Alabama’s federal lawmakers visit UA
Tuscaloosa News — April 16
U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions told an audience of University of Alabama students Wednesday that Congress has committed “the greatest abdication of financial responsibility in the history of the country” in allowing the Treasury, Federal Reserve and the Bush and Obama administrations to bail out industries. . . The Republican senator from Mobile, who has voted against most of the bailouts and spending bills that have come before Congress in recent months, addressed about 60 students at the Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library.
Davis listens, learns during daylong visit
Tuscaloosa News – April 16
In his seven hours in Tuscaloosa on Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Artur Davis handed out a $333,000 check to DCH Regional Medical Center’s Cancer Center, gave the first speech of the Alabama Honor’s Society’s lecture series and sat on a University of Alabama panel to discuss the 2008 presidential election.
Davis speaks on health care
Crimson White – April 16
As debates on healthcare begin to rage in Washington on Wednesday, Alabama Congressman and gubernatorial candidate Artur Davis voiced his opinion almost 1,000 miles away – in the Ferguson Center Theater on campus. Davis’s lecture was the inaugural lecture of the Honors College lecture series on Wednesday afternoon. Davis spoke on reformation within the healthcare sector, both nationally and statewide. “We developed the Honors College lecture series with the goal to bring in accomplished, engaging speakers who reflect our ideals,” said Matthew May, a junior majoring in political science and premedical studies.
Terrorism, kidnapping among top fears for today’s youth
CNN.com – April 16
A five-eyed monster under the bed isn’t what worries most kids. Experts say young people fear a lot of what’s in the news — from kidnappings to murders to salmonella. A study on more than 1,000 children and adolescents in grades 2 through 12 found that some of the 20 most common fears include “terrorist attacks,” “having to fight in a war,” “drive-by shootings,” “tornadoes/hurricanes” and “drowning/swimming in deep water,” based on self-reports of how scary each of 98 events or concepts seems. The study was published in a recent issue of the Journal of Counseling and Development. Study author Joy Burnham, associate professor at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, collected data from November 2001 to April 2004 in 23 schools in two southeastern states. The most common fears closely aligned with those found in previous studies on youth, and the pattern of findings has persisted in studies on fear for the past 30 years, she said.
Data: Need for workers to exceed number available by 2016
Daily Home (Talledega) – April 16
There may not be enough laborers for the available jobs in the Region Five workforce by the year 2016, attendees learned at Wednesday’s State of the Workforce Presentation in Sylacauga…Nisa Miranda, director of the University of Alabama’s Center for Economic Development, led the presentation with data gathered in a study of the eight-county region’s labor force. Although the current unemployment rate in the region, at more than 10 percent, is higher than the state average, “job growth will exceed population and labor force growth through the year 2025,” Miranda said…To mitigate this imminent shortage of workers, Miranda said local leaders need to implement strategies that will increase the labor force participation rate. One strategy would be to encourage older laborers to remain in the workforce, she said, but that alone won’t work. “We are a low population state, so the only way we can grow is to have more people move in,” Miranda said.
Green Week culminates with Earthfest 2009
Crimson White – April 16
T-minus three days until Earthfest 2009. The pre-Earth Day celebration will be taking place on the quad rain or shine. In the event of storms, a bunch of rain dancing crazies will be in front of Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library to redirect you to a covered location. Come out and enjoy the sunshine (or lack of it) and try free dessert samples provided by several restaurants competing in the Community Service Center’s volunteer week kick-off.
University of Alabama student attends Monopoly Championship.
WVTM-NBC, Birmingham – April 15
Collect $200, don’t pass go, and go straight to jail. Those are all the words a local man heard at the national monopoly championship. University of Alabama student Brandon Baker brought the houses and hotels, and even property, but it just wasn’t enough. He finished in the final four of the championship but didn’t win the title. But get this, one lucky person landed on free parking and won it all.
Chi Alpha student ministry to host Smurf Out Poverty today
Crimson White – April 16
Today Chi Alpha Student Ministry will host their Smurf Out Poverty event at 7 p.m. in the Ferguson Plaza. The focus of the event is to attempt to break the world record for the largest gathering of people dressed as Smurfs. Those who show up to the gathering are asked to wear white pants, a blue shirt and a blue hat if they wish to be a regular Smurf and a red hat, a blue shirt and red pants if they wish to be dressed as a Papa Smurf. Blue paint for participants’ faces, hands and arms will be provided at the event as well as live entertainment from the Chi Alpha house band.
