Graduation guide: College commencement ceremony details from across Alabama
Al.com – May 1
Across the state, college students and their families are preparing for spring graduation season. Here are the details on some of the state’s largest colleges and universities. Please email your college’s graduation details to add to the list … Up to 4,095 students will earn diplomas from the University of Alabama during four commencement exercises May 3 and 4 in UA’s Coleman Coliseum. The commencement exercises will begin at 6 p.m. May 3 for students in the College of Commerce and Business Administration and the College of Engineering. They’ll resume at 9 a.m. May 4 for students in the College of Communication and Information Sciences, the College of Education, the College of Human Environmental Sciences, and the College of Nursing. Students in the College of Arts and Sciences and the School of Social Work will graduate in an exercise set for 1:30 p.m. May 4. And the UA Law School will hold its commencement exercise at 5 p.m. the same day. UA will broadcast the graduations live via the Internet on the school’s commencement website. The graduation roll is available here.
UA Economists See Positive Trends, Still Slow Pace of Improvement for State
Al.com – April 30
Alabama’s economy should continue to see modest growth through the remainder of 2013. Economists at the Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER) in The University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Commerce expect real GDP to increase close to 2.0 percent this year, about the same or a little below last year’s rate of expansion. Job growth could be a little stronger than in 2012, with 10,000 to 15,000 jobs added, a gain of around 0.7 percent. Transportation equipment manufacturers will be responsible for much of the output and job gains. Demand for vehicles produced in Alabama is expected to stay strong in 2013 and production should maintain current levels. Mercedes and related suppliers will be hiring in 2013 for C-Class production; Mobile area shipbuilders are also adding to employment. Other sectors with above-average job growth will be business and healthcare-related services. An improving real estate market could spur job gains in primary and fabricated metals and wood products manufacturing. But sluggish consumer spending gains could result in slower job growth in the leisure and hospitality sector than was seen in 2012.
Tuscaloosa News – May 1
NAB Looks at Superstorm Sandy
TVTechnology.com – April 30
The National Association of Broadcasters announced the release of “Communicating Superstorm Sandy,” about the communications response during Hurricane Sandy’s devastating sweep through the East Coast last fall. “Sandy” is the second installment in the NAB video series which centers on “the role that local radio and television broadcasters serve as ‘first informers’ in times of emergency,” according to a release. Previously the same production team, University of Oklahoma Media Arts Professor Scott Hodgson and University of Alabama Professor of Telecommunications and Film Chandra Clark, centered on how local and national broadcasters covered the 2011 tornadoes in Alabama and Missouri. This new film features up-close footage of Sandy and more than 30 in-depth interviews, ranging from Brian Williams at NBC Nightly News to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, to the local broadcasters who had a front row seat to the storm’s path through Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New Jersey and New York. A series of videos focusing on select East Coast cities was also produced. Clark and Hodgson worked with the Broadcast Education Association and their students to complete the film.
12 UA students headed to Cannes Film Festival
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – April 30
Some UA students are getting the chance of a lifetime to travel to France. Twelve University of Alabama students, including the daughter of the Crimson Tide head football coach Nick Saban, are all headed to the Cannes Film Festival. The prestigious film festival brings directors and A-list celebrities from all over the world, and this year, UA students who aspire to become event managers will serve as planners for high-end parties. The students are all part of the University of Alabama‘s Meeting Professionals International. They will be in France a total of 17 days.
