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BEST BETS 

UA COLLECTING BOOK DONATIONS FOR SCHOOLS IN THE BLACK BELT — The UA Center for Economic Development, or UACED, launches the 16th annual Books for the Alabama Black Belt campaign Jan. 31 that encourages UA students, faculty, staff and local residents to donate K-12 books for students in the region. UACED strives to help children develop a love of learning and reading by distributing appropriate books to students in Alabama’s 13 Black Belt counties. UACED will accept donations of new or gently used classic and award-winning books frequently found on school reading lists for K-12 children until Feb. 25. For more information, contact Sally Brown, UACED, at sally.brown@ua.edu. 

CULVERHOUSE LIFT TO OFFER FREE JOB SKILLS TRAINING AND TUTORING — Free tutoring, job skills and financial literacy training sessions will soon be available to West Alabama residents, including veterans and teens, through The University of Alabama Culverhouse College of Business. Culverhouse LIFT, or Learning Initiative and Financial Training, will begin classes for its spring 2022 term in mid-February. Registration and specific course descriptions are available on the Culverhouse LIFT website. For more information, contact Lisa McKinney, LIFT program coordinator, at lift@culverhouse.ua.edu.

A PIECE OF HISTORY: MLK LETTER FROM BIRMINGHAM JAIL AT SPECIAL COLLECTIONS — Inside University Library Special Collections is a letter written by Dr. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. from 1963. King wrote this 21-page letter from the Birmingham City Jail on the margins of newspapers before sending it out to clergymen in the state asking for moderate reform. University Special Collections is furthering its research into this letter. For more information, watch for a news release, or contact Caroline Gazzara-McKenzie, at caroline.mckenzie@ua.edu. 

UA’S MOBLEY AMONG TOP 15 EMERGING SCHOLARS IN HIGHER EDUCATION — UA Assistant Professor of Higher Education Steve D. Mobley Jr. was selected as one of the nation’s top 15 emerging scholars under the age of 40 by “Diverse: Issues in Higher Education.” The magazine annually selects 15 diverse scholars out of hundreds of nominees who are making their mark in academia. “Being named one of the top 15 scholars of color in the country by ‘Diverse: Issues in Higher Education’ is a prominent accolade within the education sector,” said Mobley. “Past awardees include scholars who have gone on to become college presidents, several deans at leading institutions of higher learning, and an array of prolific researchers and thinkers of our time. I am elated to be receiving this honor and it is not lost on me that this is a distinction that several prominent Black scholars whom I respect and admire have received in the past.” For more information, contact Bryant Welbourne, UA Strategic Communications, at bryant.welbourne@ua.edu. 

EVENTS 

MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. LEGACY LECTURE — Alabama State Tourism Director Lee Sentell will discuss his book, “The Official United States Civil Rights Trail: What Happened Here Changed the World,” Feb. 3 at 3:30 p.m. in 118 Graves Hall during the College of Communication and Information Sciences Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Lecture. Sentell’s book is a product of nearly 15 years of working to inventory and link the civil rights history that spans the South. The book lists historic sites in 15 states and is generating discussion of the ways sites are included, excluded, remembered or represented in the complex realm of civil rights. The lecture will also include an augmented reality demonstration.

FIRST UA BLACK SCHOLARS BOWL TEAM READY TO COMPETE — Five UA students are set to compete in the 2022 Dr. Trudier Harris Black Scholarship Bowl, Feb. 5, at 9 a.m. at the Bryant Conference Center. Hosted by UA’s Black Faculty and Staff Association, this year’s event will feature teams from The University of Alabama, Stillman College, Alabama State University, Alabama A&M and several community colleges competing in a series of questions centered on Black history. For more information, contact Caroline Gazzara-McKenzie, at caroline.mckenzie@ua.edu. 

CURRENT COMMENT 

VARIOUS FACTORS CONTRIBUTE TO TEACHER SHORTAGE Teachers’ working conditions have been de-professionalized through mandated and/or scripted curricula, the narrowing of curriculum due to political gamesmanship, and alternative certification routes,” said Dr. Karen Spector, associate professor of English education and literacy at UA. “Secondly, the high-stakes testing environment of K-12 education since 2001 further narrows curriculum, limits teacher creativity, produces the achievement gap it is supposed to close, and contributes to poor teacher and student morale while not increasing student achievement. For those interested in becoming a teacher, the increasing cost of education and low starting pay contribute to decreasing education program enrollments and interest in the profession. There are no easy answers or quick fixes. If we want more great teachers, we need to make teaching more desirable by taking steps to re-professionalize this important workforce.” To schedule an interview, contact Spector at kspector@ua.edu.