WVUA, Tuscaloosa — April 15
Drivers on Cell Phones…
WSFA-NBC, Montgomery – April 15
New signs that read “put the phone down in work zones” are popping up along the interstate. The Alabama Department of Transportation hopes they’ll reduce the number of crashes in construction areas. A recent study by the University of Alabama says not paying attention to the road, is a major cause of accidents. State lawmakers are considering a bill right now that would ban driving and talking on the phone at the same time.
Facebook proposes user-friendly agreement
Dateline Alabama – April 15
Facing its own controversy over its terms of agreement, the popular social networking Web site Facebook may have prompted a long overdue discussion about the use of “terms of agreement” on Web sites. Even as it grew rapidly with millions sharing details of their lives with their “friends,” Facebook recently came under harsh criticism from users when it attempted to gain a so-called “perpetual” license over user-generated content shared on its site.. . . Matthew Bunker, a professor of journalism at the University of Alabama, said standard terms are often unreadable and there is a movement to make them more user-friendly. Shortening the document and “not including every clause and trick in the book is probably helping people,” Bunker said.
Author Rick Bragg shares insights into Appalachian culture in his Reading Together talk
Kalamazoo Gazette — April 16
Rick Bragg showed his Southern humor, toughness and poetical way with words to a nearly full Kalamazoo Central auditorium Tuesday night. His talk capped off this year’s Reading Together program, featuring Bragg’s family biographies, “All Over But the Shoutin'” (1997, Pantheon Books) “Ava’s Man” (2001, Knopf) and “The Prince of Frogtown” (2008, Knopf)…Bragg, a Pulitzer Prize-winning former New York Times writer and current professor at the University of Alabama, gave his readers some insight into his works….
Former Enterprise High student in car competition
Enterprise Ledger – April 15
What makes Billy White of Enterprise and other members of The University of Alabama’s Society of Automotive Engineers teams more skilled than NASCAR drivers? UA’s SAE teams not only drive, but they also design, build, test and race their team’s vehicles. The Society of Automotive Engineers competitions challenge collegiate teams, including UA’s SAE formula team and Crimson GRITS (Girls Racing In The South), to assume that a manufacturing company has asked them to design, fabricate and demonstrate a prototype car for evaluation as a production item. The premise behind the design competition is to tackle real world problems and to challenge students to reason and resolve issues just as project team members do in the automotive industry.
Eating fresh is good for your body and community
Tuscaloosa News – April 15
Jean Mills and her partner, Carol Eichelberger, watched their locally grown broccoli turn some of the vegetable’s biggest detractors into fans during the 17 years they operated their commercial farm, Tuscaloosa CSA. Mills says that’s because people who think they dislike a vegetable simply haven’t tried it when it’s ready to be tried. ‘When you are eating fresh, locally grown produce, you are getting more nutritional value out of it, because produce loses nutritional value and quality quickly after it is harvested,’ said Mills, who teaches a hands-on organic growing class at the University of Alabama.
Students shed their shoes for change
Crimson White – April 16
On Thursday afternoon students will have the opportunity to briefly experience the life of a child without shoes during the second annual TOMS “One Day Without Shoes” event. TOMS is a for-profit company focused on charitable giving that has donated over 140,000 pairs of shoes to children in need since the company was founded in May 2006, according to the company’s Web site.
USA Today reporter talks Obama
Crimson White – April 16
Susan Page, Washington Bureau Chief for USA Today, spoke to more than 200 students Wednesday about her experiences covering the last five presidential elections, the first 86 days of the Obama Administration and the current state and future of the media. Page has worked for USA Today since 1995 and now directs a team of 30 reporters. She has interviewed the past eight presidents as well as the candidates they defeated. In comparison to those presidents and candidates, Page said, Obama had the biggest ambition of what to change in Washington.
A ‘concert’ed effort from University Chorus
Crimson White – April 16
While many students may only have a third of a chocolate bunny and a pantry packed with peeps to remind them that Easter Sunday was just a few days ago, the University Chorus reminds the campus of the season with their Spring concert, tonight at 7:30 in the Moody Music Building Concert Hall.