UA pushes back start of spring classes
Tuscaloosa News – Dec. 8
University of Alabama administrators decided to push back the start of spring semester in the wake of the university’s football team…Classes were to resume after the holiday break Jan. 6. Instead, classes will start Monday, Jan. 11, Provost Judy Bonner announced in an e-mail to the campus Tuesday morning. “Given the number of students who have to be in Pasadena, Calif., to represent the University of Alabama on Jan. 7 and the number of faculty, staff and students who want to be there, we are dismissing classes on Jan. 6-8,” Bonner wrote. “Students should expect additional assignments to make up for the lost class time.” UA spokeswoman Cathy Andreen said the three canceled class days will not be made up elsewhere on the calendar. Dorms will open Jan. 3 as scheduled and university offices will re-open Jan. 4. New student orientation will remain on Jan. 4, but university staff will repeat the program on Jan. 8 as well, Bonner wrote…
Birmingham News – Dec. 8
University of Alabama: Study looks at holiday driving
Columbus (Ga.) Ledger-Enquirer – Dec. 8
University of Alabama study of driving trends in the state says the days before and after holidays rather than holidays puts drivers at risk of serious crashes. The University of Alabama’s Center for Advanced Public Safety’s recent study of 2008 Alabama crashes involving injuries or fatalities says that a holiday has a low serious crash number because people have already reached their destinations and tend to remain there. Thanksgiving Day in 2008 was the 13th lowest day of the year for serious crashes. The Friday after Thanksgiving is a bad day for serious crashes as is Christmas Eve.
Lend a Hand: Sorority donates $3,000 in books to elementary school
Tuscaloosa News – Dec. 8
…The $3,000 worth of books were donated Wednesday by the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority from the University of Alabama…Matthews Elementary librarian Nancy Carson said that the donation couldn’t have come at a better time. “The reason this is important is that the state of Alabama didn’t fund school libraries this year,” she said. “They just cut it out of the budget. “If we hadn’t gotten these books, then it’s very possible that we might not have gotten any new books this year.”…
Birmingham area jobless rate doubles in a year
Birmingham News – Dec. 8
… Ahmad Ijaz, an economic researcher for the University of Alabama, said the state did gain 3,800 jobs from September to October, but added most of the gains were in the government sector and compared to a year earlier there was a net loss. He expects the November job numbers for Alabama, slated to be released on Dec. 18, to continue the recent upward trend. “We will most likely see a turnaround in employment in 2010, perhaps in the second half,” Ijaz said. “By the time this recession is over, the final tally of job losses during the current recession is expected to be around 8.5 million to 9 million, about the same as job losses in the previous four recessions combined.” Three-fourths of the U.S. economy is driven by consumer spending, and Ijaz said a hesitance by many families to splurge on shopping could leave to “a very gradual” job recovery. “It will be a while before employment numbers turn positive,” said Ijaz, who expects Alabama’s jobless rate to surpass 11 percent by the end of the year.
UA’s National Alumni Association Offers Package Bowl Game Deal
ABC 33/40 (Birmingham) – Dec. 7
CBS 42 (Birmingham) – Dec. 7
…the University of Alabama Alumni Association have full package deals….”we also include a game ticket in all of our packages…