Lafayette Student Organizes 9/11 Tributes

Shannon Moran remembers little about the day when terrorists tore a hole into America's heart. She was only 9 years old.

But as each anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks arrived, Moran gained a little more perspective. And now that the date nears marking the 10-year anniversary, Moran is doing her share to pay tribute.

The student, a member of the Class of 2014, is responsible for coordinating a massive effort dubbed 'World Trade Center Remembrance Week.'

The week involves numerous campus events which are open to the public, starting on Sept. 6 with an arts and music program geared to the attacks.

"It feels great," the English major said of the tribute plans. "It's a necessary part of who I am as a New Yorker."

Last year, Moran -- away from her home in Levittown, N.Y., for the first time -- decided it was time to spring into action.

She believed that Sept. 11 just seemed like any normal day to most college students yet she sat in her room, not being able to think about anything other than the tragedy.

So she pitched an idea to a professor about coming up with a Sept. 11 tribute to help educate the Lafayette campus community about the terrorist attacks and honor those who lost their lives.

Moran led a team of Marquis Scholars in the organization of World Trade Center (WTC) Remembrance Week. It will be a series of lectures by Lafayette professors.

Talks include:

•  Kirk O’Riordan, assistant professor of music, and Andrew Smith, associate professor of English, on the response to the attacks in art and music.
• Seo-Hyun Park, assistant professor of government and law, and Ilan Peleg, Dana Professor of Government and Law, will speak on the war on terror and U.S. policy.
• Jim Lennertz, associate professor of government and law, and Katalin Fabian, associate professor of government and law, on the ethical aspects of the war on terror.
• Jennifer Talarico, assistant professor of psychology, on the memory of 9/11; and Jennifer Rossmann, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, and Stephen Kurtz, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, on the World Trade Center before, during, and after the attacks.

The talks were coordinated by Marquis Scholars Helen Xu ’14 of Rosemont, Pa., Henry Lam ’14 of Easton, Pa., Monica Manglani ’13 of Woodbury, N.Y., and Bridget Hentz ’12 of Ambler, Pa.

Moran said that she remembers sitting in her 4th grade class on Sept. 11, 2001, and wondering why some of her classmates were getting pulled outside.

She didn't find out about the attacks until she came home from school and had it explained by her parents.

"I had no idea what was going on," Moran said. "I just felt empty at the time."

For Moran, this is her way of ensuring that the people from her hometown who lost loved ones in the attacks are remembered.

"I graduated with multiple students who lost parents in the attacks. Every Sept. 11, these students were not in school because they were at the services in the city," she said. "Every time I drive around my town, I see the streets renamed after those who lost their lives in the attacks and am reminded. Every time I watch the news and see that more men and women are dying overseas, I am reminded."

Additional that are free and open to the public include an interfaith service of unity at 2 p.m. Sept. 11 in Colton Chapel, followed by a human “Chain of Unity” around the Quad, and a free concert by pianist Ignat Solzhenitsyn from 4-6 p.m. Sept. 11 in the Williams Center for the Arts. Tickets required. Please contact the box office for details, 610-330-5009.