Gorgas House being renovated; new curator may be sought
Tuscaloosa News – Sept. 6
Renovation is under way on one of the oldest buildings remaining on the University of Alabama’s campus. The Gorgas House, built in 1829, was one of the four buildings that escaped being burned by Union troops during the Civil War. Tim Leopard, assistant vice president for construction, said the university started renovating the property, at a cost of $750,000. It is scheduled for completion in December…Leopard said UA’s special collections librarians helped the renovation process by providing old photos, surveys and postcards of the house to help recreate its original features…Robert Clouse, executive director of UA Museums, said he plans to search soon for a new curator for the Gorgas House. The former curator, Marion Pearson, died in April…
’70s rock giant Kansas to join UA symphony
Tuscaloosa News – Sept. 7
What: Concert by the ’70s-born rock band with the University of Alabama’s student symphony. When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday. Where: UA’s Moody Concert Hall. Cost: $42 main floor, $37 first balcony and $32 second balcony. More: 205-348-7111…
Wikipedia founder to speak on campus
Tuscaloosa News – Sept. 7
…(UA history professor David) Beito recently founded the Liberty and Power Lecture Series and thought Wikipedia co-founder and Alabama native Jimmy Wales would be the perfect speaker to kick off the series. Wales will speak at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Ferguson Center Theater on the UA campus… Wales was born in Huntsville and has a bachelor’s degree in finance from Auburn University and a master’s in finance from UA…
ESPN’s ‘GameDay’ indeed is coming to Tuscaloosa
Birmingham News – Sept. 6
It’s official. ESPN’s “College GameDay” is coming to Tuscaloosa for Saturday’s Alabama-Penn State game…
Tuscaloosa News – Sept. 6
Start financial lessons while children are young
Lubbock (Tex.) Avalanche-Journal (via McClatchy Newspapers) – Sept. 4
…involve children, in an age-appropriate way, in family discussions about spending, such as the cost of vacation destinations and a new car purchase, as well as routine money chores, such as balancing a checkbook or clipping coupons, said Jan Brakefield, a professor of consumer sciences at the University of Alabama, who teaches money seminars called Cash Camp to middle-schoolers…Teach lessons: Some fundamental lessons should be part of any allowance system, experts say. Kids should be able to evaluate the difference between spending needs and wants. They should also have to make trade-offs, meaning if they spend money on x, they won’t be able to spend money on y. Children also need to learn how to delay gratification, or resist spending temptations, because they have bigger goals for the money, Brakefield said. And at some point, you should talk about how to deal with all the marketing messages bombarding your child…
Unemployment creates new role, and pain, for community colleges
Kansas City Star – Sept. 5
… Stephen Katsinas, the director of the University of Alabama’s Education Policy Center, conducts an annual national survey of community college funding. Last year’s survey found that 92 percent of state respondents thought that Obama’s effort would require expanding community colleges. And 96 percent reported that funding for new facilities is a major need…”Work force training is an unfunded mandate. There are no dedicated revenue streams for work force training programs,” Katsinas said. “The unfunded mission has been to build sustainable communities, which directly ties to surveying and upgrading the skills of the work force. I agree very much with the idea that a dedicated revenue stream for the community work force training is needed.”…
Some experts say textbooks obsolete
Tuscaloosa News – Sept. 5
… Joyce Stallworth, a senior associate dean of the College of Education at the University of Alabama and a former middle and high school English teacher, said she understands why people would want textbooks in the classroom, but that in her opinion, they’re no longer needed. “Our old model is, the textbook is the curriculum,” Stallworth said. “I don’t agree with that. I don’t believe that it’s necessary to have a textbook as we traditionally have them. “People think that the curriculum is only contained in a textbook, and it’s not. I think that teachers are incredibly creative across disciplines and can create those real-life problems. It’s called authentic learning. We can use it to look beyond traditional textbooks.” On the other hand, Stallworth said she isn’t advocating for the complete elimination of textbooks in the classroom, saying that they should be used by teachers as a reference. That way, the cost and the need to fund them could be significantly reduced…
Oil spill claims show statewide scope of Deepwater Horizon disaster
Mobile Press-Register – Sept. 5
… “The coast is important to our tourism sector, and it’s tied into the rest of the state economy, both structurally and spatially,” said University of Alabama economist Sam Addy. “This tells me that we have an asset. We may not think of it as such, but it’s a good asset.”…“People living in other counties should not think they are not affected when something happens to Baldwin and Mobile counties,” Addy said. “Our economy is very much interrelated.” …
State of Alabama sending tax notices to some consumers for online, out-of-state purchases
Birmingham News – Sept. 5
…Retailers without a physical presence in the state are not required to collect sales tax because collecting and reporting the levy would be too burdensome, based on a U.S. Supreme Court ruling from 1992, said James Bryce, a tax law expert at the University of Alabama.
Year-End Giving Could Get a Lift From Political Tax Debates
Chronicle of Philanthropy – Sept. 6
…Last month, a wealthy donor visited Phillip Adcock, a senior fundraiser at the University of Alabama. Convinced that the federal government would soon raise his taxes, the donor wanted to talk about a way to protect his assets while also fulfilling his charitable commitments. Now the donor plans to add $100,000 to a scholarship fund he created in memory of his wife. Altruistic reasons aside, the donation is financially savvy. He will use the charitable deduction to counter the effect…
New Student Section Opens in Bryant-Denny Stadium
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Sept. 6
…On Saturday, students noticed some changes at Bryant-Denny stadium. There’s a new student section called the “High Tide Club.”
UA Classmates to Remember Nicole Francois
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Sept. 6
Tomorrow night, University of Alabama students will remember a classmate who died in a car crash last week. A Denny Chimes memorial tribute will be held at 7 p.m. for sophomore Nicole Francois…
Business Buzz
Tuscaloosa News – Sept. 5
Lucinda Roff has been named interim dean of the University of Alabama School of Social Work. Roff, professor emerita of social work, previously served as dean of the school from 1987-2000. Since 2000 she has taught full-time and has served as co-director of the UA-based Center for Mental Health and Aging. Roff received her bachelor’s degree from Yale University in 1971, her M.S.W. degree from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, in 1973, and her Ph.D. from the University of Denver in 1982. — Sam Addy has been named assistant dean for outreach at the University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration. Addy will continue his duties as director and research economist at the Center for Business and Economic Research at UA. He joined the CBER in 1998 and became director in 2007. Addy works with the economic research program at CBER, where he has conducted economic impact studies for numerous public and private clients across the state. Other areas of emphasis under his leadership include assessment and analysis of Alabama’s work force; fiscal policy; socioeconomic analysis for transportation and other development projects; and environmental and climate change issues…