University of Alabama president to deliver “State of the University” address
Tuscaloosa News – Nov. 13
University of Alabama President Judy Bonner is scheduled to give her fall 2013 State of the University address during a faculty and staff meeting Wednesday at the Bryant Conference Center, 240 Paul W. Bryant Drive, on campus. The meeting will be at 1:30 p.m. in the Rast Room of the conference center. Bonner began her tenure as the first female president of the institution on Nov. 1, 2012. During the meeting, recipients of the Outstanding Commitment to Teaching Award, the Outstanding Commitment to Advising Award and the Sam S. May Award will also be recognized.
University of Alabama to host Innovation Day Friday
Tuscaloosa News – Nov. 13
The University of Alabama will host Innovation Day from 9 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. Friday for those interested in entrepreneurship and innovation. The event will be in the Bryant Conference Center’s Rast Room. A wide range of innovative approaches will be illustrated and a student-run company will discuss small loans to for entrepreneurs. “We have a lot of interesting technologies and startups on campus,” said Richard Swatloski, director of the office for technology transfer. “We knew they (students or faculty members) needed a vehicle or forum to showcase (their ideas.)” A group of students will be elevator pitching, where students have two minutes to pitch their business ideas or technological innovations to a panel of business start-up experts from across the Southeast, Swatloski said.
Yuengling official will speak at UA
Tuscaloosa News – Nov. 13
Jennifer Yuengling, plant coordinator for D.G. Yuengling & Son Inc., which claims to be America’s oldest brewery, will speak at the University of Alabama on Nov. 21. Yuengling will give the Shila Bowron Leadership Lecture from 10 to 10:50 a.m. and from 1 to 1:50 p.m. at UA’s Child Development Research Center. The restaurant, hospitality and meetings management program in the College of Human Environmental Sciences is sponsoring of the event. In addition to the talk, the faculty will induct Jennifer Yuengling and her sister, Sheryl Yuengling, into UA’s Hospitality Hall of Fame. Jennifer Yuengling is part of the sixth generation of her family to be involved in the brewery, which was started in 1829 in Pottsville, Pa. The brewery is still owned and operated by the Yuengling family and she joined the business in 1996.
What’s changed under Common Core? Comparing the old and new standards in Alabama
Al.com – Nov. 12
If you want to know how Alabama’s educational standards changed under Common Core, start with the multiplication tables. Alabama students for generations – all students for that matter – spent months studying them and memorizing them and coming to know, on demand, that 6×8=48 and 12×12=144. If they could remember it with rhyme schemes or mnemonic devices, all the better. But memorization may not be the best way to understand math, experts now say. So current students, while still asked to memorize their times tables, are also required to understand the concept behind multiplication … At an early age – starting in the third grade – they will be asked to put together equations that form the basis of algebra and more advanced math. Instead of memorizing 12×12, for example, they will learn that (10+2)x(10+2) is the same thing. And that will prepare them – earlier — for more advanced thinking, said Jeremy Zelkowski, assistant professor of secondary math education at the University of Alabama. “If you understand this, it sets you up for success in Algebra I, but if you’ve never learned this equation, then you’re stumped when you see it with the variable ‘x’ replacing one of those numbers,” Zelkowski said. “This basically takes thinking to a whole new level. In my eyes, the old standards produced very few college and career ready students.”
What’s in a name? Not much, when it comes to Alabama College and Career Ready Standards vs. the Common Core
Al.com – Nov. 12
What’s the difference between the controversial Common Core State Standards and the Alabama College and Career Ready Standards? Not much, experts say. That’s because the Alabama College and Career Ready Standards are the Common Core standards, with a few Alabama-specific principles added to it. States that adopted the Common Core – a set of standards in math and English/language arts that were developed with the intention of all states teaching the same thing at the same time – were required to adopt 100 percent of it. They were, however, allowed to add up to 15 percent of their own content…Jeremy Zelkowski, an assistant professor of secondary math education for the University of Alabama, has studied the Common Core and the Alabama College and Career Ready Standards. In his assessment, there is little difference. “Calling it Alabama College and Career Ready Standards gives us ownership,” he said. “Now there are a few things added that are Alabama standards, but not much.”
Veterans Day commemorated across Tuscaloosa
Tuscaloosa News – Nov. 12
From the University of Alabama to University Mall, residents and troops alike gathered Monday to commemorate Veterans Day and honor those who have served in the nation’s military. More than 200 people filled Veterans Memorial Park in front of University Mall on McFarland Boulevard for the annual celebration there, but this year it was a joint program hosted by the Veterans Memorial Park Association and the Tuscaloosa Veterans Affairs Medical Center. In years past, these two groups held separate — and, at times, competing — programs to honor military veterans. “We decided this year that we’d join forces for a bigger and better program,” said Maria Andrews, director of the Tuscaloosa Veterans Administration Medical Center. “Those who served selflessly … deserve this and so much more.”
