off my tongue. As you may have read in this issue of the Tulanian, two professors are exploring the evolution of speech patterns in New Orleans, which are surely among the most fascinating in the world. But NOLA is not alone. My birthplace of Philadelphia is famous for its own linguistical flourishes.

But, besides idiosyncratic language styles, another thing almost all great cities have in common is the presence of a great university. Urban universities are defined by the cities they call home and cities with great universities are set apart by their vitality, innovation, originality and diversity. But like that fictional Philadelphian, Rocky Balboa, it now feels like our cities are on the ropes, hit hard by COVID-19. During this pandemic, it seems that the best things about cities — dense populations and the synergy and connections they foster — become liabilities. Practical things, like conventions, and the fun things, like festivals, became potential superspreaders.

In New Orleans, the pandemic has impacted both our creative economy — the musicians, artists and performers who make our city the lively, eclectic place we so cherish — and our food and hospitality industry that attracts visitors the world over.

During crises such as COVID-19, there is a tendency to retreat inward — to focus on one’s own survival. But the fates of our cities and our universities are inextricably intertwined. Times of difficulty give us an opportunity to reevaluate this relationship and make it stronger, smarter and more resilient. It gives us the opportunity to reach out to our local businesses through efforts such as the Albert Lepage Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, which is connecting business owners with experienced entrepreneurs to help them minimize the economic fallout of the pandemic. A program run by Tulane medical students is also providing free consultations on COVID-19 safe reopening and operating procedures for restaurants and other businesses. These are just two of many such examples.

Tulane is also leading our city as we join a global biomedical revolution that is changing the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Louisiana may not become a Silicon Valley but, with the help of its great universities, we might create a Biomedical Bayou. In addition to saving and improving the lives of countless patients, the unprecedented levels of biomedical research underway at Tulane has the potential spillover impact of creating jobs and stimulating the New Orleans economy with an industry less vulnerable to economic downturns. 
It will also trigger major construction projects and expansions on both our uptown and downtown campuses and be a primary means by which Tulane and New Orleans thrive together and help deliver a knockout punch to COVID-19.