Even though the nation seems to be in a sour mood, people seem to be in a giving move. Two stories I've been carrying around from USA Today make a point.

One is headlined, "Boomers in the mood to give back to society."  A new survey from civicventures.org shows millions of boomers are pursuing "encore careers" that combine income, meaning and social purpose in such fields as medicine, education, and non-profits.  Boomers are still showing a propensity to retire early, which is very bad news for the U.S. labor market.

Today's headline is "Freshmen flock to New Orleans."  Tulane, Loyola and Xavier have all seen spikes in applications and projected enrollment, in part, because of the city's post-Katrina identity as a place to go for young volunteers who want to put a battered community back on track.

Tulane's applications almost doubled from 17,572 pre-Katrina to 34,100 this year.  As one Loyola's vp of enrollment told the paper, "Students know they are coming down to have an adventure.  It's a great time to be part of something... the rebirth of a city."

What an exciting prospect.

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