Rebounding from Tragedy
Apr 1, 2009 12:00 PM, By Mike Kennedy (mkennedy@asumag.com)
Schools and universities hit by disaster need to react quickly so that students can resume their education with minimal interruption.
The blog was an especially effective way to disseminate information for a flood, Pradarelli says. Unlike a tornado or fire that occurs quickly and may be over before officials can get the word out to people, flooding conditions develop and change over days and weeks, and the information that people connected to a campus need to know also will change.
The first blog post was made on June 5 before the campus flooded to let people know about road closures and alternative routes on campus. Over the next several days, the blog solicited for volunteers to fill sandbags, reported relocation of classes and some activities, and cancellation of other events.
By June 12, the blog entries were carrying a more serious tone. "The flooding situation on campus, in the community, and in our region is growing more dire by the minute," a message from university president Sally Mason warned. "We will very soon see unprecedented threats to our campus and community."
The blog offered health warnings related to flood water, resources for those seeking mental-health services, and tips for coping with stress and anxiety. It sought volunteers to help move books from the library, and kept others informed on where sandbagging volunteers needed to be deployed. Each day, a list was posted of which buildings were closed and which were ready to reopen.
"I think it absolutely became the Rosetta Stone of information for campus," says Pradarelli. "There was so much misinformation on campus. We were a kind of Rumor Control. It really fit the bill for what was needed. It served an important purpose."
Using an external system for a blog led to some problems. Because some of the postings were misinterpreted as spam, the blogging software threatened to shut down the blog, Pradarelli says. He was able to move the blog postings to a new site and continue putting information out.
"In the future, for something like this, I would try to use an internal system," Pradarelli says.
As the flood waters receded and some parts of the campus returned to somewhat normal operations, the blog postings were less frequent and less urgent. Even so, university staff members continue to post flood-related information on the blog.
"It's not playing the same role as it did early on," says Pradarelli. "It has now evolved to more big-picture issues."
In addition, as the university has settled into a post-flood "new normal," it has established a more permanent web site (http://www.uiowa.edu/floodrecovery/) with historical information and guidance about where to get help and flood-related services. It includes an "Iowa City Flood Digital Collection" with 3,400 photos from in and around the university campus and two dozen oral histories compiled by the university's anthropology department.
The flooding will continue to be a dominant theme on the Iowa City campus for years to come, as school officials try to determine how to restore or replace facilities still out of commission. In March, university officials estimated that flood recovery costs for the campus will run to $740 million.
The university website lists seven major campus buildings that were still closed for Spring semester — the Art Building, the Art Building West, Danforth Chapel, Hancher Auditorium, Hawkeye Court Apartments, Museum of Art and the the Voxman/Clapp Music Building.
"We still have a substantial part of the arts campus whose future is up in the air," Pradarelli says. "It will be years before the arts campus is re-established in some fashion."
- Read the "A memorial for victims" sidebar for information on Northern Illinois University's plan to build a memorial garden near the site of the tragedy, where a gunman killed five people and took his own life.
- Read the "Coming back from Katrina: An incomplete recovery" sidebar for information on student enrollment in New Orleans-area school districts after Hurricane Katrina.
Kennedy, staff writer, can be reached at mkennedy@asumag.com.
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