Domestic Destination from Global Education

As part of our support for Agnes Scott College Global Journeys programs, we were tasked with developing a program based in New Orleans on the topic of social memory. This was a challenging topic to pursue in the American South, and in a city with a storied but difficult past. 

New Orleans is a true example of the modern American city, with its diverse culture, historical significance, and a truly global appeal, ‘The Big Easy’ is a vibrant, raucous, and incredibly interesting place to visit. Whether you know it as the birthplace of jazz or the heartbreaking center of Hurricane Katrina’s horror, its importance reaches far beyond its borders.

The people of New Orleans are what make it what it is.  From its deep indigenous roots to its modern-day diaspora of cultures from around the world, you will not find a more resilient, diverse, and celebratory population anywhere else in the country.

Visiting New Orleans can inspire and educate, and the fusion of multiple diverse cultures serves as a microcosm of contemporary American society. New Orleans is a gateway to the rest of the world - making it the perfect domestic destination for global education.

During our 8-day itinerary in March, students from Agnes Scott College encountered everything that New Orleans has to offer, learning from monuments, museums, and conversations with local guides and community leaders who helped imbue a deeper understanding of the challenging history of the city and its legacy in the present day.  

Why New Orleans for a Faculty-led Global Study Program?

There is no one singular thing that could sum up New Orleans, but there are two highly influential phenomena to consider in the very first instance: Jazz and Hurricane Katrina. As different as these two influences are, they are among the most important forces that have shaped the Big Easy of today. At the center of the city, however, like a beating heart, are the people of New Orleans.

Historically diverse, it’s key to understand how we got to the New Orleans of today - and on this program we do that by looking at the vastly diverse groups of people that have all converged in New Orleans. We explore history through the concept of social memory, a term that historians have used to probe the connection between social identity and historical memory. We can explore and understand the past to help us understand our present culture, context, and identities. Given it’s cultural complexities, more than a fair share of challenges, and a rich history, there is no better place to explore social memory in the US than in New Orleans. 

Indigenous history

A key part of understanding social memory in America is to look at the reality of history, which considers colonial conquest, slavery and how those things are reflected in today’s society.

Long before Europeans settled in America, New Orleans was a Native American settlement for over a thousand years. Our program in New Orleans took in a number of pre-settlement locations and monuments through an Indigenous guide, helping educate students and faculty alike on the deeper roots of the city that lie beneath the centuries of European architecture.

Civil war & removal of confederate monuments

Another key consideration with regard to social memory in New Orleans, is the significance of the city within the context of the Civil War. While New Orleans was captured relatively early on, it was spared much of the destruction of some other places in America. This means that historically, the imprint of the various cultures that influenced New Orleans still stands today, with French, Spanish and Indigenous remnants all visible.

Our program included meetings with organizations such as Colloquate, which helped remove confederate statues from New Orleans. The meeting provoked deep discussions on race and culture within America as a whole, which is exactly the purpose of study of social memory.

The birthplace of Jazz

It would be impossible to visit New Orleans without considering the hugely popular music genre that is jazz, now one of the most enduring and loved genres of music around the globe.

Our program included a visit to the NOLA Jazz Museum, Treme’s Petit Jazz Museum and even a balcony concert at the Jazz Museum. Agnes Scott college students got the full experience from history right through to today - with an incredible live performance!

Hurricane Katrina 

While jazz speaks of the huge impact that New Orleans has had on the world, more recent history recounts the impact that the natural world has had on New Orleans. Hurricane Katrina was one of the most devastating natural disasters the world has ever seen, claiming over 1,800 lives and causing $125 billion worth of damage - with a large part of that hitting New Orleans directly.

The category 5 storm caused damage to most major roads in and out of the city, 53 levees broke, and extensive damage to a number of high-rise buildings and hotels in the area - not to mention the effect this had on the people of the city themselves, a large number of whom sheltered in the home of the local NFL team, the New Orleans Saints. Even the stadium itself suffered significant damage.

