New Orleans, Louisiana
From NCAA Wiki
Several institutions of higher education also exist within the city, including University of New Orleans, Tulane University, Loyola University-New Orleans, Dillard University, Southern University at New Orleans, Xavier University of Louisiana, Louisiana State University Medical School, and Our Lady of Holy Cross College. Other schools include Delgado Community College, Culinary Institute of New Orleans, Herzing College, Commonwealth University, Notre Dame Seminary, and New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.
Each year, the Sugar Bowl is held in New Orleans at the Louisiana Superdome.
New Orleans is a major United States port city and historically the largest city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is in southeastern Louisiana along the Mississippi River, just south of Lake Pontchartrain, and is coextensive with Orleans Parish. New Orleans is named after Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, Regent of France, and is one of the oldest and most historic cities in the United States.
New Orleans is known for its multicultural heritage as well as its music and cuisine. It is considered the birthplace of jazz. Its status as a world-famous tourist destination is due in part to its architecture and its annual Mardi Gras and other celebrations.
The city's several nicknames are illustrative. "Crescent City" alludes to the course of the Mississippi River around and through the city; "The Big Easy" was possibly a reference by musicians in the early 1900's to the relative ease of finding work there, but most New Orleanians attribute the term to the city being more carefree and slowed down than cities like New York (the Big Apple); and "The City that Care Forgot" refers to the outwardly easy-going, carefree nature of many of the residents.
The 2000 U.S. census put New Orleans's population at 484,674, but Hurricane Katrina in 2005 caused the city's evacuation. Population estimates as of June 2006 range from 192,000 to 230,000.
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina was the costliest and one of the deadliest hurricanes in the history of the United States. It was the sixth-strongest Atlantic hurricane ever recorded and the third-strongest landfalling U.S. hurricane ever recorded. Katrina formed in late August during the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season and devastated much of the north-central Gulf Coast of the United States. Most notable in media coverage were the catastrophic effects on the city of New Orleans, Louisiana, and in coastal Mississippi. Katrina's sheer size devastated the Gulf Coast over 100 miles (160 km) away from its center.
