Bama Bound preps incoming freshmen for the University of Alabama
Tuscaloosa News – July 24
Thousands of freshmen will start classes at the University of Alabama on Aug. 21, bringing thousands of questions about college life. That’s why there’s Bama Bound. From May through most of August, the two-day orientation sessions pair incoming students with a team of upperclassmen who aim to ease the transition to college life. Bama Bound introduces students to the academic culture, campus climate and the student community at the University of Alabama, said Landon Waid, associate director for orientation and special programs at UA.
Moselle native visits with 34 Nobel Prize winners
Hattiesburg American – July 23
How many Nobel Prize winners have you met? Moselle native Michele Stover just spent a week in Germany hobnobbing with no less than 34 Nobel laureates. “It was crazy,” Stover said. “You would turn around, and it would be like, ‘There’s one,’ and ‘Oh, there’s another.’” Impressive stuff, particularly for a budding young research scientist. Stover, 24, is a third-year doctoral student studying computational chemistry at the University of Alabama. She was one of two UA students selected for the 2013 Nobel Laureate Meeting from June 30-July 5 in Lindau, Germany, which paired the Nobel laureates with 625 undergraduate and postgraduate students from 78 countries.
RISE to hold graduation
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – July 23
Pomp and circumstance will fill the Rise School this Thursday. Eighteen students are now preparing to take their final walk as graduates. UA’s Rise Program serves children with special needs along with their peers from ages eight weeks to five years. Eighteen students will graduate at Rise’s annual commencement ceremony at 6 p.m. this Thursday. The program is at the Stallings Center on the University of Alabama campus
Middle school student helps uncover skeleton
Crimson White – July 24
The fossilized skeleton of a large marine reptile that would have lived around 80 million years ago was recently uncovered by University of Alabama researchers. Dana Ehret, a paleontologist with the University’s Museum of Natural History, said the remains were of a large marine animal that may have been what the Loch Ness Monster was based on. Part of the huge creature was first discovered by Noah Traylor, a middle school student participating in the UA Museum of Natural History’s 35th annual Expedition in Greene County, Ala., a program for middle and high school students. “[Traylor] initially found what he believed to be a rock and showed it to the other paleontologist that was out at the expedition, Dr. Takehito ‘Ike’ Ikejiri. Ike recognized that the rock was actually bone and asked where it was found. When Noah showed him, others started finding more bone,” Ehret said.
Student-professor start-up finalist for funding
Crimson White – July 24
A team of University of Alabama students and professors is competing for up to $100,000 in funding for its start-up company, e-Electricity, through the 2013 Alabama Launchpad Start-Up Competition, and the group has reached the final stage of the competition. Sloan McCrary, a second-year MBA and CEO of e-Electricity, said the company’s product would allow smartphone users to charge their devices without using an outlet. “Our technology is an antenna design that has the ability to receive radio frequency waves and … convert them into electricity that can be used immediately or stored in your phone’s battery,” he said. “It’s an antenna that can actually charge a battery.” The device was invented by Jaber Abu-Qahouq, a professor in the University’s College of Engineering.
Student wins $10,000 for UA organization
Crimson White – July 24
Amway recently announced the grand prize winners of its “Who Cares Challenge,” and Bethany Carter, a junior majoring in political science at The University of Alabama, was one of the five winners. The challenge calls for people and groups to tell their stories of helping improve their communities. The contest was open to young adults and teens ages 13 to 22, and winners were chosen by having their stories voted for online. The grand prize for the contest was $10,000 awarded to a nonprofit of the winner’s choice and an all expense paid trip to “We Day,” a youth empowerment event, to be held in Minnesota Oct. 8. Carter entered the contest on behalf of the student-led microfinance organization, Forza Financial. Carter currently acts as the grant writer for Forza Financial.
UA Community Music School presents 2 children’s
Crimson White – July 24
The University of Alabama Community Music School will present the children’s musicals “Carnival of the Animals” and “Annie KIDS” back-to-back this Friday starting at 11:00 a.m. in the Moody Music Building. The musicals are the culmination of a two-week Community Music camp that is a collaborative effort of UA faculty, staff, students and local professionals. The camp participants range in age from 6 to 12 years old and will be the stars of the two shows. The Community Music School is a community outreach program through the UA School of Music which serves anyone interested in learning music and instruments regardless of age or level of ability…Through the Community Music School, more than 600 students receive private and group instruction on wind, brass, string, piano, harp, organ, guitar, drums, voice and composition/theory each year in a variety of settings.
University co-sponsors Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction
Crimson White – July 24
The 2013 Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction has been awarded to Professor Paul Goldstein of Stanford University for his book “Havana Requiem.” The award is co-sponsored by The University of Alabama School of Law and the ABA Journal of the American Bar Association. Helen Cauthen, communications specialist at the School of Law, said the prize is named for Harper Lee, author of the classic novel “To Kill a Mockingbird.” Cauthen said the School of Law has awarded and run the prize since 2011. A team of UA School of Law staff selected professors and the ABA Journal aid in the selection process…In addition to the School of Law staff, who help narrow down the initial pool, a selection committee makes the final decision. According to a press release from the ABA Journal, this year’s selection committee was composed of Moris Dee, the co-founder and chief trial counsel of the Southern Poverty Law Center; Sharon Malone, spouse of Attorney General Eric Holder and sister of Vivian Malone Jones, the first African- American female to graduate from The University of Alabama; Michael Connelly, a New York Times best-selling author; Richard North Patterson, also a New York Times best-selling author; and Katie Couric, host and special correspondent for ABC News.
UA student runs unopposed for Tuscaloosa City Council
Fox 6 (Birmingham) – July 23
The way this works is that unopposed candidates for city council, board of education and mayor will be elected tonight through a resolution of the city council. This does include Tuscaloosa mayor Walt Maddox. The only new member of the Tuscaloosa city council who is running unopposed is 22-year-old University of Alabama student Matt Calderone.
Alabama AD Battle pleased with direction of Alabama athletics
CBS 42 (Birmingham) – July 24
He hasn’t been the Athletic Director for the University of Alabama for very long, but Bill Battle is already making an impact on the many programs in Tuscaloosa. Shortly after his hiring, Battle hired a new women’s basketball coach, Kristy Curry. Now, he’s looking to move forward in many areas of athletics. Battle made an appearance at the Tuscaloosa Rotary Club on Tuesday morning and spoke about how well Alabama has done in many programs, not just football. He says he is pleased with the direction of athletics at the University of Alabama, as the Tide has managed to be successful in bringing home national championships in sports other than football – most recently in men’s golf. Those aren’t the only successful areas for the athletic programs, though. Battle noted the Tide’s academic successes as well.
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – July 23
Fox 6 (Birmingham) – July 23
‘Three Days at Foster’ tickets on sale today
Newnan Times-Herald (Ga.) – July 23
The Newnan Cultural Arts Commission will present a screening of the new documentary “Three Days at Foster” Aug. 29 at 7 p.m. at the Wadsworth Auditorium in downtown Newnan. “Three Days at Foster” tells a powerful true story about the integration of sports at the University of Alabama in the shadow of segregationist Governor George Wallace’s stand in the schoolhouse door. On June 11, 1963, Wallace fulfilled a campaign pledge by blocking the entrance of Foster Auditorium, in a symbolic attempt to prevent the admission of two African-American students. But he planted his feet on the wrong side of history. After Wallace finally yielded to federal authority, Vivian Malone and James Hood registered for classes without incident, shattering an important barrier while marking a pivotal milepost in the civil rights movement. Much less is known about the athletic pioneers who came after Malone and Hood — attacking the last bastion of segregation.