Up to 80% of the city was flooded and it has been named one of the worst engineering failures in the history of the world due to the government flood defenses failing so drastically. In the intervening years, New Orleans did see a decline in population from pre-Katrina levels for over a decade, as many people who were displaced during the disaster remained away.

Our program included visits to the Lower 9th Ward Living Museum, which features histories from community members regarding those hardest hit by Hurricane Katrina, which imbued the students with a real sense of the resilience of the people of New Orleans and what it meant in real terms to have to deal with the natural disaster of such proportions.

Our domestic faculty-led program - what was so amazing?

Our 8-day guided journey through New Orleans focused on social memory, the presence of the past in today’s New Orleans, and the challenges of identity and culture in the context of the many forces that have shaped New Orleans. The highlights, as always, were the deep and difficult conversations students had with their guides and hosts, with faculty, and with each other. They went as deep into New Orleans fabric as they could have during a weeklong experience, but we really believe that they were transformed by this program.  

Some notable highlights include the following:

• A visit to the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, the nation’s first memorial dedicated to the legacy of enslaved black people and the major injustices and violence black people have faced

• Attending a Voodoo Ceremony and Ghost Tour, which explores the links between the city’s past and present

• Various Jazz museum visits that take in the musical birthplace of jazz across the city, from Treme’s Petit Jazz museum to the New Orleans Jazz Museum

• Conversations with important stakeholders from the Mardi Gras Indian Council and Colloquate, learning about the multitudes of cultural history in New Orleans

• A series of exciting meals in important settings, time to reflect upon the deep history of New Orleans, and various live music events we enjoyed as a group
  

Across the 8 days, students were guided through the itinerary that included meals that challenged their palate, intriguing tours that opened literal and metaphorical doors, visits to off-the-beaten path locations, and meetings with many fascinating residents, such as our Indigenous Trans guide who took our group to see important pre-Colombian landmarks and shared insight from a unique point of view.

The bus trip from Atlanta also included stops at various landmarks on the way to and from New Orleans, breaking up the travel time and allowing the group to take in even more of America’s history along the way.

What students have said about this program

Students on the program were hugely impressed, as per their post-tour feedback. There were near-perfect scores across the board for how professional and engaging our tour guide was on the trip, with friendliness, organization, communication, and logistics all scoring top marks from the students’ point of view.

One student noted that the tour “gave [them] a sense of self and acknowledgment of [their] own culture.” Others declared the tour was “transformative” and praised the opportunity to get out of the classroom and to hear voices from people who deserve to have their narrative heard.

In particular, the Voodoo tour, the Mardi Gras council talk, and the wide range of activities that were organized for the students drew great praise. Almost every student who responded would recommend Learn From Travel.

The diverse range of activities, the tours, and the opportunity to learn directly from the people of New Orleans was of particular note to the students, all of whom also praised the lodging, food, and logistics of the tour as a whole.

What faculty have said about this program

The faculty leaders scored the trip with near maximum points across the board, from the lodging and meals to the guide and logistics of the trip.

The faculty leaders were extremely pleased with the tour guide, too, labeling them ‘amazing’ and praised the fact that any mishaps that did come up (as invariably happens on trips) were dealt with the utmost professionalism. They too would recommend Learn From Travel to others.

Highlights for the faculty included the ever-popular Voodoo tour, as well as the speaker on the monuments and the visit to the Lower 9th Ward Museum commemorating Hurricane Katrina.

Interested in a faculty-led global learning program in New Orleans?

With everything from guided voodoo tours, discovering the birth of jazz first-hand, and learning of the diversity, deep-rooted culture, and resilience of the incredible people who make the Big Easy what it is today, New Orleans is steeped in history, vibrant culture, and the somber realities of race in America.

If you’re interested in organizing a faculty-led program in New Orleans, on social memory or another topic, don’t hesitate to get in touch — we’ll be waiting to help plan and deliver your program in New Orleans!

Learn from Travel is a leading provider of culturally-immersive travel programs. With a deep network in New Orleans, we’re well equipped to help you arrange your faculty-led domestic study abroad. Contact us today to begin planning your fully customizable New Orleans travel experience.