UA nursing professor working to improve rural health, first event Saturday in Warrior
Fox 6 (Birmingham) – Nov. 20
A University of Alabama nursing professor is hoping a new program will help create long-term change, when it comes to better health in some of Alabama’s medically-underserved areas.
Dr. Debra Whisenant, assistant professor of nursing in the Capstone College of Nursing, has received a grant from Southern Nurses Research Society to launch a health promotion program in Jefferson, Walker and Blount Counties. The first event will be Saturday, November 21, 1 – 3 p.m., at Rock Creek Church of Christ in Warrior. Children can get a free picture with Santa, and there will be blood pressure and blood sugar screenings, as well as health education. Whisenant says many of Alabama’s rural communities tend to be medically underserved, without enough health care providers. She says in these areas, there also tends to be a lack of health education. One of her main goals is to provide this education, as a way to allow people to take control of their own health.
Renowned Cavell Trio returns to play at home tonight
Tuscaloosa News – Nov. 23
Although gaining renown internationally and here at home since inception in 2007, the Cavell Trio still avidly seeks works written for its lineup of oboe, clarinet and bassoon, a repertoire not as wide as that for piano or string trios. Lefevre’s “Sinfonia Concertante in C,” which the University of Alabama resident ensemble will play tonight for the Tuscaloosa Symphony Orchestra’s “Much Ado About Mozart” concert, is an even more singular piece. “It’s new to us for about a year,” said (University of Alabama associate professor) Osiris Molina, who plays clarinet between Shelly Myers Meggison on oboe and Jenny Mann on bassoon. “We first played it in Spain at an international clarinet conference.
Gameday: Alabama produces graduates as well as NFL prospects
Tuscaloosa News – Nov. 21
Sometime next fall, barring catastrophic injury, University of Alabama linebacker Reggie Ragland will put on a new uniform and make his National Football League debut. Before that, in the midst of bowl game preparations, he’ll walk across a different stage in Tuscaloosa to greet UA President Stuart Bell. He’s already counting down. “In about four and a half weeks,” Ragland said last week. “December 12th. I’m happy. It’s been a long journey for me, three-and-a-half years. It’s been a long journey and it’s something nobody can take away from me, being able to graduate.” Ragland will be one of 19 graduates from the Alabama football team to walk across that stage this winter, the most in the program’s history. Some of them are future NFL players, many of them won’t make a roster in the league. For a program with a reputation as an NFL breeding ground, that degree production has become just as important as draft production. “I could have something to fall back on in life, because I know football is going to end sometime,” Ragland said. “This way, I’ve got something to fall back on to better myself and keep bettering myself as a person throughout the years. I could have left last year as a junior, played 10 years, I’d have been 31 years old and still have more life to live, so I’ve got to have some education to fall back on to better my life and my family’s life.”
UA ‘Fashion for Life’
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Nov. 22
Fashion and hard work were showcased tonight in the 7th annual Fashion for Life. University of Alabama senior design students had the opportunity to show who they are as a designer before graduation. Each student created up to a 10-piece collection.
Students in poverty less likely to pass standardized tests than others, results show
Tuscaloosa News – Nov. 22
In the 2013-14 school year, only 5.48 percent of Tuscaloosa City Schools 10th-graders in poverty passed the math section of the ACT test. This past year’s test results, the percentage of 10th-graders living in poverty who met or surpassed the ACT’s math standards dropped to 3.56 percent. Black and Hispanic students didn’t do much better. Both student groups dropped from 6.51 and 21.05 percent to 3.84 and 5.35 percent, respectively. In comparison, the percentage of white students passing the ACT’s math test increased from 44.96 percent to 49.67 percent. . . . Jeremy Zelkowski, an associate professor of mathematics education in the University of Alabama’s College of Education, said the achievement gap is not something that’s unique to the Tuscaloosa City Schools, but is a trend that’s reflected in standardized tests nationwide. “From a research perspective, that’s across the country,” Zelkowski said. “There’s no question that socioeconomic status is the biggest tie between low achievement and high achievement.”
Economists upbeat as Alabama unemployment drops
Anniston Star – Nov. 21
Alabama’s latest unemployment figures have the state’s chief economic prognosticators sounding more optimistic than they have in years. . . . That’s because the actual numbers of Alabamians with jobs rose only slightly in any given month. That meant that “discouraged” workers — the long-term unemployed who simply stopped seeking work — could have driven down the unemployment rate without really improving the economy. October 2015 was different. “It does look good,” said Samuel Addy, an economist at the University of Alabama’s Center for Business and Economic Research. “People were entering the work force, and there were more new jobs than there were people entering the work force.”
Calculating the economic cost of terrorism
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel – Nov. 20
The price of waging war on terror is usually not immediately apparent in the two economic barometers that get the most attention: stock prices and economic growth. . . . Since history does not disclose its alternatives, some indirect costs can’t ever be known. But a recent study by University of Alabama professors Walter Enders and Eric Olson confirmed that the increased government spending required to “thwart subsequent attacks … acts to crowd out private sector investment.”
