BEST BETS
UA TO HOLD FALL COMMENCEMENT DEC. 12 – The University of Alabama will hold fall commencement exercises on Saturday, Dec. 12, at Coleman Coliseum. Nearly 2,400 graduates are expected to receive degrees. Extensive precautions will be taken to meet health and safety standards. To limit the number of people at each event and ensure physical distancing guidelines, media are invited to two of the four ceremonies taking place throughout the day, at 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. Media are also welcome to use video from any of the ceremonies, which will be streamed on the UA Commencement website and on UA’s Facebook page. For health and safety reasons, please confirm attendance by noon Friday, Dec. 11, by contacting Shane Dorrill at shane.dorrill@ua.edu.
UA STUDENT RECEIVES MARSHALL SCHOLARSHIP – Caroline Yuk, a senior from Crystal Lake, Illinois, is among 46 Americans selected to study in the United Kingdom through the prestigious Marshall Scholarship. She is the third UA student to win the award and first in more than 40 years. The scholarship provides aid to American students to study at graduate level UK institutions in any field of study. Yuk, an interdisciplinary studies major in UA’s New College, will pursue postgraduate degrees in neuroscience at the University of Oxford and audiology science at University College London. For more information, contact Bryant Welbourne, UA Strategic Communications, at bryant.welbourne@ua.edu.
SOUNDS OF ‘HILARITAS’ CAN STILL BE HEARD THIS YEAR – While The University of Alabama School of Music is unable to host its annual “Hilaritas” concert due to the COVID-19 pandemic, fans will still be able to enjoy the holiday sounds on UA Info Radio. A past performance of “Hilaritas”, one of the longest running performance traditions at the School of Music will air in its entirety on UA Info Radio Thursday, Dec. 10 at 6 p.m. Encore presentations will air Sunday, Dec. 13 at noon, Saturday, Dec. 19 at 2 p.m., Sunday Dec. 20 at 6 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 23 at 7 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 24 at 7 p.m. and Friday, Dec. 25 at noon and 6 p.m. The concert can be heard on 92.5 FM in Tuscaloosa or streamed on the UA Info Radio website. For more information, contact Stephanie Plumb, UA Strategic Communications, at stephanie.plumb@ua.edu.
COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION SCIENCES HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES ANNOUNCED — The University of Alabama College of Communication and Information Sciences will hold its biennial Hall of Fame Ceremony on Friday, Feb. 19, 2021, as a virtual induction ceremony and celebration of the honorees. The 2020 class of inductees includes Nancy Parker Boyd, E. Culpepper Clark, Jan Crawford and Bryan Stevenson. For more information, contact Rand Nelson, College of Communication and Information Sciences, at jrnelson1@ua.edu.
CURRENT COMMENT
RARE COSMIC EVENT TO APPEAR IN SKY BEFORE CHRISTMAS — The year 2020 has been one of many surprises. And they aren’t over yet. On Dec. 21, the winter solstice, the planets Saturn and Jupiter will come so close together that they will appear to be conjoined. This “Great Conjunction,” which hasn’t occurred in centuries, will appear in the night sky as a double star closer than the moon appears to be. Dr. William “Bill” Keel, a professor of astronomy, is available to speak about the rare conjunction. For more information contact Jamon Smith, UA Strategic Communications, at jamon.smith@ua.edu.
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