What was the original purpose of the Parade Ground?
The Parade Ground originally was used for the military drill and ceremony for the cadets when the University was still a military school until 1969, said history professor Paul Hoffman.
Who designed the layout for the Parade Ground?
A benefactor of the University, Jacob Newman, hired a famous business firm in 1921 called Olmsted Bros. to come up with a design for the Parade Ground, Hoffman said.
The firm, who designed Central Park in New York City, came up with the idea for the Quadrangle and the semi-circular drive coming from Highland Road, which defines the borders of the Parade Ground.
“It was designed to bring the visitors to the entrance of the University, which is the Memorial Tower,” Hoffman said.
What is the new building on the south side of campus behind the South Stadium parking lot facing Nicholson Extension for?
The building will hold most of the School of the Coast and Environment and the Center for Energy Studies, said Russell Chapman, School of Coast and Environment dean.
It also will hold the Louisiana Geological Survey, a geology operation. The building mostly will be ready, with the exception of the third floor, for February 2003.
“The building is approximately 150,000 square feet, and the main building is almost two football fields long,” Chapman said.
Also, Chapman said the large rotunda lobby will contain an auditorium and a multi-purpose conference room, which will provide a magnificent space for meetings and receptions following major lectures in the auditorium.
Who was the first African-American football player?
Lora Hinton, a running back, was the first African-American football player, said Athletic Department Director Michael Bonnette. Hinton, originally from Chesapeake, Va., played from 1973 to 1975.
Who was the first African-American student at the University, and what were the reactions?
Alexander Pierre Tureaud Jr. was the first student to be enrolled in the undergraduate program at the University in 1953, according to an interview with Tureaud.
Tureaud said his first day was a horror story. After his parents left, he felt alone because nobody interacted with him. Nobody sat near him in class, and teachers ignored him, according to the interview.
After Tureaud passed a swimming test, The Reveille printed a front-page story titled, “First black to swim in pool.”
After a man brought his son to meet Tureaud so he could know it was possible for African Americans to attend college, Tureaud began to realize his being there was a big deal in the long run.
“I had a responsibility to help other people realize that what I was doing was possible for everyone,” Tureaud said in the tape. “I didn’t go into this thing with a mission, and I wasn’t there to be a pioneer. I just wanted to go to school.