Nicholls President Dr. Jay Clune’s Latest Recovery Update

UPDATE: To clarify the message from earlier this afternoon, we are NOT opening residence halls to move back in on Tuesday, Sept. 7.
We WILL have generators connected to some academic buildings to allow students and employees access to air conditioning and WiFi.
We cannot reopen the residence halls until power is restored to campus.

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Nicholls State President Dr. Jay Clune gave a recent update on the recovery process for the university:

“The Nicholls State University campus was fortunate to have received only moderate damage from Hurricane Ida. I know that many of you were not so fortunate, and your suffering is never far from my mind.

On campus, we are securing generators as we prepare to reopen many of our buildings over the coming weeks. We expect to have spaces with air conditioning and WiFi for students, faculty, and staff open as early as Tuesday, Sept. 7.

We have received many questions about when classes would resume, and that answer depends on when we get electricity again. Entry estimates it will take 2-3 weeks to restore power to our grid. Initially, we will have a virtual learning option. Many of our communities will still be rebuilding and may still be without power even after we reopen campus. Delaying the academic calendar by 2-3 weeks will still allow us to finish the semester on time.

I know that Hurricane Ida has displaced many of our students, faculty and staff. For you, we are identifying transitional housing options on campus. This is in addition to reopening our residence halls and apartments for our students who live on campus.

If you were to ride through campus today, you would see that we have cleared debris from about half of campus. With every passing day, more and more of its beauty is revealed. We are currently home to thousands of first responders using generator power to carry out their missions. When we have power again, we will transition from being a base camp for first responders to being a refuge for our Colonels.

But until we are together again, focus on yourself. Prioritize your own recovery and that of your family, friends and community.

Geaux Colonels,

Jay Clune

President

Nicholls State University”