Author of ‘The Help’, University of Alabama alumna to speak on campus
Al.com – Feb. 19
Kathryn Stockett, University of Alabama alumna and author of the best-selling novel ‘The Help’, will share the story behind her book to students and community members at a Feb. 28 lecture. Stockett, originally from Mississippi, graduated from UA with a degree in English and creative writing before penning ‘The Help’ in 2009, her debut novel. The book, set in Jackson, Miss., in the 1960s, primarily follows three women — Aibileen and Minny, two black maids who clean, cook and care for white families, and Skeeter, a young, wealthy white woman looking to make a career as a writer.
Alabama student documentaries shot in China, Sierra Leone premiering at Bama Theatre tonight
Al.com – Feb. 19
University of Alabama students who shot documentaries in Sierra Leone and China will premiere their work tonight at the annual International Documenting Justice screening at the Bama Theatre in Tuscaloosa. The screening starts at 7 p.m. The Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility at UA invites the public to the Fourth International Documenting Justice Film Screening, where student films shot overseas will find their first audience. “29 Miles from Home,” by Lauren Marsh, chronicles a day in the life of a group of students at a boarding school in rural China.”Warbaby,” by Amy Reisch, follows a survivor of the Sierra Leone conflict who reflects on his experience and contemplates how it continues to shape his life.
UC researcher studying Olympic coverage
Rome Sentinel (N.Y.) – Feb. 19
Paul J. MacArthur, program director for public relations and journalism at Utica College, along with a team of academic researchers, is charting the amount of time the NBC broadcast network devotes to male and female athletes on its primetime Olympic telecast. Through the first nine nights of NBC’s Sochi Olympic broadcast, male athletes received the majority of the network’s primetime coverage, according to MacArthur’s findings. He is conducting the research along with Dr. Andrew Billings from the University of Alabama, Dr. James Angelini from the University of Delaware, and Dr. Lauren Smith from Auburn University. From Feb. 6 -14, male athletes received 47.6 percent of NBC’s primetime coverage, female athletes received 37.6 percent of the coverage, and pairs events received the remaining 14.8 percent. That gender gap is likely to close significantly as mens’ figure skating has been completed, while ladies’ figure skating will take place during the second week. The researchers indicate that while the television gender gap has always been wider in the Winter Games than in the Summer Games, NBC’s coverage of the 2014 Olympics has to the potential to reach gender equity.
College of Engineering to offer 2 new degrees
Crimson White – Feb. 20
University of Alabama students will have two new majors to choose from in the fall. The College of Engineering will add degrees in environmental engineering and architectural engineering to meet demand in the state and country. Along with the pre-established construction and civil engineering degrees, students in the department of civil, construction and environmental engineering will have a total of four majors to choose from. The University is the first in the state to offer both majors, which will give students an opportunity to acquire specialized skills that help benefit the state and stand out to potential employers. The change requires the addition of one class for environmental engineering, and no new staff will need to be hired … The architectural engineering degree focuses on the design of buildings and being able to work directly with architects when dealing with structural design and mechanical, electrical and construction elements. Also, students will be able to assist on the overall operation of the building. Architectural engineering is currently available as a minor, and by adjusting the curriculum, students will have the option to major in it as well. The environmental engineering degree will focus on air and water quality and purification of land, health and safety systems.
Lawmakers, activists debate abortion bills
Anniston Star – Feb. 19
Lawmakers and activists held a wide-ranging discussion on abortion at the Alabama State House Wednesday, and their arguments sometimes came down to whether a heartbeat is the same thing as a viable life. “We would not turn off the machine on someone who had a heartbeat,” said Rep. Mary Sue McClurkin, R-Indian Springs, sponsor of a bill that would ban abortions when a doctor can detect a heartbeat in a fetus. McClurkin’s bill was one of four bills, all imposing new restrictions on abortion, that came before the House Health Committee in a public hearing Wednesday … Retired University of Alabama law professor Martha Monroe said the heartbeat bill was “blatantly unconstitutional.” Courts, she said, have historically allowed abortion up to the age at which a fetus is viable outside the womb — weeks after the heartbeat is audible. “”The court says abortion can’t be prohibited prior to viability and this clearly does that,” she said.
Drastic Weather Changes
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Feb. 19
Alabamians are experiencing drastic weather changes this week. The images of snow are still fresh in our minds but the forecast is calling for severe spring like weather with temperatures peaking in the 70s. Geography professor for the University of Alabama, Jason Senkbeil, says the most unpredictable precipitation is behind us. “Colder than normal air was allowed to go farther south, and then, as we got towards the end of the month in the first part of February, we started to get into our normal winter rain pattern … except with the cold air in place, that rain was taking various forms of frozen precipitation.”
