Grad students head to Miss.

Two years after Hurricane Katrina, members of the Penn community are responding to residual issues plaguing the New Orleans and Mississippi communities.

Connie Hoe and Namhee Yun, two recent graduates of Penn's School of Social Policy and Practice, and first-year SP2 graduate student Crystal Lucas spent last July in Pearlington - a small town located on the western border of Mississippi - addressing the mental-health needs of local residents.

In the aftermath of Katrina, many residents have had no one to speak with about their accumulated stress and lingering traumatic memories.

The worst outcomes have led to depression, child abuse and even suicide.

SP2 Dean Richard Gelles committed resources to Hancock County after coming into contact with the Pennsylvania-based Bucks Mont Katrina Relief Project at a 2006 conference in Atlanta.

The group of students, led by Hoe, teamed up with Bucks Mont and the Pearlington Recover Center to speak with Pearlington residents and determine what kinds of services - from counseling to children's programs - were most needed.

"The most common thing we heard [from residents] was, 'I can't believe how wonderful it is just to talk to somebody," Lucas said.

Virtually every house in Pearlington, located on the border with Louisiana, was destroyed as the eye of Hurricane Katrina passed overhead.

Of the over 50 families Hoe, Lucas and Yun spoke with, more than half were still residing in FEMA-provided trailers.

Many residents who chose to stay during the storm, are still unable to recall the events without crying.

And while this type of emotional release is a step forward in the healing process, many residents still do not have an adequate outlet.

Those affected often hesitate to open up with one another for fear of touching on old wounds.

Even just admitting there's a problem can be difficult for many people, Lucas said.

She pointed out that seeking treatment for mental trauma often carries a social stigma that is not associated with treatment for physical injuries.

And these types of mental health-related issues are often overlooked by the public, who focus their attention on rebuilding physical structures.

"My frustration was that, . why was the whole world thinking that as long as we get people into houses, they're going to be fine," Hoe said.

Gelles, who has been to Pearlington since Katrina, referenced one handicapped elderly woman living in a FEMA-provided trailer who relied completely on social workers for food and human contact.

The University will continue sending students to Hancock County, in part to provide them with valuable field experience.

Gelles also hopes to get other Penn School involved in the relief effort: The Wharton School and the schools of Design and Engineering and Applied Science could assist in rezoning plans, rebuilding and small-business redevelopment, respectively, he suggested.

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