UA receives $2 million grant to improve Head Start programs
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Nov. 20
The University of Alabama is receiving a grant which will go toward helping preschoolers. More than 500 head start preschoolers across West Alabama will directly benefit from a $2 million federal grant. The university will collaborate with other academic institutions, and their efforts may serve as the national model for all Head Start programs. UA professor Caroline Boxmeyer says improving Head Start can play a critical role in early childhood development. The research shows that that has a lot of benefit for them in terms of their early literacy and academic learning, as well as their emotional and social development. This funding will help service Head Start programs in seven West Alabama counties. The training is expected to begin in August 2014.
Tuscaloosa County continues to do well financially
NBC 13 (Birmingham) – Nov. 20
Recently, we went to Tuscaloosa County where the county seat is the City of Tuscaloosa. And as the county continues to recover from the 2011 tornadoes, they are using innovation and tourism to build their county back stronger…Here’s “what’s working” in Tuscaloosa County. There are a lot of innovators and creative thinkers here…One of reason is the University of Alabama and this place, The Edge. It’s really a community resource. The university-backed center provides one-on-one assistance to entrepreneurs. This is was the dream of UA Dean Dr. Mike Hardin. Who does The Edge touch? It touches West Alabama, it touches students, it touches the community and by design that is what it is supposed to do.
Film highlights 50 years surgeon general’s report on the dangers of smoking
NBC 13 (Birmingham) – Nov. 20
It’s been nearly 50 years since a report was released warning people about the health risks associated with smoking. One doctor has dedicated much of his career to teach about those potential dangers. Dr. Alan Blum at the University of Alabama showcased his film “Fighting Smoke with Fire”. The film catalogs the surgeon general’s report in 1964 which urges American’s to stop smoking. The films also talks about the evolution of cigarettes in American culture.
Fox 6 (Birmingham) – Nov. 20
Exhibit draws attention to dangers of smoking
NBC 13 (Birmingham) – Nov. 20
Fifty years ago the surgeon general released a report that said smoking may be bad for your health. Tonight a group of doctors and professors at the University of Alabama are gathering to commemorate that report in hopes to bring more awareness to the issues of smoking … “Health and Wellness” report … Movies, magazines and commercials have highlighted the use of cigarettes for years. But UA doctor Alan Blum says the issue of smoking hasn’t been blown out. “We really have to bring this down to earth and not look at this as some silly little old fashioned issue.”
NBC 13 (Birmingham) (story about reception) – Nov. 20
Big-name companies drawn to recruit at UA
Crimson White – Nov. 21
Employers want talent. Travis Railsback, executive director of The University of Alabama Career Center, said employers want a talent pool they can continue to pull from to grow a successful company. The University has that talent, and it continues to draw big-name companies in the Southeast like Ernst and Young, Schlumberger and Boeing back to campus every year to hire recent UA graduates…The Career Center gathers data through a six-month survey after each graduation. They use the survey to determine where students are working, what states they are working in and what their average starting salaries are. Current data only exists for Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration and the College of Engineering, but existing statistics show high placement for UA graduates. The top employers of Culverhouse College graduates were Ernst and Young, Regions, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Sellers Richardson Holman & West LLC and BBVA Compass, all which are either headquartered or have an office in Birmingham. The list also includes Hewlett-Packard, which is headquartered in Palo Alto, Calif. According to First Destination Reports from the Career Center, Culverhouse graduates from spring 2012 had an 81 percent placement rate and an average starting salary of $54,117.
Alabama parole board likely to decide after today’s hearing on pardon for Scottsboro Boys
Montgomery Advertiser – Nov. 21
The state Board of Pardons and Paroles is about to revisit one of Alabama’s most infamous miscarriages of justice. The board today is scheduled to consider a pardon petition for three of the nine Scottsboro Boys, black teenagers who were falsely accused of raping two white women on a train in north Alabama on March 25, 1931. The three men — Haywood Patterson, Charlie Weems and Andrew Wright — were convicted of rape after a six-year legal ordeal and were the only three whose sentences were never addressed in their lifetimes. The state ultimately dropped rape charges against five of the Scottsboro Boys; Clarence Norris was convicted of rape but received a pardon from Gov. George Wallace in 1976…John Miller, a University of Alabama professor who has worked on the petition application, said Wednesday the practical effect of pardoning the men remains to be seen. “You can’t undo a wrong in history, but you can take a subsequent action to show that it’s the time to do the right thing,” Miller said. “It sends a message, hopefully, to other states where convictions like this have occurred that there is a public policy value associated with admitting the justice system is not always perfect. There is a judicial interest in attempting to do the right thing, when past mistakes exist.”
UA has class on zombies
Fox 6 (Birmingham) – Nov. 20
There is actually a class on zombies at the University of Alabama, at least the moving-making aspect of the walking dead. You may even see zombies in parts of Tuscaloosa and Birmingham. It’s all for a television pilot show called “Zom-Com” about zombie chasers and it’s a part of a class project for students in UA’s department of telecommunication and film. Fox 6 got a look at behind the scenes at how zombies are made. Professor Adam Schawartz – the mastermind behind it – says it will give students hands-on training and experience to help with their film making goals.
