10 Profound Life Lessons I Learned From College Students Working With Alzheimer’s Patients
MariaShriver.com – March 29
For the past five years I have had the privilege of watching beautiful relationships develop between college students and people with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias through a program called Bringing Art to Life. Developed by Cognitive Dynamics Foundation and the University of Alabama Honors College as a service learning course called UH 300: Art to Life, this program teaches students about dementia and compassionate caregiving and pairs them with persons who have the condition. Using art therapy as a tool for creative engagement and reminiscence, students validate their participants in the present, and honor and preserve the life stories they come to know through relationships that develop over each semester. As course director, I am able to watch these relationships unfold – a miraculous sight, indeed. … By Daniel C. Potts, MD
Heart attacks — different signs for men, women
Medical Press – March 29
We’ve all seen the movie scenes where a man gasps, clutches his chest and falls to the ground. In reality, a heart attack victim could easily be a woman, and the scene not so dramatic. While men and women share some of the same heart attack symptoms, The University of Alabama’s Dr. Joseph Fritz explains they can also have different symptoms.
Alabama Wildflower Society to hold plant sale Saturday
Tuscaloosa News – March 29
The local chapter of the Alabama Wildflower Society will holding its 37th annual plant sale from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the Kentuck courtyard downtown Northport. The sale will feature a wide variety of native plants, plants that adapt well to Tuscaloosa’s climate and colorful plants that attract butterflies and other pollinators. Proceeds will help provide college scholarships to botany majors at Alabama colleges and universities, support the Cahaba Lily Society and its annual Cahaba Lily Festival and fund projects in partnership with the University of Alabama Arboretum and the Druid City Garden Project. The sale will take place rain or shine.
UA Students raise awareness of mental illness
WVUA 23 (Tuscaloosa) – Mar. 28
University of Alabama students act to raise awareness for mental illness. The event was operated by students working with the National Alliance on Mental Illness at the Ferguson Center theater. The actors creatively depicted mental disorders such as PTSD, OCD and ADHD.
UA to hold Summer Camp Expo
WVUA 23 (Tuscaloosa) – Mar. 28, 2016
West Alabama families wanting to learn more about opportunities for their children during the summer are invited to the University of Alabama’s fifth annual Summer Camp and Childcare Expo. This event is free and runs from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Friday at the Presidential Park on Campus Drive West next to the Publix grocery store. Potential programs for the kids include arts, music, athletics and education camps.
Book Bonanza in the Black Belt
Crimson White – March 29
School libraries in the state of Alabama have long suffered a lack of state and federal funding for new books, but for nine schools throughout the Black Belt and the state, that’s going to change. During March 2016, The University of Alabama School of Library and Information Studies will award a record $22,552 in brand new books to these elementary, middle and high schools via the SLIS Book Bonanza for the Black Belt & Beyond Program. Established in 2009 by Jamie Naidoo, associate and Foster-EBSCO Endowed Professor in SLIS, the SLIS Book Bonanza (& Beyond) Program provides new books to Black Belt schools in need each year. The Beyond Program was established in 2015. Consideration for the Beyond Program requires schools to either be a low-income private school in the Black Belt region or a disadvantaged public school outside of the Black Belt. The Book Bonanza for the Black Belt winners may apply each year, but Beyond winners only get a one-time opportunity.
Elementary education majors practice their skills in Tuscaloosa classrooms
Crimson White – March 29
The University of Alabama prides itself on providing students with educational experiences both inside and outside of the classroom. For some students, that means moving to the lab or the stage, but for elementary education majors, it means moving to another classroom. This time, though, instead of taking notes, they’re giving them.Elementary education majors start their college careers at the University by taking primarily core classes for the first two years. After completing those (generally by their junior year), these students spend four semesters at the College of Education perfecting their trade. To do this, students take classes on teaching theory, complete between 500 and 600 practicum hours and have a semester-long internship. In order to get this hands-on experience, students must be admitted into the Teacher Education Program (TEP). This program follows state guidelines and requires students to take a written exam, be interviewed and maintain a 2.75 GPA.
More Tattoos, Better Immune System?
KVRR (Fargo, North Dakota) – March 28
Researchers at the University of Alabama measured an antibody in saliva that helps keep colds at bay in tattoo customers before and after they got a tattoo. They say inking a single tattoo puts stresses on the body, similar to people who begin exercising when they are out of shape. But like working out, the more ink you get, the faster your body will bounce back. This proved to be true when the antibody measured dropped significantly with the first tattoo but when subjects went back for more tattoos, the drop was barely noticeable. Researchers say the study showed those stresses helped the subjects fight off the common cold.
WMBC (New York) – March 28
WPEC-CBS 12 (West Palm Beach, Florida) – March 28
WKEF-ABC 22 (Dayton, Ohio) — – March 28
WKCF-CW (Orlando, Florida) – March 28
KTVK (Phoenix) – March 28
And many others.