Forum at Tulane looks at slave trade

Bridges to be among the speakers

Ruby Bridges, who in 1960 became the first African-American pupil at William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans, will be one of the speakers Wednesday afternoon at a public Tulane University forum marking the 200th anniversary of the end of the slave trade.

The session, sponsored by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, will last from 3 to 6 p.m. in Chadwick Auditorium in Goldring/Woldenberg Hall.

--- Honors ---

-- Raphael Cassimere, emeritus professor of history at the University of New Orleans, and Bob Thomas, interim director of Loyola University's School of Mass Communication, are being honored by the New Orleans Citizen Diplomacy Council for meeting with foreign visitors. The third honoree is Vicki Weeks, executive director of Belle Reve New Orleans.

-- Barry LeBlanc has been installed as president of UNO's International Alumni Association.

-- Dr. Thomas Nolan, chairman of the obstetrics and gynecology department at LSU School of Medicine, has been installed as president of the Society of Gynecologic Surgeons.

-- Six faculty members at LSU Health Sciences Center received this year's Allen A. Copping Excellence in Teaching Awards. They are Dr. Juzar Ali, professor of clinical medicine; Marirose Bernard, instructor in the School of Nursing; Dr. Laurie F. Moeller, associate professor of prosthodontics in the School of Dentistry; Johnny Porter, professor of physiology in the School of Graduate Studies; Elliott Roberts, professor in the School of Public Health; and Scott Rubin, associate professor of communication disorders in the School of Allied Health Professions.

-- The UNO Center for Hazards Assessment, Response and Technology and the regional office of the Federal Emergency Management Agency received the John R. "Jack" Sheaffer Award for excellence in flood-proofing from the Association of State Floodplain Managers.

-- Erica Woodley, Tulane's director of residential education and community standards, has been named this year's recipient of the Bob E. Leach Award for Outstanding Service to Students. Woodley coordinates programs for dormitory residents on topics such as Mardi Gras safety, sexual health, drug and alcohol abuse, and leadership development. Her duties also include responding to crises on and off campus.

--- Cardiac study hailed ---

The 35th anniversary of the Bogalusa Heart Study, the landmark project that has studied more than 16,000 people in that Washington Parish town, was celebrated June 11 at the Bogalusa Country Club.

The study, which is operated by the Tulane Center for Cardiovascular Health, is significant because it established that risk factors for heart disease can show up in childhood.

Dr. Gerald Berenson, the study's founder, director and principal investigator, picked Bogalusa because it is his hometown. Money for this initiative has come from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, the National Institute on Aging, and the American Heart Association.

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John Pope can be reached at jpope@timespicayune.com or (504) 826-3317.