Pulse Check lunch joins students, administrators
Crimson White – Feb. 20
University of Alabama President Judy Bonner, alongside Mark Nelson, vice president for student affairs and vice provost, joined students at a table in the Ferguson Center to discuss University affairs and student life. The lunch resulted from a collaboration between BLEND, which hosts mingling lunches for students every Thursday, and the Division of Student Affairs’s Pulse Check lunch. “It’s important for the campus to come together as a community,” Bonner said. “I think that this type of thing promotes that kind of atmosphere.” More than 20 students gathered at a designated table to discuss classes, study abroad and the upcoming SGA elections as Bonner and Nelson ate Chick-fil-A. Kaitlin Hartley, coordinator of leadership programs at the University, said the event is important, as it is one of the few informal interactions between administration and students. “It’s a way for the administrators to show that they care and that students’ opinions are being listened to,” Hartley said.
Hudson Strode carries on word of Shakespeare
Crimson White – Feb. 20
Hudson Strode taught at The University of Alabama for 47 years. In that time, his classes spawned students who would publish more than 55 novels and 101 short stories, according to records at Hoole Special Collections. Strode himself published 16 works, including a three-volume biography of Jefferson Davis. Well-known alumni of his class include Borden Deal, Ann Waldron and Elise Sanguinetti. Now, his memory is being preserved through the Hudson Strode Program in Renaissance Studies. “He was tough, difficult, but stood by his students, promoted their work and helped them succeed in publishing or in many of the other fields they entered, including science, medicine, law, public service, you name it,” Program Director Sharon O’Dair said. “He was beloved by those who took his courses.”
Family group offers support
Crimson White – Feb. 20
When Cong Nguyen came to the United States from Vietnam, the transition was difficult at first. “The first time I went to the bank to open a bank account, I just signed whatever they handed me because I could not read the forms,” Nguyen, a doctoral candidate in engineering, said. Difficulties similar to this are common for most international students and faculty, making it hard for them to adapt to life in Tuscaloosa. Yet as difficult as it may be for The University of Alabama international community to adjust to new lives, the spouses of these students and faculty face challenges of their own … “To switch their visa type to a full-time student visa, the dependent visa holder would first be admitted to a program of study and then could apply to either change status to an F-1 from within the U.S. or apply for a new visa abroad,” Charter Morris, director of Capstone International Services, said.
International community faces limits
Crimson White – Feb. 20
With graduation approaching, University of Alabama seniors are applying for graduate school, looking for jobs and getting ready for the future. While some seniors may already have jobs lined up, others might choose to take a year off. However, for the 104 international seniors, the future is approaching with a hard deadline. “It’s a massive bureaucratic behemoth,” Charter Morris, director of Capstone International at the University, said. “Planning needs to be during the first year of studies.” Most international students at the University have F-1 visas that give them two options after graduation, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website. There is a 60-day grace period for students to leave the country, or they can apply for optional practical training, a year-long extension of the visa that allows students to work, paid or unpaid, in their field. According to the UA International Student and Scholar Report 2013, 133 UA students are currently working via the OPT. “The stereotype is that students come over and want to get a green card,” Morris said. “But a lot of students end up going home. They’re just trying to learn and improve their education for a better life.”
Phi Sigma Pi hosts food drive
Crimson White – Feb. 20
Phi Sigma Pi is hosting a two-week canned food drive to benefit the West Alabama Food Bank that will conclude this Friday. Drop-off boxes are located at the Student Recreation Center and at every sorority house. Every five cans donated is worth one Panhellenic point. Students can also receive service hours through the Service Learning Pro organization Friday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. by helping to collect cans from various locations. The West Alabama Food Bank collects and distributes food to nine counties in West Alabama through outreach agencies, such as churches. Executive Director Henry Lipsey said it takes about 12,000 pounds of food every working day to keep the operation going, which amounts to about 3 million pounds a year. “It’s just kind of a constant struggle every day to keep food coming in and keep food going out,” Lipsey said. In addition to receiving the 2013 trophy for Beat Auburn Beat Hunger, which now resides at the Northport WAFB office, the University works with the nonprofit in other ways to provide food to residents of the community who live below the poverty line.
What’s the Best Way to Get Weather Alerts?
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Feb. 19
Emergency notification system technology has improved by leaps and bounds over the past two decades, but emergency managers want to make sure you have proper access to what can be vital information … We went from area-wide NOAA weather radios, a few outdoor warning sirens that were county based, to the present day where objects as common as smartphones can tell you if you are in a tornado warning. But the sirens still remain in Tuscaloosa County, and some say this warning system can bring a false sense of security … But while there are shortfalls with siren alerts, they are placed in areas like Gorgas Library in the heart of the University of Alabama, to alert people outside who may not have other technology at their disposal.