Willie Mays statue to adorn Regions Field, honoring Barons owner Don Logan
AL.com – July 19
On Wednesday, Mays’ legacy will be commemorated with a bronze statue just outside the 14th Street entrance at Regions Field, the Barons’ current home stadium, as the culmination of Alabama-Mississippi chapter of the Multiple Sclerosis Society’s recognition of Logan as its 2015 Legacy of Leadership honoree. The statue—which is over nine-feet tall and eight-feet wide—shows Mays, maybe baseball’s best all-around player ever, making the kind of signature, leaping catch against a wall for which he may be best remembered. . . . It was created by Tuscaloosa painter/sculptor Caleb O’Connor designed and created the work of art, full-sized in clay. Then, the figure was cast in bronze by Craig Wedderspoon, a University of Alabama professor of sculpture and Birmingham native; along with recent UA graduate Eric Nubbe. The campaign, which began in October 2014 and ended September 2015, raised $302,000 to battle MS. Eighty percent of the funds goes towards research at UAB and elsewhere.
Elite group of Alabama students make final round of National Merit Scholarships
AL.com – July 18
A select group of Alabama scholars made the cut in the final round of National Merit Scholarship awards announced Monday, pushing the state’s total for the year to nearly 160. . . . 2. Patrick L. Trammell, Birmingham (Mountain Brook H.S.) Probable career field: Finance. Sponsored by the University of Alabama. 3. Mary E. Richardson, Homewood (Homewood H.S.) Probable career field: Biomedical Engineering. Sponsored by the University of Alabama. 4. Klay D. Robinson, Huntsville (Virgil I. Grissom H.S.) Probable career field: Engineering. Sponsored by the University of Alabama.
Cyclists and motorists pleased with this weekend’s access to Bankhead Tunnel
Fox 10 TV (Mobile) – July 18
Cyclists and pedestrians got a chance to switch up their routine this past Saturday when ALDOT officials closed the Bankhead Tunnel to motorists between 5 and 7 a.m. After requests, ALDOT officials wanted to give those who like to hit the pavement in other ways than by a car a different ciew of the tunnel. GoPro video from the journey inside of the Bankhead Tunnel shot by 19-year-old Edie Douglas of Mobile, has been shared and viewed across social media since Saturday. Douglas says it was her mom’s idea to take the new route. “We saw it on Fox10’s Facebook. My mom saw it and told us about it and we were like, ‘let’s go!'” she explained. Douglas is going into her sophomore year at the University of Alabama. Because she’s a runner outside of the classroom, she says she appreciates ALDOT officials giving her the chance to appreciate the tunnel in a new way with her family.
Six Tulsa-area students among final group of National Merit Scholarship winners
Tulsa World – July 18
The National Merit Scholarship Program announced its final round of winners Monday, with six more Tulsa-area students receiving college-sponsored awards. The students are among 4,000 high school seniors being chosen this year to receive $500 to $2,000 annually for up to four years, according to a release from the privately funded, not-for-profit organization. . . . Emma Robson, Booker T. