UA ranks 11th in National Merit Scholars
Tuscaloosa News – Feb. 5
With 83 National Merit Scholars in its freshman class, the University of Alabama enrolled the 11th largest number of scholars of all public institutions. In 2007, UA was 12th in public institutions enrolling National Merit Scholars, according to the annual report of the National Merit Scholarship Corp. The 8,486 scholars were selected by the corporation from among 1.5 million high school students in the 2008 class who took the PSAT in their sophomore year. National Merit Scholars at UA get four years of tuition, room and board, along with $6,000 for education expenses and a laptop computer. Of the 83 scholars at UA, 43 are from Alabama. UA’s total is more than half of all scholars enrolled in the state’s public and private institutions.
Crimson White – Feb. 5
Recession Slows Revival Of Cash Balance Pensions
CNN.com – Feb. 4
…In addition to lower benefit levels, cash balance plans have other drawbacks for employees. People who are given the option to take a lump sum upon retirement or invest the proceeds in an annuity are less likely to take the annuity, even though professional consensus leans toward the annuity as a better choice, said Norman Stein, a pension law professor at the University of Alabama. Annuities are also quite sensitive to interest rates, and the annual amount a retiree receives can vary widely depending on those rates, he said. “They’re likely to do worse in a cash balance plan going forward than if a traditional defined benefit plan remained in effect,” said Stein.
Journalist to discuss coverage of Israel-Palestine conflict
Tuscaloosa News – Feb. 5
An Israeli-Arab journalist will speak at the University of Alabama tonight about media coverage of the recent flare-up in the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. Reporting mostly from the West Bank and Gaza Strip, two Palestinian territories in Israel, Khaled Abu Toameh covered conflicts and peace treaties in the region for more than 20 years. He began his career as a correspondent for a Palestinian Liberation Organization newspaper while in college and then moved on to work for The Jerusalem Post…
Education Briefs
Birmingham News – Feb. 5
The University of Alabama is hosting a variety of events for the celebration of Black History Month during February. Highlights include the NAACP Centennial Celebration on Feb. 12, Hip-Hop Summit Main Event on Feb. 19, and Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford discussing “Race, Politics and Media in the Age of Obama” on Feb. 23. The University of Alabama’s Black Faculty and Staff Association will host an “Evening Conversation with Paul R. Jones,” from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Feb. 26 in Gorgas Library, Room 205… — The University of Alabama’s public relations program is one of the Top 5 finalists for the PR Education Program of the Year by PRWeek magazine, based on the quality of internships, professional involvement, academic papers or studies, program goals and achievements and the use of new media… — The University of Alabama College of Engineering recently named Nancy Holmes as the Capstone Engineering Society Coordinator…