Impact Alabama works to better the tax season
Tuscaloosa News – Feb. 10
In three short years a handful of students at the University of Alabama involved in Impact Alabama have gone from helping fewer than 100 low and moderate income families prepare their income tax forms for free to spreading their services to 12 campuses across Alabama and involving more than 400 students in the project. And now, after an undercover operation worthy of ’60 Minutes,’ the students have documented the lax and sometimes unethical practices of many commercial tax preparation agencies and have prepared legislation for the Alabama Legislature to consider. It would require tax preparers to have proper training and pass certification exams…This year Impact Alabama, founded by Stephen Black, the director of the UA Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility, expects to help prepare returns for more than 4,000 families with children, most of whom qualify for Earned Income Tax Credit program because they make less than $42,000 a year. The student program has, in fact, become the largest provider in Alabama for such families of limited resources…
Minority health-care clinics separate but unequal
EurekaAlert.org – Feb. 10
A study published today in the Archives of Internal Medicine may shed new light on why minority Americans have poorer health outcomes from chronic conditions such as hypertension, heart disease and diabetes. Researchers found that clinics serving higher proportions of these minority patients tend to have more challenging work environments and organizational characteristics…Co-authors of the Archives study include…Eric S. Williams, PhD, of the University of Alabama…
Archives of Internal Medicine – Feb. 9
Chuck D to speak at UA
Tuscaloosa News – Feb. 10
Rapper Chuck D will not be public enemy number one when he comes to the University of Alabama Tuesday. In fact, he’s expected to pack the Ferguson Center Ballroom. Chuck D, founder of the influential 1980s rap group Public Enemy, has taken his considerable fame and turned it to political activism, said Campus Programs Coordinator Chad Clark…Chuck D’s program, entitled “Rap, Race and Reality” will address electoral politics, the representation of urban space and culture, hip-hop culture and race in the media…