Fulbright Scholars travel abroad to teach English
Crimson White – Aug. 1
Recent University of Alabama graduates Seema Kumar and Elyse McLaughlin received U.S. Fulbright Scholarships to teach the English language in a foreign country through the Fulbright International Education Exchange Program. Kumar and McLaughlin will study abroad during the 2012-2013 academic year in an effort to “increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries,” according to the Fulbright Program’s website. Transportation, tuition, book and research allowances and living expenses for the year will be provided by the program. After previously studying abroad in Granada, Spain, in the spring of 2011, Kumar chose to apply to Spain to further travel around the country…Kumar will be teaching students ages 13 to 15 at a secondary bilingual school, IES Montesclaros, in Reinosa, a small town just outside of Santander…McLaughlin will be studying in Cosenza, Italy…She will be assisting a high school English class, as well as volunteering with area preschool programs to observe Italy’s famous Reggio Emilia and Montessori approaches, which focus on creativity in young children.
HES professor recognized as young leader in tourism
Crimson White – Aug. 1
Kim Boyle, a University of Alabama professor in the College of Human and Environmental Sciences, was chosen to be a part of the inaugural class of the Southeast Tourism Society’s Forty for the Future: Travel’s Leading Talent. The Southeast Tourism Society is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the promotion and development of tourism throughout the Southeast. It includes over 800 tourism-related businesses and organizations from all across the country. Their Forty for the Future program is a way to recognize professionals younger than 40 from 14 states who have performed well and demonstrated dedication to their businesses and organizations… Roy Maize of the College of Human and Environmental Sciences said when he heard about the award, he immediately thought to nominate Kim Boyle. “Kim has been very dedicated in the over 15 years that she’s worked with us,” he said. “The award recognizes young, promising people who are going to be leaders, and I think Kim emulates the kind of leader they’re looking for.”
Student interns at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute
Crimson White – Aug. 1
When Angela Veloza’s high school was unable to help her find scholarships directed toward Hispanics, she took the search upon herself. Veloza, a University of Alabama telecommunication and film major, discovered the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute through her search. CHCI is an organization created specifically “to develop the next generation of Latino leaders,” according to their website. Though it was the scholarship she was looking for, Veloza saw the opportunity and applied for the internship once she was in college. “I am very grateful to work with them because they are one of the nonprofit organizations I have admired since I found out about them,” Veloza said. “They truly make a change, and working there, I see how much we care about each other.” Veloza was placed in the office of Steny Hoyer, U.S. Representative for Maryland’s fifth congressional district. Veloza said she was thankful to work with Hoyer because they share the same values. Because Hoyer is in a leadership office as the Democratic Whip, Veloza said she feels like she has been given extra opportunity to learn. “Out of the 40 interns with me, I am the only one in the Capitol Building and in a leadership office,” Veloza said. “I’ve gotten to work with people who are really committed to what they do and who are extremely focused.”
UA professor says social media is having little or no impact on Olympic viewing
NBC 13 (Birmingham) – July 31
Record numbers of people are tuning in to see the games. With the “who”, “what”, “when”, and “where” typically answered before we see any coverage, Dr. Andrew Billings, says the “how” is getting viewers for the 2012 London Olympic games. Billings is a professor at the University of Alabama and an Olympic broadcast researcher. He says Olympic female athletes are shown 45-48 percent of the time, while male athletes take over the rest of the lime-light. Social media may be the first to break the news of the winners before we see it, but Billings says people are still watching. “That’s a bit surprising to me in a culture that we want everything now and we get our results early. But once again we find that people will tune in to find out how something happened even more than what happened.” The professor says Americans win about 11 percent of the medals and are shown about 40 percent of the time. Dr. Billings has compiled his nearly 20 years of research on the viewers of the Olympic games into a book that he says accurately describes the coverage, titled: Olympic Media, Inside the Biggest Show on Television.