With Today’s Immigration Debate Raging, Michael Innis-Jimenez’s New Book ‘STEEL BARRIO,’ a Document of Early Mexican Immigration to Chicago, Provides Helpful Historical Perspective
Sacramento Bee – April 30
What is causing the anti-immigrant fervor in Arizona, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, Utah and many other parts of the U.S.? What role has the Great Recession played in the spread of anti-immigrant legislation and rhetoric throughout areas with new Latino populations? STEEL BARRIO, a new book by NYU Press will give advocates, policy makers, and anyone else interested in immigration a historical perspective on how new ethnic communities cope with harassment and discrimination in time of national economic crisis. Drawing on individual stories and oral histories, Michael Innis-Jimenez tells the story of how a community developed and survived the Great Depression to become the vibrant, active community that continues to play a central role in Chicago politics and society. STEEL BARRIO also examines how the fortunes of Mexicans in South Chicago were linked to the environment they helped to build…Michael Innis-Jimenez , the author, is an American Studies scholar and historian at the University of Alabama. His areas of expertise include twentieth and twenty-first century Mexican and Mexican American migration to the American South and the American Midwest. His research focuses on Latinos/as in the United States, transnationalism, immigration, labor, and civil rights.
High demand for nurses in Alabama
NBC 13 (Birmingham) – April 30
If you’re looking for a job as a registered nurse in Alabama you are in luck. The Alabama Department of Labor says registered nurses are in the highest demand right now. Records show there were more than 2,000 positions available in March across the state. That number has grown by about 200 since … With the demand for RN’s so high, senior nursing student at the University of Alabama Kacie Wilcox is confident she will find a job. But it was a personal experience with her grandmother that assured Wilcox she was entering the right field. “Her nurses were her saving grace. They didn’t only care for her physically. They took care of us as a family. As you can imagine we were on an emotional roller coaster it was terrible.” … According to Dean Sara Barger, the Capstone College of Nursing has seen a 300 percent increase in enrollment over the past decade.
Three Alabama cities on list of tornado active cities
CBS 42 (Birmingham) – April 30
A list of the most tornado prone places in the world is out, and three of the top five spots can be found right here in Alabama. Three of the state’s most populated areas are on the list. University of Alabama geography professor Dr. Jason Senkbeil doesn’t think Alabama’s recent tornadoes had that much impact on the list. Instead he believes with better technology we’ve been able to accurately detect more tornadoes.
Lamberth to lead UA Mortar Board
Alexander City Outlook – May 1
An Alexander City native was recently chosen as a “leader of leaders” by her peers. Katie Lamberth was chosen as president of the University of Alabama’s Mortar Board chapter. Lamberth, a rising senior who was selected to lead her chapter during Alabama’s Honors Day in April, said she’s excited about the opportunity to serve her peers. “It’s an incredible honor to be able to serve a group of the top students and leaders on the University of Alabama’s campus,” Lamberth said. “I think that I’ll use leadership skills that I’ve obtained through being a leader in other organizations and through Mortar Board as well.” Started in 1918, Mortar Board is a national honor society with 230 chapters around the United States.
Yolanda on the Island: Business is bloomin’
Gulf Coast News Today – April 30
This spring the blooming flowers have been extraordinarily beautiful. Businesses are blooming too. The Alabama Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce had its first Economic Development Summit. During the meeting, business opportunities were blooming before your eyes. The goal was to discover potential untapped areas of economic development. The first speaker was Nisa Miranda, Director of Community Development at the University of Alabama. She gave an overview of the region’s demographics and projections. The challenge is for the islanders to collect and publish demographic information for our area of the county. This type of information would be beneficial for attracting new business investment.
Tuscaloosa Kids Triathlon a good fitness test
Tuscaloosa News – May 1
The idea sprung, perhaps appropriately, from the mind of a child. “We were at a triathlon, far out of town, and I was thinking how long the trip back home was going to be,” remembered Bode Williams, 10. “We were in the car driving back, and I said, ‘Can we please do one in Tuscaloosa?’” Barely a year later, Williams’ wish has become command. The Tuscaloosa Kids Triathlon will be May 18 at the University of Alabama Recreation Center. It will benefit Secret Meals for Hungry Children, a program the Alabama Credit Union sponsors locally, which discreetly places healthy foods in backpacks at elementary schools so children will have nourishment at home. The triathlon consists of swimming, biking and running and is sanctioned by USA Triathlon.