Kara Tucina Olidge is a scholar, arts and educational administrator and the executive director of the Amistad Research Center at Tulane University.

Chandra McCormick and Keith Calhoun will be in conversation with Dr. Kara Oldige about the making of their newest catalogue and the intersecting interests, challenges, and intricacies of capturing the experience of 20 years post Hurricane Katrina. Chandra McCormick and Keith Calhoun will discuss their newly released catalogue for the exhibition Memoirs of the Lower Ninth Ward and share best practices for artist driven publications.

Bob Thomas is a professor, holds the Loyola Endowed Chair in Environmental Communication, and serves as interim Director of the School of Communication & Design at Loyola University New Orleans. He also teaches in the Department of Biological Sciences and The Environment Program. His research specialties are in tropical ecology, herpetology, and environmental communication. He has been seriously engaged in coastal and natural history education and related endeavors in Louisiana dating back to the late 1950s.

Tracy K. Smith is a Pulitzer Prize-winning poet, memoirist, editor, translator and librettist.

Arthel Neville is a distinguished journalist and accomplished television host with a career spanning over four decades. She is known for her warmth, intelligence, and engaging on-screen presence. A passionate advocate for responsible journalism with a commitment to truth and transparency in reporting, has made Arthel a respected colleague in the world of journalism. The theme of trailblazing has followed Arthel repeatedly in her unmatched career.

Lucy Bustamante is a New Orleans-born journalist who has built a successful career in broadcast news. Her passion for journalism began at Cabrini High School when she was selected to participate in Our Generation, a teen television program on WWL-TV. She later interned at WWL-TV and worked as a production assistant at WVUE before launching her reporting career in Mobile, Al.

For many decades Deacon John has symbolized the ultimate in dance music. Deacon John is a man who gets around! And to all the best places: debutante cotillions, carnival balls, fraternity formals, proms, wedding receptions, birthday celebrations, class reunions, charity galas, corporate events, outdoor music festivals—even jazz funerals. If there is an important social event going on, Deacon John will be there!