UA and AU students to help build Habitat for Humanity house
WTVM-ABC (Columbus, Ga.) – Nov. 20
The Lee County chapter of Habitat for Humanity is blessing an Opelika family with the ultimate Christmas present this season. Geordan Communities contractors is joining forces with Habitat to make the dream of home ownership a reality for the Larkins family. Today they held a groundbreaking ceremony for 57th home to be built in Lee County. The Larkins family was selected based on need. With Geordan’s help the Larkins will be moved into their new home by Christmas…During the week of Dec. 15, Habitat will host students from Auburn University and the University of Alabama to help finish the Larkins’ home in a House United project.
Doctoral students present theses in 3 minutes
Crimson White – Nov. 21
While an average graduate thesis is around 80,000 words, 15 University of Alabama doctoral students managed to condense theirs into a three-minute presentation. The contestants gathered in Russell Hall Wednesday night to present their theses as part of the championship round of the inaugural year of the graduate school’s Three Minute Thesis Competition. According to the program, the average thesis would take approximately nine hours to present, so the contest was all about being concise. The competition was based on an event that originated at the University of Queensland, Australia. A panel of seven judges that included professors, a circuit court judge, the superintendent of Tuscaloosa County Schools and UA Interim Provost Joe Benson judged the students’ presentations based on the effectiveness of their communication, comprehension and audience engagement. The goal was to get students to explain their theses in a way that was accessible to a non-specialized audience without the use of overly technical jargon. Students were allowed to create one slide as a visual aid and could not exceed three minutes of speaking time.
Around Town: 11/20
Tuscaloosa News – Nov. 19
… Huxford Symphony with UA Choruses: 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall at the Moody Music Building on the University of Alabama campus. Student orchestra will be joining the University Singers and University Chorus on works by Vaughan Williams and Debussy. Tickets $10 general admission, $5 seniors and $3 students. Call 205-348-7111.
Dance Collection gives stage time to underclassmen
Crimson White – Nov. 21
From the first day of freshman year to graduation and beyond, students in The University of Alabama’s department of theatre and dance strive for excellence. Dance Collection, a performance sponsored by the freshman honor society Alpha Lambda Delta, provides dancers at the beginning of that journey with an opportunity to shine. “That’s what I really love about Dance Collection, because I really get to watch freshmen and sophomores come into their own,” Cornelius Carter, director of the dance program, said. The one-night-only show features freshman and sophomore dancers performing works choreographed by upperclassmen and faculty members in addition to guest choreographer Bryant Henderson, who graduated from the University in 2006 with degrees in dance and public relations.
Model UN team to compete at regional conference
Crimson White – Nov. 21
The University of Alabama’s Model United Nations team, a part of the Alabama International Relations Club, is heading to Atlanta Thursday to represent the University in the Southern Regional Model United Nations. During the course of the competition, each member of the team is assigned a political figure and is expected to represent that person’s political interest while in committee. The college conferences allow for more flexibility in participants’ actions and give members a better chance to work individually, rather than as a nation, as they would in a high school conference. The Model UN team has been steadily gaining ground in its circuit in the past few years, rounding up four separate awards in the last conference it attended, which was hosted by Duke University.
Human bones replaced by synthetics
Crimson White – Nov. 21
Gretchen Anderson came to The University of Alabama to work with animals and pursue veterinary studies, but she ended up with human bones on her hands. As the lead graduate teaching assistant for Anatomy and Physiology 215, Anderson uses human specimens and synthetic models to teach her students. “In the lab we’re just trying to give them a little bit more hands on, and it’s a lot more anatomy than physiology in the lab,” Anderson said…Brook Fluker, an assistant professor in biological sciences, said human bones provide students with details that models may not include. This opportunity is particularly beneficial to students interested in health care. “For our bone labs most of what we’re doing is, number one, what do these bones look like without skin and muscle on top. We have a femur sectioned in half where students can see where the bone marrow is created,” Fluker said. “They get a void view to see those types of structures in the bones. This may be the only anatomy class they have, so we have to try to teach as much as possible.”
Meet the students behind Big Al
Crimson White – Nov. 21
He is the only cheerleader whose ears double the size of his head and the only elephant that walks on two feet. His eyes are always gleaming, his high-fives brighten your day, and no one else rocks out to the Million Dollar Band quite like him. He is every child’s best friend, the Crimson Tide’s biggest fan and our favorite elephant. He is Big Al. “We like to say there is only one Big Al. He just has five helpers,” said senior Melinda Tilley, one of the students who give life to the University of Alabama mascot. Tilley and her four teammates, senior Macee Thomas, senior Justin Sullivan, sophomore Parker Branton and freshman Zack Weston, pride themselves on being Big Al’s “helpers.” To them, it is an honor and one of the most defining experiences of their time at the University.
Program gives local students glimpse of UA
Crimson White – Nov. 21
When the Capstone Men and Women guide a group of students on a tour around The University of Alabama Thursday, the hopeful faces of potential students will be slightly younger than the typical high school senior. The students will be touring with the Kickstart Program, which is hosting the 8th graders of Tuscaloosa’s Westlawn Middle School from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The opportunity allows the students to check out the campus and opportunities that the University has to offer. “We called it Kickstart because we want to kickstart kids into prosperous futures,” said Undres Phillips, a junior majoring in secondary education and founder of the program. The Carl A. Elliot Society partners with the Kickstart program to offer at-risk students the information and inspiration necessary to propel them into college in the future.