YouTube’s user-generated content grows in popularity as a news source
Crimson White – Aug. 1
A recent Pew study shows YouTube is becoming an increasingly popular outlet for many people, students included, to watch the news. While television newscasts are still a main source, the user-generated content of YouTube is ushering in a more readily available, on-demand type of news…UA professors have noticed the trend of increased YouTube viewing. George Daniels, associate professor of journalism, said he believes YouTube is a great tool for many different reasons and even has his own YouTube channel. “I think it’s absolutely fantastic to have a channel where you can give people more than just selected sound bites,” Daniels said. “You can actually give people full range of what was said in context. That’s one of the biggest pluses of YouTube, but also because people can comment and interact with the media.” Jennifer Greer, a professor of journalism, has done her own research on the public’s use of various media and has found that Facebook and Twitter, in addition to YouTube, are ways in which users share online content. “What people used to do when they were getting digital news is they would go directly to the legacy medias’ websites, so they would go directly to ABC or CNN or Fox News website and get the news,” Greer said. “But with the increase of social media and networking, what we’re finding is the people are sharing news through their social networks.” While both professors believe that this “citizen journalism” is a good thing for the public, each voices specific concerns as to the discretion of viewers and to the agenda setting of the news corporations. “What we have to be careful about is that we, as a consumer, check to see who posts the video, was there an agenda involved. We’re not necessarily going to see other sides,” Daniels said
State newspapers face ‘feeling of loss’ after cuts
Crimson White – Aug. 1
With the discussion, anxiety and apprehension dying down after the cutbacks to three of Alabama’s top newspapers, many citizens and journalists have begun to reflect on the legacy they are leaving behind and the future they are picking up. On May 24, al.com, the online home of The Birmingham News, The Huntsville Times and Mobile’s Press Register for the past 14 years, reported that the three newspapers would cut from seven- to three-day-a-week publishing, following a similar announcement by the Times-Picayune in New Orleans. “These changes are just part of the natural evolution of where journalism is going,” said Jennifer Greer, associate professor and chair in the Department of Journalism at the University of Alabama. “These are not paper companies; they are news companies. We should focus on that.”
Bryant-Denny Stadium’s 5-month makeover nears completion ahead of football season
Crimson White – Aug. 1
Bryant-Denny Stadium is one of the most recognizable stadiums in all of college football, but there is more to the mammoth structure than its 101,821 seating capacity. Fans take pride in their football team, but the offseason preparations of the stadium are almost as complex as those for the team that plays in it. The five-month process of preparing Bryant-Denny begins in the spring and runs into August. Brandon Sevedge, director of athletic facilities, oversees this project, which includes everything from repainting the walls of the stadium to replacing the grass on the field. “It takes months of planning, coordinating and help from multiple campus partners, vendors and contractors in order to prepare the stadium for the upcoming football season,” Sevedge said. Approximately 150-200 people are needed to prepare the facility. This half-year process involves an almost endless list of tasks that takes a small army of workers to complete. Some walk through the seats and are in charge of applying a fresh coat of paint to the stadium’s walls. Others grab a pressure washer and make their way through the stands, ramps and exterior sidewalks. The exterior walls must be washed, too. Cleaning restrooms and servicing kitchen equipment are also on the agenda for workers. They wax the floors, clean all the windows and check the light bulbs. Yes, every light bulb must be examined and replaced before the season kicks off.
UA Health Promotion and Wellness challenges smokers to quit, offers to help
Crimson White – Aug. 1
The Office of Health Promotion and Wellness at the University of Alabama launched a Tobacco Free Challenge on July 11, encouraging faculty, staff and students to quit smoking. The initiative, which lasted throughout the month of July, equipped smokers with the necessary tools needed to kick the habit. Weekly group sessions were held at the University Medical Center from 12:15-1 p.m., and a toolkit was given to each participant, containing various resources to help them through the process, said Kay Whites, coordinator of the Office of Health Promotion and Wellness…UA partners with the Alabama Quitline to provide assistance to individuals who want to quit smoking, Delynne Wilcox, assistant director of Health Planning and Prevention, said. The Alabama Quitline is available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. It provides counseling, as well as pharmacological support, to help those trying to quit smoking. “The Alabama Quitline offers the ideal package, and since it’s already a free service provided to all citizens, out-of-state students can take advantage of it also,” Wilcox said.
Tide basketball players host free kids’ camp
Crimson White – Aug. 1
While many college students were lying in bed on Saturday morning, members of the University of Alabama men’s basketball team were giving back to the Tuscaloosa community. Eight current members of the Crimson Tide, along with former Alabama forward Tony Mitchell, coached a free camp held at the Community Outreach and Development Center at Plum Creek Baptist Church. The camp was hosted in conjunction with Serrell Dental, an Alabama-based organization that provides low-cost dental services to families and reaches out to communities in hopes of benefiting the growth of children’s character.