Lecture: "Across the Aisle: Infrastructure and the Common Good"

Monday, February 23, 2026
5:15pm - 7:oopm
Thomson Hall (Room 202), Richardson Memorial Hall
Tulane University, 6823 St. Charles Avenue
New Orleans, LA 70118

This lecture is open to the public.

Invited lecture "Across the Aisle: Infrastructure and the Common Good" will be a moderated discussion with Tulane School of Architecture and Built Environment faculty John Renne, Liz Camuti, and Josh Lewis, featuring guest panelists:

• Sen. Patrick Connick (R-Marrero), Chair, Louisiana State Senate Transportation, Highways and Public Works Committee
• Sen. Gary M. Carter, Jr. (D-New Orleans), Vice Chair, Louisiana State Senate Transportation, Highways and Public Works Committee

Introduction by Provost Robin Forman.

This lecture is part of the Spring 2026 Lecture Series and Public Programs: "Common Good."

ABOUT THE LECTURERS

John Patrick Connick (born March 1961) is an American attorney and Republican politician serving as the Louisiana State Senator for District 8, a position he has held since 2020 after succeeding longtime legislator John Alario. Before his election to the Senate, Connick represented Louisiana’s 84th House District in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 2008 to 2020, often running unopposed and building a legislative record focused on public safety, fiscal accountability, and local infrastructure.

A lifelong resident of Jefferson Parish’s West Bank, Connick attended Archbishop Shaw High School and earned both his B.A. (1983) and J.D. (1993) from Loyola University New Orleans. Prior to his legislative career, he worked as an assistant district attorney in Orleans Parish and served as a magistrate for Grand Isle, where he championed victim-support initiatives.

In the Senate, Connick represents much of the West Bank of Jefferson and Plaquemines Parishes and serves on key committees including Transportation and Revenue.

Gary M. Carter Jr. (born November 1974) is an American attorney and Democratic politician serving as the Louisiana State Senator for District 7, representing parts of Jefferson, Orleans, and Plaquemines Parishes. He was first elected to the Senate in a special election in 2021 to succeed his uncle, Troy Carter, who had moved to the U.S. House of Representatives, and secured re-election in 2023.

Carter was born and raised in New Orleans and graduated from Archbishop Shaw High School. He earned a B.A. in political science from Xavier University of Louisiana and a J.D. from Tulane University Law School, both in New Orleans. Before his service in the Senate, he represented District 102 in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 2016 to 2021.

A practicing attorney with extensive litigation experience, Carter has served in legislative leadership roles including vice chair of the Senate Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works, and on Judiciary and Governmental Affairs committees.

Questions? Please reach out to Ben Neal at bneal1@tulane.edu.