Academics : International Education Study Abroad

Study Abroad, Humans on the Edge

The following is from faculty member Pete Masteller, who wrote from the Gulf Coast:

After witnessing first-hand the scope and intensity of the destruction in New Orleans, it's been satisfying to work with Habitat for Humanity for the past two days. We're helping to build the second and third houses to be constructed since the flood, and with so many people working on this project, the houses are going up very quickly. Hammering nails and shoveling dirt create immediate and tangible results which give us a much needed contrast to all the destruction. So far we've been putting in floor joists, the floor itself, and we've laid out the form for the driveway. Today we leave for Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, which was the hardest hit area on the Gulf coast. It's hard to imagine seeing a place harder hit than the Lower Ninth Ward, but I guess we're going to today. We'll be helping to build a middle school library there and reconstructing what used to be a beautiful park. All are well and in good spirits. Everyone in New Orleans has been incredibly kind and generous. We'll write when we can.

-- Pete Masteller
January 27, 2006

Click here for information on the 2005-06 study abroad programs.