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MONDAY, JULY 29 – SUNDAY, AUGUST 4, 2013

BEST BETS

UA TO HOLD SUMMER COMMENCEMENT EXERCISES – The University of Alabama will award more than 1,600 degrees to undergraduates and graduate students from across campus on Saturday, Aug. 3 at Coleman Coliseum. Commencement begins at 9 a.m.Contact: David Miller, UA media relations, 205/348-0825, dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.

STUDENTS STUDY NATIVE AMERICAN CULTURE AT SUMMER DAY CAMP – The University of Alabama’s Moundville Archaeological Park is once again offering its Indian Summer Day Camp to children ages 9 through 13 this week (July 29-Aug. 2). The week-long program combines fun, hands-on activities with tours and other educational learning opportunities in topics ranging from archaeology and basic Native American food to ways of weaving, flintknapping and pottery making. Camp participants will complete a variety of art projects, go on nature hikes where they will learn how to identify useful plants, visit a Native American garden, play different Native American games, try their hand at throwing an atlatl and rabbit sticks, and visit with an archaeologist while he shows them how to analyze artifacts. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA media relations, 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu

WHAT DID YOU DO WITH YOUR SUMMER VACATION? If any of the eight high-school students participating in the UA MINT Center’s internship program are assigned to write about this time-tested topic when school resumes, they’ll have very small answers. That’s because they worked full-time research internship jobs this summer, earning $2,000 and carrying out research projects in nanoscience and engineering. Nanoscience researchers frequently measure things in nanometers. That’s about 7,000 times smaller than a red blood cell. The UA Center for Materials for Information Technology, known as MINT, uses such measurements in focusing on materials and processes needed for information storage. The Center’s competitive program invites high school sophomore and juniors to apply each year. For more information on the program, which concludes with a poster/symposium session from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Aug. 2, in Bevill, room 1000, contact Dr. Timothy Mewes, chair of the MINT education/outreach committee, tmewes@ua.edu or 205/348-9187. For assistance, contact Chris Bryant, UA media relations, at 205/348-8323 or cbryant@ur.ua.edu.

UA ARCHAEOLOGISTS DISCOVERING RARE GLIMPSE INTO PREHISTORIC TIMES – UA archaeologists have discovered evidence of occupations that date back 10,000 years ago during an archaeological investigation of the Hewitt-Trussville Stadium site in Trussville. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA media relations, 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu

UA ADAPTED ATHLETICS ADDS NATION’S FIRST COLLEGIATE GOLF PROGRAM – The University of Alabama’s Adapted Athletics program, home to five national championships in women’s and men’s basketball, added its fifth sport this summer with the nation’s first collegiate golf program. The team, coached by former wheelchair basketball standout and current assistant coach Ford Burttram, will begin play during the fall 2013 semester. The team has three players – all of whom compete for the UA wheelchair basketball program – and will play in select Amputee Golf Association events. The genesis of the program will also bring firsts for the sport, as Burttram is working with a wheelchair manufacturer to design a chair that allows the range of movement to strike a golf ball effectively. Burttram is hopeful the sport will attract a diverse range of adapted athletes, from war veterans who are amputees to student-athletes who have paralysis. For more information, contact David Miller, UA media relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.

SANDERSON SHARES LIFE STORY AT CONFERENCE IN VIRGIN ISLANDS – UA social work student Michaela Sanderson’s childhood experience reads like a movie script: her older sister died when she was young; her parents struggled with drug addiction; and her mother attempted suicide in front of her children. It’s enough to send a young girl into depression and off the road she envisioned traveling on as an adult. As a foster child, Sanderson endured many hardships, but as a rising junior and community volunteer, she shares her story to inspire others. Recently, at the “Surviving and Thriving” retreat at Necker Island (Virgin Islands), Sanderson was one of six students who shared their stories with international industry and philanthropic leaders. Sanderson, a member of Alabama Reach – UA’s student support group for foster children – was selected after a round of three essays. She said she was proud to be an ambassador for the state and the university and the contacts made at the conference will help future charitable efforts. For more information, contact David Miller, UA media relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.

EVENTS

TROMBONE WORKSHOP – UA’s School of Music will play host to the Alessi Seminar from Saturday, July 27, to Saturday, Aug. 3, at the Moody Music Building. The event features concerts, workshops and seminars. Joseph Alessi, principal trombonist with the New York Philharmonic, is the host for the event. Concerts are free and open to the public in the Concert Hall in Moody Music Building. The Joseph Alessi Solo Recital will be at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 27. Quartet Night will be at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 1. The Participant Solo Recital will be at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 2. The Trombone Choir Concert will be at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 3. Contact: Richard LeComte, UA media relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782.