University of Alabama to lead study on impact of trauma on children
North Georgia Times-Free Press – Oct. 8
The University of Alabama is preparing to spearhead a study on the effects natural disasters have on children. AL.com reported Monday that the university has been given a $1.9 million grant to fund a five-year study to focus on the impact natural disasters, like the April 27, 2011 tornado, have on externalized behaviors in children — like aggression and bullying. Aside from behavioral data, clinical psychology professor John Lochman says researchers will also collect data on children’s nervous system functioning. He says some believe traumatic events impact children’s nervous system functions and can make them hyperactive afterward. Lochman says researchers from the University of Alabama are partnering with researchers from the University of Kansas, the University of Minnesota and King’s College in London.
Alva Review-Courier (Okla.) – Oct. 8
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Oct. 8
WAFF (Huntsville) – Oct. 8
WPMI (Mobile) – Oct. 8
NBC 13 (Birmingham) – Oct. 8
UA President Judy Bonner challenges Mobile entrepreneurs to support, empower one another
Al.com – Oct. 8
When Judy Bonner took the helm of the University of Alabama as its first female president in November 2012, she admits she gave little credence to the milestone so many around her celebrated. Considering, however, her father placed newspaper clippings about successful women under her pillow when she was a small child growing up in rural Wilcox County, Bonner told a standing-room-only crowd that perhaps it never occurred to her to question what women can accomplish…“(My father) wanted me to see that women can be successful in all things,” Bonner told the crowd of more than 140 professional women and men gathered Thursday for the third annual “An Evening of Networking with Business Women of the Mobile Area” in the Region’s Bank Pharr Room of the RSA Battle House Tower in downtown Mobile…And the University of Alabama is no stranger to those climbing efforts, Bonner said. Consider, for instance, the university welcomed a record 34,852 students, spanning all 67 Alabama counties, all 50 states and the District of Columbia and some 77 foreign countries. Of that figure, she said, 55 percent are women, compared with only 49 percent of the freshman class 25 years ago and only about 35 percent 50 years ago. Meanwhile, the quality of the students attracted is increasing as well, Bonner said, with some 42 percent of the 2013 incoming freshmen ranking in the top 10 percent of their graduating classes, compared with only 24 percent in 2003.
Native American festival to start at Moundville
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Oct. 8
Happening in the day ahead, WVUA is covering Moundville where the Native American festival is about to kick off…Each year, descendants of Native Americans return to Moundville to celebrate the rich Indian heritage. The University of Alabama’s Moundville Archaeological Park will become center stage for performers, artists, crafts, educators, and Native American food. This marks the 25th year for the festival, which is named one of Alabama s top 20 tourism events.
Crimson White – Oct. 9
Forum highlights progress, pain at the University of Alabama
Tuscaloosa News – Oct. 9
When Earnestine Tucker was a teenager attending Wenonah High School in rural Jefferson County during the 1960s, she heard about the marches in Birmingham. With no car or money to ride the bus, her principal saw that she was determined to participate in the civil rights movement and gave her 20 cents for bus fare…Tucker and other panelists shared their stories about what it was like in Alabama during the civil rights era Tuesday at a community forum hosted by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and the University of Alabama Retiree Association. The forum is part of “Through the Doors,” the university’s yearlong effort to commemorate the campus’ integration…The forum was moderated by WVUA-TV anchor Phillip Coleman. Panelists were Tucker, professor and UA senior research fellow Arthur Dunning, UA academic affairs associate provost Dot Martin, UA First Generation Scholarships coordinator Dianne Teague and Stan Murphy, an attorney in the Alabama higher education desegregation lawsuit.
ABC 33/40 (Birmingham, 10 p.m.) – Oct. 8
ABC 33/40 (Birmingham, 6 p.m.) – Oct. 8
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Oct. 8
NBC 13 (Birmingham) – Oct. 8
UA to hold annual health fair
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Oct. 8
In tonight’s home team health watch, the University of Alabama is reaching out to help make sure its employees know how to stay healthy. The annual employee health fair is tomorrow; this year’s theme is “a healthy you is a healthy UA”. You can receive free health screening tests, flu shots and more. The event is for current employees, their spouses and UA retirees.
Phase 2 Of BP Trial Focuses On Amount Of Spilled Oil
National Public Radio (via WCBE Radio (Central Ohio)) – Oct. 9
In a New Orleans courtroom this week, BP and the federal government are arguing over how much oil gushed into the Gulf of Mexico after the Deepwater Horizon explosion in 2010. Oil flowed from the out-of-control well for nearly three months. Just how much oil spilled will be key in determining the amount BP will have to pay in federal fines and penalties. Attorneys for both the U.S. government and BP told a federal judge in opening statements Monday that they have estimates for how much oil spilled into the Gulf after the accident, but their numbers are different. The government says it was about 176 million gallons; BP says it was closer to 103 million…”You never know what might happen in a case like this,” said Montre Carodine, a professor at the University of Alabama School of Law. “We may get to the very end and there may be a settlement, and ultimately we may never hear Judge Barbier’s determination.” This second phase of the trial is scheduled to continue through Oct. 24.
The Scottsboro pardon: Historic defendants face a wait in overburdened system
Anniston Star – Oct. 8
First the activists declared them innocent. Then the historians. And eventually, even the governor and the legislature of Alabama said that nine black teens couldn’t possibly have had a fair trial when they were accused of rape back in 1931. But to get an official pardon from the state, the Scottsboro Boys will have to wait their turn in Alabama’s backlogged justice system. “Once we’ve received the application, the hearing will come 30 to 60 days out from that date,” said Eddie Cook, assistant director of the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles … “I felt like I was standing on the shoulders of giants,” said John Miller, assistant director of the New College at the University of Alabama. He noted that lawyers such as famed civil rights lawyer Fred Gray and Milton Davis, the state’s first black assistant attorney general, laid much of the groundwork for the long-awaited petition.
Rome News-Tribune – Oct. 8
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Oct. 8
Voters to fill 2 Tuscaloosa City Council seats Tuesday
Tuscaloosa News – Oct. 9
Voters in two municipal districts will decide their respective representatives today for the Tuscaloosa City Council…Bill Stewart, a retired University of Alabama professor of political science, said he expected such campaigning and said it is important for voters to go to the polls today. The winners will help decide a number of issues, from housing and business development to public facilities and taxpayer spending for the next four years, he said. “As a political scientist and believer in democratic government, I’m hopeful people will realize that these members of the City Council do make decisions that affect our lives,” he said, “If you’re in a district where there’s still a race for a council seat, then you need to participate in it.”
Weight room etiquette: How not to be ‘that guy’ at the gym
New York Daily News – Oct. 8
About a week ago, I was at the University of Alabama’s Student Recreation Center getting my workout in. I had just finished my first two weight circuits and was moving on to the final phase of my workout, which required the use of a pull-up bar. Now, because there’s only one real pull-up bar – that is, a bar that’s not attached to a cable machine – in the entire gym, I can usually expect to wait a few minutes for it to be freed up. What I didn’t expect, however, was a half-hour delay in my workout. Which is exactly what happened. The guy in front of me had obviously just begun his pull ups. No big deal. I walked up and asked him how many sets he had. Without looking at me, he eloquently replied, “Dunno.” “Alright, maybe he’s just focused,” I thought. “After all, nobody would be that rude on purpose.” So, I sat down to wait for my turn. (Steven Holbrook is a senior majoring in journalism at The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Ala.)