UA spring graduation ceremonies set for Friday, Saturday
Al.com – April 29
The University of Alabama will hold its spring commencement ceremonies Friday and Saturday at Coleman Coliseum. The graduation ceremony for students in the College of Commerce and Business Administration and College of Engineering receiving their degrees will be held at 6 p.m. Friday. Three ceremonies will be held Saturday. Students in the College of Communication and Information Sciences, College of Education, College of Human Environmental Sciences and College of Nursing will receive their degrees beginning at 9 a.m. Commencement exercises for students in the College of Arts and Sciences and School of Social Work will be held at 1:30 p.m. Graduate students will participate with the divisions that house their majors. UA’s School of Law will hold its commencement exercises at 5 p.m.
University of Alabama Greek community awards $100,000 in grants to agencies
Tuscaloosa News – April 28
The University of Alabama Greek community awarded its annual Greek Week grants as part of the Profiles in Service and Leadership Banquet on April 16. The grants, which total $100,000, will be given to some 30 nonprofit organizations operating in and around Tuscaloosa. Recipient organizations are selected after a grant request application process. “The primary goal of Greek Week 2013 is to unite the four Greek councils and to give back to the community,” said Hannah McBrayer, Alabama Panhellenic Association vice president of administration Greek Week activities, which included nightly tournaments of bowling, basketball and dodge ball, took place on campus in March. The week concluded with a song and dance competition. Ticket sales for the events fund the yearly grants. Greek Week student participants are responsible for completing service hours with Habitat for Humanity. This year, they helped build an Alberta house that had been damaged in the April 2011 tornado. With more than 4,500 members, the Alabama Panhellenic Association is the largest women’s organization on campus.
Gadsden Times – April 28
Hovercraft Challenge held at Lake Lurleen
CBS 42 (Birmingham) – April 27
The Tide and Tigers squared off on Lake Lurleen Saturday afternoon for the first ever Hoverbowl Challenge.University of Alabama and Auburn University hovercraft teams, made up of engineering students, hit the water for a one hour endurance race. A total of four teams competed in the challenge Auburn held strong for most of the race, while the Tide struggled with mechanical problems. Auburn took first place in the college category, while Alabama came in second. The other racers, with the Hovercraft Club of America, were scored separately.
Fox 6 (Birmingham) – April 27
Al.com – April 27
Amazing Superstorm Sandy video featuring NJ1015 personalities
New Jersey 101.5 – April 29
The National Association of Broadcasters after Superstorm Sandy went around collecting video footage and conducting interviews with people’s reactions to the storm. They honored NJ1015 and their efforts throughout the storm with this video. This short film produced by Media Arts Professor Scott Hodgson and his students at the University of Oklahoma, and Chandra Clark, professor of telecommunications and film, and her students at The University of Alabama. Working with the Broadcast Education Association, Scott and Chandra compiled stunning footage for a video account of broadcasters’ response to Superstorm Sandy at NJ1015. Many of our personalities first-hand accounts were used for the film including News Director Eric Scott, Brand Manager Eric Johnson, Jeff Deminski, Big Joe Henry and even our Governor Chris Christie, who was at the station the night of Superstorm Sandy for ‘Ask the Governor.’ The video has some amazing footage and really captures the thoughts and feelings of our on air staff as the tried to help NJ cope with the devastation. NJ1015 was a key source of information for the thousands that were stranded without power and the radio was their only source.
CBS 42 news anchor criticizes bombing coverage in lecture
Tuscaloosa News – April 27
Sherri Jackson, a television anchor at CBS 42 in Birmingham, said Friday that the coverage of the Boston Marathon bombing highlights the importance of media ethics. “The consequences of being wrong are sometimes horrible,” Jackson said. She cited the example of a Brown University student who was erroneously reported on social media as a suspect in the April 15 bombing. The student was found dead in the water off India Point Park in Rhode Island by investigators on April 25. The cause of his death is still undetermined. “I pray he couldn’t see or hear any of the horrible things said about him,” said Jackson, who was chosen to present the Helen Crow Mills and John Carroll Mills Lecture on the University of Alabama campus.
Sherri Jackson lectures on journalism ethics
CBS 42 (Birmingham) – April 26
University of Alabama students and the community are getting a lesson in journalism ethics. Friday, April 26th, our own Sherri Jackson will be presenting the Helen Crow Mills and John Carroll Mills lecture. She will be addressing the evolving nature of a journalist’s approach to reporting the news. It will be held at Farrah Hall on campus at 11 AM. The lecture is free and open to the public.
UA Summer Enrichment Workshop deadline extended
USA Education News – April 28
The University of Alabama’s Program for Talent Development and Gifted Studies has extended the deadline for its 2013 Summer Enrichment Workshop through Wednesday, May 15. Summer Enrichment Workshop classes will begin June 10 and continue for three weeks until June 28. Geared to students in grades K-8, the Summer Enrichment Workshop offers a broad range of enrichment courses. Students will have the opportunity to select an interactive, hands-on course that matches their interests and abilities. This summer’s classes include topics such as “Awesome Art,” “Biology Bonanza,” “Extreme Meteorology,” “Calling All Grossologists” and many more. Class sizes are limited to provide an optimum teaching and learning environment. Classes are taught by qualified teachers, focus on a central theme, and are designed to allow students to explore their natural curiosities.
Business Scene: 4/28
Tuscaloosa News – April 28
West Alabama attorneys and judges will celebrate Law Day on Monday with a 5:30 p.m. program at the Bama Theatre, 600 Greensboro Ave. The program will feature a special showing of the movie “12 Angry Men,” which will be preceded by a discussion on equal justice under the law. The discussion will be led by Bryan Fair, a professor at the University of Alabama School of Law. “This year’s theme, ‘Realizing the Dream: Equality for All,’ provides an opportunity to explore civil rights in America and to reflect on work that remains to be done in rectifying injustice and eliminating all forms of discrimination,” said Nettie Blume, president of Tuscaloosa County Bar, which is sponsoring the program.
Youth orchestra to hold spring concert May 6
Tuscaloosa News – April 27
The Tuscaloosa Youth Orchestra and Wind Ensemble will present a spring concert at 7 p.m. on May 6 at the Moody Concert Hall on the University of Alabama campus.
Locals chosen to suit up for UGA, Alabama as mascots
Rome News-Tribune (Ga.) – April 28
Two college students from Floyd County have been given the chance to lead a stadium of football fans in cheering for a touchdown on a Saturday afternoon in the south. Carson Roes and Parker Branton both passed tryouts recently to be mascots for member-schools of the Southeastern Conference. Roes is one of the people who portray University of Georgia mascot Hairy Dawg while Branton has been picked to be among those who play Big Al, the mascot of the University of Alabama.