University Printing Services designs and distributes the UA Brand
Crimson White – Nov. 21
Ruffle through the stack of handouts, fliers, business cards and pamphlets that have gradually built up since you arrived at the University. This could take anywhere from a few minutes to half a day, depending on how generous you are about accepting free stuff. Next, walk around the interior of any building on campus and count the number of room numbers, wall posters, or printed tiles that casually hang about the scene. If the effort seems Herculean then assume a reasonable estimate. Finally, take a leisurely drive through the roads routing through the University and keep both eyes open for any signs or banners that fly about promoting one cause or the other. Most of the material you would come across during this endeavor comes from a single building. It seems baffling to believe that the relatively quiet setting of Barnwell Hall, nestled directly off Bryant Drive between sorority houses, is in fact one of the busiest sectors in all of Tuscaloosa. The headquarters for the University of Alabama Printing Services consistently churns out several hundred volumes of pages in a given weeks’ time, with specific order amounts varying from twenty to two thousand. “I’ve worked here 30 years, and the thing that has surprised me about this job is the variety and volume of printed materials we produce,” said Patricia Dotson, a senior Graphic Designer at Printing Services. “We print everything from student recruitment magazines to posters of national championship athletic teams.”
Promoting peace and harmony
DAWN (Pakistan) — Nov. 22
“Welcome to Lahooti Music Ashram,” beamed Saif Samejo to the audience gathered in the hall that is reserved in his home for music related activities and events called Lahooti Live Sessions. Samejo, a jovial person is the founder and lead vocalist of Pakistani Sufi / folk / rock band ‘The Sketches.’ After around 40 minutes, the American bluegrass band Kentucky Winders arrived and entered the hall where audience were waiting to listen to the Western music on the horizon of Sufism — Sindh. . . . The US Consulate General Karachi chapter had invited the Kentucky Winders to Pakistan to perform in the concerts organized at different places of the country like the National Academy of Performing Art (NAPA), Karachi and at Lahooti Music Aashram, Jamshoro. . . . “This is the first time I am visiting the Ashram which is a beautiful place. The people are very good-natured and give you love, care and respect, we like it. The audience has showed love for our music that we have presented today. The environment is friendly and the food delicious. Samejo is doing well for the promotion of music and peace and such events promote cultural unity. We believe that music is power which can be an instrument for the sustainability of peace, cultural unity, brotherhood and the exchange of musical programmes,” said Nikos Pappas, the lead singer of the Kentucky Winders. He is also the assistant professor of musicology at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.
Exemplars of Crimson: Capstone Men and Women represent the University to new students
Crimson White – Nov. 21
A crowd of timid, yet inquisitive high schoolers ignores their tour guide, drawn instead to the sound of a distant megaphone leading a group of protesters. “Do you guys want to stop a minute and watch?” Anne Matthews, the tour guide and a junior majoring in business management, asks. The Capstone Men and Women, official ambassadors of the University, often help out at events around campus and give tours to prospective students. Sometimes, they have to deal with unexpected happenings on campus like the We Are Done protests. “You just react to different situations as it happens,” Katelyn Katsafanas, president of the organization and a senior majoring in finance, said. “Part of being on Capstone is being able to think on your feet and deal with situations as they arise and everything like that and making sure that the group is taken care of at the same time.” In their role as ambassadors, Capstone Men and Women are expected to represent the University in the best way possible and to convince people to come to Alabama.
Circle K International holds Luminaries literacy event
Crimson White – Nov. 21
Circle K will hold its 41st annual UA Luminaries event this Sunday, Nov. 22, from 5 to 9 p.m. on the quad to fundraise for Reading is Fundamental, an organization focused on illiteracy. A branch of the Kiwanis organization, Circle K focuses on making a difference in a wide variety of ways, whether it be with dogs at the local animal shelter, with kids at “Arts ‘n Autism” or in the battle against illiteracy. “We don’t like to just give back once and call it done,” Circle K President Eric Powers said. “We like to make sustainable service projects that can actually make an impact on these people’s lives forever.” The funds raised at Sunday’s event will go towards buying books for kids, including some who don’t have any reading material in their households. Powers said it is important to raise awareness because the illiteracy rate is growing every year. Circle K is trying to combat that by working with children and adults in head start programs to improve not only their reading skills, but their life as well.
UA provides flu shots to students, faculty and staff for free
WVUA – Nov. 21
With flu season upon us, many Alabamians have the opportunity to be vaccinated for the virus. At The University of Alabama, vaccines are provided free of charge to University students, faculty and staff.
UA Collegiate 100 pin new members
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Nov. 22
Some young African Americans are also honored today. Seven people received their pins as members of The University of Alabama’s Collegiate 100. The men have to show two semesters of outstanding behavior and academic excellence in order to receive their pins.
Gorgas Library holds Christmas Toy Drive
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Nov. 22
Gorges Library has partnered up with the Marine Corps for the annual Toys for Tots drive. They will go to needy families in the community. So far, 62 toys have been donated.
Auburn beats Alabama in annual food drive that benefits food banks
Tuscaloosa News – Nov. 21
Auburn University “Beat Bama” by collecting more canned goods than its archrival during this year’s edition of the annual food drive ahead of the Iron Bowl, which collected 327,995 pounds of food to benefit the two communities’ food banks. Auburn gathered 211,625 pounds of nonperishable food during the drive. Alabama collected 116,370 pounds. “Beat Auburn Beat Hunger may be over today, but there were trucks full of barrels of food still coming in,” said Courtney Thomas, director of UA’s Center for Sustainable Service and Volunteerism. “Our commitment is the fight food insecurity. This is a fun little way we do it.” The annual drive inspired by the football rivalry collects nonperishable food and monetary donations for the Food Bank of East Alabama in Auburn and the West Alabama Food Bank in Northport. The drive began Oct. 5 and ended Friday.
Auburn Plainsman – Nov. 20
Auburn-Opelika News – Nov. 21
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Nov. 20
WSFA-NBC (Montgomery) – Nov. 20