UA names water institute leader
Tuscaloosa News – Aug. 26
A University of Alabama microbiologist has been chosen to lead the campus’ newly launched Alabama Water Institute. Patricia Sobecky, UA associate provost for academic affairs and professor of biological sciences, will lead the interdisciplinary research institute, which was formally established by the UA System board of trustees in February.
UA receives grant to train future computer science teachers
Fox 6 (Birmingham) – Aug. 25
Governor Kay Ivey is pushing computer science in her new education plan. The University of Alabama is on board with that initiative. The school just a got $300, 000 grant to train math based students to be future computer science teachers. Computer Science Professor Dr. Jeff Gray said three out of the top six jobs in Alabama are computer science driven, meaning there is a real demand.
NBC 12 (Montgomery) – Aug. 25
WAFF-NBC (Huntsville) – Aug. 25
WTVM 9 (Columbus, Georgia) – Aug. 25
Historians warn against rushing to take down statues
Cullman Times – Aug. 27
It’s not just about Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. The national soul-searching over whether to take down monuments to the Confederacy’s demigods has extended to other historical figures accused of wrongdoing, including Christopher Columbus (brutality toward Native Americans), the man for whom Boston’s Faneuil Hall is named (slave trader) and former Philadelphia Mayor Frank Rizzo (bigotry) … “By taking monuments down or hiding them away, we facilitate forgetting,” said Alfred Brophy, a law professor at the University of Alabama who has been studying the issue. “It purchases absolution too inexpensively. There is a value in owning our history.”
Madison.com (Wisconsin) – Aug. 25
Casper Star-Tribune (Wyoming) – Aug. 25
Decatur Herald and Review (Illinois) – Aug. 25
Albany Times-Union (New York) – Aug. 25
Peoria Journal Star (Illinois) – Aug. 25
Tucson.com (Arizona) – Aug. 25
Greensboro.com (North Carolina) – Aug. 25
Hundreds of freshmen participate in day of service
Crimson White – Aug. 28
In an effort to give back to the local community, hundreds of students from The University of Alabama participated in various volunteer projects throughout Tuscaloosa county on Saturday. Ripple Effect, named for its far reaching impact on the surrounding area, is an annual day of service hosted by the Center for Service and Leadership (CSL).
University creates parking space for Purple Heart recipients
Crimson White – Aug. 28
Sparked by one law student’s passion to commemorate veterans who were injured risking their lives for their country, the University of Alabama created a parking space for Purple Heart recipients this summer. Steven Arango, a University of Alabama law student and Marine Corps second lieutenant, got the idea for the spot from Home Depot and a few other universities which have similar spots. “Then it was just something that I felt God put on my heart, and so then I just followed that passion and went through with it,” he said.
Jobless rates decline, but positions going unfilled
Decatur Daily – Aug. 28
While jobless rates in Lawrence, Limestone and Morgan counties dropped slightly in July compared to June and are a percent lower than a year ago, a workforce official says jobs are still going unfilled around the state. The July unemployment rates were 5.4 percent in Lawrence County, down from 5.7 percent in June; 4.3 percent in Limestone County, compared to 4.6 percent in June; and 4.5 percent in Morgan County, down from 4.8 percent, according to the Alabama Department of Labor. To get a true picture of unemployment rates, though, you have to look at several factors that affect them, said Ahmad Ijaz, director of economic forecasting with the University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Commerce.
Seat Belt Related Deaths
WAAY-ABC (Huntsville) – Aug. 26
According to a 2015 study done by The University of Alabama, seat belt use in the state increased from 72 percent in 2000 to about 92 percent in 2015, but there have been a recent string of deadly wrecks including last nights.
UA professor discusses Hurricane Harvey
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Aug. 25
Topping the news this evening, the weather event that everyone is talking about, Hurricane Harvey. We’re joined now by University of Alabama professor Jason Senkbeil by phone. He is currently in Texas awaiting the hurricanes arrival.
How ‘Big Luther’ can score a big comeback in Alabama’s Senate race
Al.com – Aug. 27
“Big” Luther Strange appears to be in big trouble ahead of a Sept. 26 runoff against conservative firebrand Roy Moore, recent polling suggests … William Stewart, professor emeritus of political sciences at the University of Alabama, said that Strange may have to become more like Trump and shed the “elitist” perception he’s received before the primary. “He lacks any charisma,” said Stewart. “He’s a very laid-back person who I consider a friend.
FHSU graduate student, a Fulbright semifinalist, headed for study in UK
Hays Post (Kansas) – Aug. 26
It’s a long way from looking for fossils in the gravel on an Alabama road to studying for a Ph.D. in paleontology at the University of Bristol, United Kingdom, but that’s exactly the path that James Logan King is traveling, with a brand new M.S. in geosciences from Fort Hays State University … However, without an early mentor, Dr. Fred Andrus of the University of Alabama, King’s path to doctoral studies would have been cut short. “I had a very colorful undergraduate career that was productive for my introduction to research but borderline disastrous for the rest of my classes,” he said.
Registration open for ethics conference
Waterloo Courier (Iowa) – Aug. 28
Registration is open for the third biennial Cedar Valley Conference on Ethics, which will be Sept. 22 at Maucker Union on the University of Northern Iowa campus … Keynote speaker will be Stephen Black, director of the Center for Ethics & Social Responsibility at the University of Alabama. He also is founder of Impact America, a student service initiative which is dedicated to developing and implementing substantive service-learning projects in coordination with colleges and universities. Black is the grandson of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Hugo L. Black.
Scholastic Recognition
Dispatch Argus (Moline, Illinois) – Aug. 26
Tiffany Fields … Emily Swanson, Elizabeth Hock, Lucie Dierikx: TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Emily Swanson, of Galva, and Elizabeth Hock, of Geneseo, were named to the University of Alabama spring dean’s list for earning a grade-point average of 3.5 or higher. Lucie Dierikx, of Taylor Ridge, was named to the president’s list for earning a 4.0 grade-point average.
Marietta Daily Journal – Aug. 27
College Graduates
Lowell Sun (Massachusetts) – Aug. 27
BARD COLLEGE AT SIMON’S ROCK – Burlington: Hannah Lienhard … UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA – Acton: Gabriela Gonzalez.