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MONDAY, MAY 27 – SUNDAY, JUNE 2, 2013

BEST BETS

UA RECOGNIZES TOP UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCHERS – Thirteen University of Alabama undergraduate researchers have received recognition through the Randall Outstanding Undergraduate Research Award Program. The program recognizes the best research activity conducted by UA undergraduates, who are nominated by faculty and staff research directors. In 1997, the Randall Publishing Co., now Randall-Reilly Publishing, and the H. Pettus Randall III family created the Randall Outstanding Undergraduate Research Award Program in memory of Henry Pettus Randall Jr., a distinguished UA alumnus and creator of Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges. A distinguished panel of UA research faculty and past winners of the Burnum Distinguished Faculty Award select the winners. For information on individual winners, visit http://uanews.ua.edu/2013/05/ua-recognizes-outstanding-undergraduate-researchers/ or contact Richard LeComte, UA media relations, at 205/348-3782 or rllecomte@ur.ua.edu.

UA TO HOST CREATIVE WRITING CAMP FOR HIGH SCHOOLERS – The University of Alabama will sponsor the summer 2013 Creative Writing Camp for local high school students – rising freshmen through graduating seniors – June 3-14. The camp will meet from 1 to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday in 301 Morgan Hall on the UA campus. No previous creative writing experience is required. The instructors will be published writers who are graduate students in UA’s Master of Fine Arts program. They will lead a two-week exploration of creative writing under the direction of Robin Behn, professor of English. Students will experiment with different forms of writing, including fiction, nonfiction and poetry, give a public reading and create their own publication. Tuition is free and free parking is also available. To register, send an e-mail with the student’s name, address, phone number, e-mail address, school and grade level to Ashley Chambers, camp director, at uacreativewritingclub@gmail.com.For more information, visit www.bama.ua.edu/~cwc/ or contact Chambers.

CURRENT COMMENT

UA PROFESSOR SAYS JUVENILES SHOULD HAVE OPTION FOR PAROLE – As legislators and legal officials in the state struggle with the sentencing of a 17-year-old boy convicted of capital murder, a University of Alabama psychology professor says policy-makers should consider adhering to the recent Supreme Court ruling that states a life sentence without parole is unconstitutional for juveniles. Earlier this year, the Alabama House of Representatives failed to pass a state Senate-approved bill that allows for the possibility for parole after 40 years; Alabama judges are now in limbo. Dr. Randy Salekin, who performs interventions with youths in detention centers and for the Department of Youth Services (DYS), wants to see the sentence of “life without parole” to be replaced with “life with the option for parole”. Salekin says, “This allows whoever is making the decision to recognize developmental maturity differences in children and to sentence youth with those considerations in mind. This would not mean that there would have to be an elimination of consequences but rather that the consequences would further consider the differences in brain development and maturity that are evident between adolescents and adults.” Salekin also said that under the current system an adolescent who commits a crime at 15 could remain in prison through adulthood and well into their seventies or eighties even though they have experienced considerable brain development that has altered their decision making and emotion regulation capabilities. Contact: David Miller, UA media relations, 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.  

EVENTS

SUMMERTIDE THEATRE – SummerTide Theatre, the professional summer theatre of UA, will present “Jubilee – Songs of and about Alabama” from Friday, May 31, through Friday, June 28, at the George C. Meyer Performing Arts Center, 2022 W. Second Street in Gulf Shores. The production marks the 10th anniversary of the SummerTide theatre program. Paying homage to the musical heritage of Alabama, “Jubilee” compiles songs ranging from blues and country to rock and gospel. Performances are at 8 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Tickets are available at SummerTide.org or by calling the UA box office at 205/348-3400. Tickets prices are $20 for adults and $15 for children younger than 12. 

LOOKING AHEAD

EVENT LOOKS AT DIVERSITY IN MEDICINE – The public is invited to learn how the face of medicine has changed over the years at a symposium hosted by UA’s College of Community Health Sciences. The event, “Through These Doors: Changing the Face of Medicine,” will be from 11:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 4, at the University Church of Christ, 1200 Julia Tutwiler Drive. There is no cost to attend the event; however, an RSVP is requested to the following link events@cchs.ua.edu. The symposium includes an afternoon segment with lunch, two panel sessions and a keynote address, and an evening segment with a Trailblazers recognition ceremony, dinner and a talk and a mentoring opportunity for students. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA media relations, 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu, or Dr. Pamela Payne-Foster, 205/348-5148 or ppayne-foster@cchs.ua.edu