UA Preview

MONDAY, FEB. 18 – SUNDAY, FEB. 24, 2013

BEST BETS

CNN ANCHOR VISITS CAMPUS – Don Lemon, the award-winning journalist and CNN Newsroom anchor, will speak at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21, at the Ferguson Center Theatre on the UA campus. Guests can register for this free event online at uaferguson.tix.com. After the speech, Lemon will sign copies of his book, “Transparent,” which will be for sale at the event. During Lemon’s time at UA, he will discuss his perspective from the field and behind the news desk. He will focus on what it means to be a journalist for a major network and a give a special perspective to the minority representation on mainstream television. Contact: Richard LeComte, media relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782

BOB WOODWARD TO SPEAK – Bob Woodward, the influential Washington Post associate editor, author and investigative reporter, will speak at 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 22, in Sellers Auditorium at the Bryant Conference Center on the UA campus. The event is free and open to the public. Woodward’s talk will be the Gloria and John L. Blackburn Academic Symposium Lecture under the auspices of UA’s Blackburn Institute. His visit will include meetings with the Blackburn Fellows. Contact: Richard LeComte, media relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782.

RURAL HEALTH CONFERENCE – Partnering with rural communities to reduce obesity is the topic of the 14th Annual Rural Health Conference hosted by UA’s College of Community Health Sciences and its Institute for Rural Health Research. The conference, “The Weight of our Rural Communities: Partnering to Reduce Obesity,” will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 20, at the Ferguson Center. The conference will feature two keynote speakers: Dr. Michael Minor, national director of HOPE Health and Human Services Partnership of the National Baptist Convention USA, the nation’s largest African-American religious denomination; and Ravi Patel, founder of the Nashville Mobile Market. The conference also will offer breakout sessions on clinical, community and behavioral topics. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA media relations, 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu

SCIENCE SUNDAY FOCUSES ON NATURAL HAZARDS – The community is invited learn more about the science behind natural hazards during the Alabama Museum of Natural History’s Science Sunday at Smith Hall on The University of Alabama campus. The event, which takes place from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Feb. 24, will feature museum experts and guest presenters offering hands-on activities for various hazards, including earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, forest fires and meteorites. At the event, families will learn how to put together emergency kits for the different natural hazards. In addition to museum experts, there will be representatives from the U.S. Geological Survey and Alabama’s Emergency Management Agency, as well as the Tuscaloosa Fire Department, who will be showing children how a fire truck works. Admission is $2 per person. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA media relations, 205/348-8325, kkeaton@ur.ua.edu, or Dr. Amanda Espy-Brown, the museum’s education and outreach coordinator, 205/348-6383 or aespy@aalan.ua.edu

COMPASSION KEY TO BEING A CHILD LIFE SPECIALIST – As a child life specialist intern at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, 22-year-old University of Alabama senior Sara Howard has learned it takes strength and kindness to get through the day. “People always think that you must be cold and hard to be able to work with kids and families who are suffering so much,” said Howard. “But it’s my compassion and heart that allows me to do just that.” Child life specialists help children and their families overcome challenging life experiences, particularly those relating to health. The child life profession has developed and grown tremendously over the years, and UA’s child life program mirrors that growth. For more information or a list of UA sources, contact Kim Eaton, 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu.

CURRENT COMMENT

POPE BENEDICT XVI RESIGNS – Dr. Theodore Trost, chair of UA’s religious studies department, is available to answer media questions arising from the Feb. 11 announcement of Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation. Media may contact Trost at 205/348-7534 or ttrost@as.ua.edu.

“THE SHOOTER” AND THE BIGGER PICTURE OF VETERANS’ SUPPORT – Dr. Jo Pryce, assistant professor of social work at UA and co-author of The Costs of Courage: Combat Stress, Warriors, and Family Survival, believes stories like that of the Osama bin Laden “shooter” – profiled in Esquire about his lack of health benefits when he left the military – could become more common as more troops return to the United States. Pryce says our medical and mental health networks could become strained, and our current economy could suffer with the country’s plans to downsize the number of active duty service men and women. Contact: David Miller, UA media relations, 205/348-0825, dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.

AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY MONTH

EVENTS PLANNED THROUGHOUT FEBRUARY – UA’s  Crossroads Community Center invites the campus and community to participate in events throughout February during African-American History Month. Students will have the opportunity to travel to two historic Alabama sites at no cost. On Sunday, Feb. 24, buses will take students to the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute to explore its exhibits, and on Sunday, March 3, students can travel to Selma to learn about the historic events at the Edmund Pettus Bridge. Contact: Richard LeComte, media relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782

EVENTS

WUAL RADIO TO HOST EVENTS – WUAL, UA’s public radio station housed in the College of Communication and Information Sciences, will host its annual Toast of the Tour event Thursday, Feb. 21, from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at V&W Supply. The station will also host the “We’ve Come Back” Kitchens of Consequence tour on Saturday, Feb. 23, from 1-4 p.m. A portion of ticket sales from each event will benefit Habit for Humanity. Contact: Kathy Henslee, 205/348-2687 or khenslee@apr.org.

LOOKING AHEAD

UA COLLEGES OFFER COMMUNITY SCREENING OF HEALTH CARE FILM – A free community screening of the film, “Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare,” will be held at 3 p.m. Sunday, March 3, at the Bama Theatre in downtown Tuscaloosa. The event is sponsored by The University of Alabama’s College of Community Health Sciences, Capstone College of Nursing, School of Social Work, Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration and Office of Health Promotion and Wellness. The screening will be followed by a panel discussion to focus on health care issues and concerns, and possible ways to improve the health care system. Panelists will include health care providers, hospital and clinic administrators and representatives of business and government. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA media relations, 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu, or Leslie Zganjar, UA College of Community Health Sciences director of communication, 205/348-3079 or lzganjar@cchs.ua.edu

SHORTHAND – Dr. Michael Mendle, professor of history at UA, will present a lecture titled “Absolutely the Most Important Thing You Know Nothing About: Shorthand and Civilization in 17th Century England.” The lecture will take place at 3 p.m. Wednesday, March 6, in 205 Gorgas Library. The lecture is free; refreshments will be served. Contact: Dr. Michael Mendle, UA department of history, 205/348-1875, mmendle@bama.ua.edu