US mass shootings blamed on high gun ownership and ‘American Dream’
Wired – Aug. 24
Gun ownership rates are linked directly to its mass shooting numbers, a study claiming to be the first global empirical investigation of its kind has found. The study author suggests America’s extraordinary public shooting rate — it has 5 percent of the world’s population but, between 1966-2012, 31 percent of these incidents — may also be the result of pressures and false hopes created by ‘the American Dream’. “My study provides empirical evidence, based on my quantitative assessment of 171 countries, that a nation’s civilian firearm ownership rate is the strongest predictor of its number of public mass shooters,” commented Adam Lankford, associate criminal justice professor at the University of Alabama. “Until now, everyone was simply speculating about the relationship between firearms and public mass shootings. My study provides empirical evidence of a positive association between the two.”
ENews Park Forest – Aug. 24
Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel – Aug. 24
AllGov.com – Aug. 25
Homeland Security Wire – Aug. 25
The Morning Call – Aug. 24
Mobile hearing center combats hearing loss in Alabama
Crimson White – Aug. 24
Students might see a new addition to campus this semester rolling down University Boulevard. The Hear Here Alabama truck is a new initiative led by Dr. Marcia Hay-McCutcheon, associate professor of communicative disorders. The truck will travel to rural areas of Alabama to provide free hearing tests. “There is poverty in specific counties of Alabama. And so, my goal is to target those counties where there could be a greater incidence of hearing loss because they don’t have access to hearing healthcare,” Hay-McCutcheon said. The large red and white truck can be found at the Speech and Hearing Center on campus. On board the truck is a variety of equipment used in diagnosing specific hearing issues. There are two sound booths that help identify the problems. Currently, Hay-McCutcheon is working on getting her commercial driver’s license to drive the truck. With her at the helm, and a team of 13 students to help, they will travel across the state to provide healthcare services in several counties. “It’s just really exciting being a part of this project that has the potential to help so many people who need help and don’t realize it or don’t have access to it,” Hay-McCutcheon said.
Jones Gallery to display P.H. Polk’s George Washington Carver collection
Crimson White – Aug. 24
The peanut. While most people think of the peanut as a delicious snack food or jelly’s companion in a PB&J, one man turned the simple peanut into flours, pastes, papers, soaps, lotions and much more. George Washington Carver dedicated his research at the Tuskegee Institute, and the majority of his life, to peanuts. From Aug. 27 to Sept. 25, you can see Alabama native and famed photographer P.H. Polk’s collection of images of Carver’s work while he was at the Tuskegee Institute. The collection will be displayed downtown at The University of Alabama’s Paul R. Jones Gallery. Katie Howard, the director of the gallery, says that the University holds one of the largest collections of Polk’s photography in the Southeast. Some of the images have been previously displayed at The Birmingham Museum of Art and The Montgomery Museum of Fine Art. The collection was donated in 2008 and is part of The Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art, a permanent collection owned by The College of Arts and Sciences.
Consulting firm named Manderson Partner of the Year
Crimson White – Aug. 24
Last week, a consulting firm out of Birmingham, known as Accounting, Economics and Appraisal Group, LLC, was named the Manderson Partner of the Year by the Culverhouse College of Commerce. This award is given by the University of Alabama’s Manderson Graduate School of Business. The winner of this award is chosen for a company’s relationship with the school and how well it is able to further benefit the graduate’s knowledge and experience within the corporation post graduation. The Culverhouse College takes pride in the relationships that have been created through the companies that support University of Alabama students, and this award helps to maintain these relationships and to help them grow. The Manderson Partner of the Year Award was first presented in 2009. The award was created in order to honor the exceptional relationships that impact the University of Alabama’s MBA program. It has since been awarded to companies such as BBVA Compass, Regions, Cigna-Health Spring, Proctor & Gamble, and Georgia-Pacific.
Fulbright Scholarship recipients to hold discussion panel
Crimson White – Aug. 25
On Tuesday, Aug. 25, the University of Alabama’s Fulbright Scholarship awardees will hold a discussion panel at 3:30 p.m. at the Center for Community-Based Partnerships. Topics discussed will include tips on how to become an award recipient and things they did to help them achieve their goals. The Fulbright Program is designed to give students from over 150 countries a chance at studying abroad, while at the same time promoting cultural exchange. Beverly Hawk, the campus coordinator for the Fulbright Program and director of program services, said the awardees will be sharing their experiences with other students and giving them advice on what to expect when applying for the scholarship. This year, a record 14 students received the award at the University of Alabama.