Miss Philippines is trying to help her country
Fox 6 (Birmingham) – Nov. 12
With absolutely no prior pageant experience, 20-year-old Jasmine Sabio, a junior engineering major at the University of Alabama, never thought she would be crowned Miss Philippines this past August…Sabio is very proud of her heritage and now she’s doing everything she can to help her homeland recover from the devastating typhoon that hit last week. About 75 percent of her family still lives there. For the most part, her family is doing okay after the storm, but a few of her cousins were in the storm’s direct path. She hasn’t heard from them since the storm hit.
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Nov. 12
New UA student organization writes letters to service members
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Nov. 12
A new organization at the University of Alabama is searching for support among students. As a member of a military family myself, I’ve learned just how much a letter can mean. My parents met through a letter my mom wrote after a prompt from a “Dear Abby” letter. So, when I learned about one new campus organization, I just had to see what it was all about. “It does hit close to home.” Alyssa Bergman knows all about writing letters to members of the military. Alyssa Bergman/Caring for Camo member: “My boyfriend is in the Air Force, so when I told him about it, he was obviously super excited that I was doing something that makes just a difference in our world.” With paper and a pen, students at the University of Alabama are doing just what this new organization’s name suggests, “Caring for Camo.”
Autism Speaks U chapter comes to campus
Crimson White – Nov. 13
For a student on the autism spectrum, the simple act of grabbing coffee at Starbucks can be a stress-inducing activity. To an individual with autism, every audible sound – music, the scrape of a chair, the buzz of others’ conversations – is heard just as prominently as the voice of a person sitting right across from them. The struggle of individuals with autism to focus and push out distracting stimuli is just one of the issues, a senior majoring in music therapy, Allison Lockhart hopes to raise awareness for through starting The University of Alabama’s new chapter of Autism Speaks U…Sarah Ryan, licensed psychologist and director of autism services at the University, said the fundraising Autism Speaks U does is important to provide services for families affected by autism. Ryan runs the UA-ACTS mentoring program that pairs psychology graduate student members with autistic UA students. Through this program, students with autism can gain many of the organizational and social skills necessary for collegiate life. “Students with autism here at UA or in college in general struggle with a lot of organization,” Ryan said. “It’s hard navigating the multiple types of social relationships, sort of the unwritten role of social interaction that are unique to college that maybe they’ve never experienced before.”
Mal Moore’s legacy continues even after death
Crimson White – Nov. 13
Minutes before kickoff each home game, those loyal to the Crimson Tide reflect back on our history. Reverence is displayed as the “Legends” video offers us a time to be thankful even if it isn’t the last week(end) in November. It wasn’t until Saturday, however, that this quasi-religious pregame ritual afforded me any greater spiritual meaning. A friend looked up afterward, literal tears in his eyes, and pointed out that this was one of our last home games as students. Things would never be the same. But for some reason it wasn’t the years of excitement, the championships, or even Saban the Great that I thought about. It was our late athletic director Mal Moore. Maybe it was nerves before the big game, concern over injuries on defense or a slight buzz, but my sentimental goodbye to fall Saturdays in Alabama was bigger than our recent run of national championships or our optimistic future. It was, in fact, bigger than football. As Coach Moore’s accomplishments continue to leave a legacy on the field, his ethic leaves members of the University community something far more valuable. A love for our state and its people, more than anything else, defined his 50 years of service to The University of Alabama.
Students weigh economic, social factors in grad school
Crimson White – Nov. 13
Before students walk across the Coleman Coliseum stage and turn their tassels to receive their bachelor’s degrees, most narrow their post-graduation options down to two: get a job or go to graduate school. Although these aren’t the only options available, students must weigh the possibilities and choose the one that best serves them in their current social and economic standing…Mary Lowrey, director of career education and development with the UA Career Center, said students must consider what matters to them personally, academically and professionally. “Consider the research being done there or the connections to your chosen industry,” Lowrey said. Mathis said it is important students not to be afraid of limiting their options because they are practical. “Take into consideration if you will be moving halfway across the country if you get into a particular school you’ve applied to, and if you’re really willing to spend four to five years researching a topic you are applying to your studies,” Mathis said.
Panel discusses documentary, history of discrimination at UA (print edition only)
Crimson White – Nov. 13
When Arthur Dunning walked into his first class at The University of Alabama, half the class stood up and left. “No one sat by me in class for the first three years. There’d just be empty desks,” Dunning said. “Dunning was one of the first black students to attend the university during the 1960s … Tuesday night, Dunning was part of a four-person panel in the Ferguson Theater that explored issues of race and segregation on campus.
Focus First gives free eye exams to children in Alabama
WLTZ-NBC (Columbus, Ga.) – Nov. 12
An eye care initiative is reaching a milestone in Alabama. Speaker of the House Mike Hubbard joined Focus First through Impact Alabama at the Greater Peace Child Development Center in Opelika. Hubbard’s visit is to commemorate progress of the only free, cost-effective vision care system of its kinds in the United States. NBC 38’s Dorothy Sherman has more. Kaylee is the 200,000th child to receive this free, high-tech eye exam through Focus First. “It’s an appropriation that we make through the University of Alabama Center for Ethics and Public Integrity, but it’s a very small cost of the tax payers and this is not a state program.