MORE BRANDS LET CUSTOMERS OPT OUT OF VALENTINE’S DAY MARKETING EMAILS — Modern marketers understand that building relationships with consumers is key to enhancing their bottom line, according to Dr. Nancy Brinson, assistant professor of advertising and public relations, and that’s why some are allowing customers to opt-out of marketing emails for Valentine’s Day. “Allowing them to opt out of Valentine’s Day promotional emails is a way to authentically connect with those who find the holiday triggers feelings of anxiety or depression,” Brinson said. “Communicating this type of empathy builds long-term brand loyalty, which is far more valuable than the sales they might expect to generate from this target segment.” To schedule an interview, contact Brinson at brinson@apr.ua.edu. 

WITH BREYER’S RETIREMENT, WHEN WILL CONFIRMATION FOR A NEW SUPREME COURT JUSTICE HAPPEN? — “Senate Democrats have stated they plan a confirmation with all due speed,” said Dr. Allen Linken, associate professor of political science. History shows that the party that holds the presidency and the Congress usually loses seats during midterm elections, which is why Linken believes Senate Democrats will push for confirmation hearings between mid-June and October. “Given recent precedent, two to three months, especially with four months notice, is enough time to do a confirmation,” Linken said. “There’s also some thought that a successful confirmation months before an election would galvanize voters who may realize that one of the current, chief consequences of elections, is judicial nominees.” To schedule an interview, contact Linken at aelinken@ua.edu. 

COVID-19 PANDEMIC REMAINS AN ‘ALBATROSS’ FOR PRESIDENT BIDEN — President Joe Biden is entering his second year in office with low approval ratings from the American public, according to a recent poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. One reason for the low rating could be the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, according to a UA political scientist. “President Biden has relatively few significant policy accomplishments he can name,” said Dr. George Hawley, associate professor of political science. “The pandemic remains an additional albatross for the administration. It’s no surprise that conservatives in the electorate do not like Biden, but many progressives also find him uninspiring.” To schedule an interview, contact Hawley at ghawley@ua.edu. 

THE GROWING USE OF THE HOLOCAUST AS A METAPHOR — As the U.S. continues to weather the COVID-19 pandemic, some politicians and members of the media are facing backlash after comparing vaccine and mask mandates to atrocities done by the Nazis during the Holocaust. Dr. Daniel J. Levine, associate professor and the Aaron Aronov Chair of Judaic Studies, said there are many reasons people use the Holocaust as a metaphor, but “probably most foundationally is the Holocaust is really peculiarly horrible; and it’s horrible in a way that sort of defies the imagination. So, the effect of this is that it’s very easy to ‘appropriate’ tendentious or ideologically motivated versions of it for particular political agendas.“ As we move further from the Holocaust in time, Levine said these metaphors will continue. “I really don’t think there is anything one can do here, except to educate the public on the ethics of not using the suffering of other people — millions of them — to score narrow political points.” To schedule an interview, contact Levine at daniel.j.levine@ua.edu.

QUEEN ELIZABETH TO CELEBRATE PLATINUM JUBILEE — On Feb. 6, Queen Elizabeth II will celebrate a Platinum Jubilee commemorating 70 years on the throne, the longest reign of any British monarch and one of the longest recorded in history. “Queen Elizabeth is a fascinating figure,” said Dr. Lucy Kaufman, professor of British history. “She is at once very familiar and very enigmatic, and she has seen more in her reign than almost any monarch, anywhere, ever.” Queen Elizabeth came to the throne as Britain rebuilt from World War II, and her reign has carried through the Cold War, the decolonization of the empire and the building of the Commonwealth, deindustrialization, several wars, the digital revolution, the Olympics, Brexit and now the global pandemic. The triumphs and turmoil of her family life have been dramatized countless times, and she remains one of the most recognized people in the world. The Jubilee will consist of a year of events, from parades and concerts to a tree-planting initiative to create the Queen’s Green Canopy. “The British public have faced devastation over the past few years,” Kaufman said, “and there is a hope that this year might not only celebrate Elizabeth II’s legacy but also bring the country together.” To schedule an interview with Kaufman, contact her at lmkaufman@ua.edu. 

LOWER RATINGS AHEAD FOR OLYMPICS, BUT NBC STILL MADE A GOOD BET — TV ratings for NBC’s coverage of the 2022 Winter Olympics are likely to be down from past winter games and this past summer’s games, but coverage is still likely to dominate TV ratings, said Dr. Andrew Billings, the Ronald Reagan Chair of Broadcasting at The University of Alabama and co-author of a book on Olympic television coverage. “Ratings will be down because that’s the media landscape we’re in with so much out there to draw our attention, but if anything can draw a lot of viewers, it’s sports,” he said. Live sports still rule TV ratings. Even with the winter games coming so soon after a pandemic-postponed summer Olympics combined with the games unfriendly timing in China, the Olympics are still coveted content in the looming landscape of streaming services bidding for sports coverage, he said. To schedule an interview, contact Billings at acbillings@ua.edu. 

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The University of Alabama strives to remain neutral on public policy issues. Strategic Communications may facilitate interviews or share opinions expressed by faculty, staff, students, or other individuals regarding policy matters. However, those opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of the University or its leadership, and do not constitute a statement on behalf of the University unless explicitly designated.