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NEW MOBILE APP TO AID FISHERMEN, BOATERS – A new mobile app from the Alabama Water Institute and the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium, created by students in The University of Alabama Management Information Systems program, allows boaters and fishermen in the Gulf of Mexico to instantly access information about weather, tides, buoy stations, water safety and fishing regulations based on their location. The app is available for iOS and Android devices. For more information, contact Brock Parker, Alabama Water Institute, at brockparker@ua.edu. 

UA COLLABORATES WITH SMITHSONIAN TO CREATE DIGITAL RESOURCE  The University of Alabama Religious Studies Department and the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History have formally collaborated to create a digital resource on the religious dimensions of the events that took place at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Uncivil Religion: January 6, 2021, is a website that features scores of digital media — tweets, videos, photos, FBI files, etc. — associated with religions that were represented at the U.S. Capitol that day. The website also features interpretive essays on those religious symbols written by more than a dozen religious studies scholars from around the globe. For more information, contact Shane Dorrill, UA Strategic Communications, at shane.dorrill@ua.edu. 

UA, STATE PARTNER TO TRAIN FIRST RESPONDERS ON MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS  To improve mental health awareness, support and literacy, researchers and social work experts at The University of Alabama are partnering with state agencies to train first responders to identify, understand and respond to signs of substance use disorders and mental illnesses, particularly serious mental illness and serious emotional disturbances. Called Project Support: Mental Health Awareness Training for First Responders, the statewide initiative partners with the Alabama Department of Mental Health, Alabama State Fire Marshal Office and the Alabama Law Enforcement Association. At UA, the effort will be managed by the ongoing VitAL initiative in the School of Social Work. For more information, contact Adam Jones, UA Strategic Communications, at adam.jones@ua.edu. 

ALABAMA CHEERLEADING WINS THIRD UCA DIVISION 1A ALL-GIRL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP – Alabama cheerleading took home its third Division 1A all-girl national championship on Jan. 16 at the 2022 UCA & UDA College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championship. The Crimson Tide’s co-ed squad also earned a runner-up finish and the dance team finished sixth. The championship is the program’s third in the Division 1A All-Girl competition, previously winning in 2020 and 2015. It is the sixth national title overall, also winning co-ed titles in 1984, 2011 and 2015. For more information, contact UA Athletic Communications at 205-348-6084. 

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