University of Alabama winter graduation set for Dec. 14
Al.com – Dec. 9
More than 2,000 University of Alabama undergraduate and graduate students are degree candidates for this winter’s commencement ceremonies, scheduled for two ceremonies on Saturday, Dec. 14. At 9 a.m., students from the College of Commerce & Business Administration, College of Communication & Information Sciences, College of Engineering, School of Social Work and Law School will file into Coleman Coliseum for a ceremony presided over by Yasmin Neggers, a human nutrition professor. Graduates from the College of Arts & Sciences, College of Education, College of Human Environmental Sciences and Capstone College of Nursing will participate in a 1:30 p.m. ceremony. For family and friends who can’t make the trip to Tuscaloosa, UA provides a livestream webcast at www.ua.edu/commencement. The university holds three sets of commencement ceremonies per year, after each fall, spring and summer term.
Tuscaloosa News – Dec. 9
ABC 33/40 (Birmingham) – Dec. 9
Real jobs sought for Alabamians with disabilities
Associated Press – Dec. 9
An advocacy group is calling for the phasing out of workshops where Alabama residents with disabilities are grouped together to perform repetitive tasks at less than minimum wage. The workshops receive taxpayer funding to train the people to get competitive employment and become less dependent on the government. “In truth, that almost never happens,” Ellen Gillespie, executive director of the Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program, said at a news conference Monday. The advocacy group, based at the University of Alabama, is calling for legislation to support employment in regular jobs and for a change in how taxpayer money is spent so that it encourages employment with job coaches and other support methods rather than funding the workshops run by nonprofit organizations.
Tuscaloosa News – Dec. 9
Du grønne, glitrende bulk, goddag (Story about UA’s holiday traffic study)
Forskning (Norway) – Dec. 9
Du er stresset, sur og ond. Ha en riktig god førjulstid i trafikken! Regner du med å få et gavekort på karosseriverksted i julegave? Hvis ikke, så bør du skru av musikken, legge vekk mobilen og konsentrere deg om å kjøre. Midt i denne glade førjulstid er medtrafikantene dine stressede og onde. David Brown har analysert data om bilulykker gjennom ti år i Alabama. Resultatene er egnet til å sette en stor, rød ring rundt julen. Da er det 18 prosent flere ulykker enn i amerikanernes travleste reisehelg – Thanksgiving i slutten av november – og 27 prosent flere enn i nyttårshelgen.
BP Argues Companies Are Unfairly Cashing In On 2010 Spill
GPB News – Dec. 10
Oil giant BP is challenging hundreds of millions of dollars in claims that were filed by businesses after the company’s 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The total price tag for BP’s oil spill is huge $42.5 billion. At issue here is a fraction of that but still a lot of money. BP says $540 million has been awarded to businesses for losses that “are either nonexistent, exaggerated or have nothing to do with the Deepwater Horizon accident.” … But now pressure on the company has eased some, and it appears BP’s strategy may be evolving. “Now we’re seeing what parties often do with this type of litigation: drag it out,” says University of Alabama law professor Montre Carodine. “Eventually, you force people who may have very legitimate claims to leave them on the table because they’re tired you wear them down.”
‘Snacks With Santa’ set for Dec. 14 at Gadsden’s Hardin Center
Al.com – Dec. 9
You don’t have to wait for Christmas Eve to enjoy cookies and milk with Santa Claus. Gadsden’s Hardin Center for Cultural Arts is hosting the fourth annual “Snacks With Santa” Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon on the first floor. The event is free and sponsored by Downtown Gadsden Inc. and the University of Alabama Gadsden Center.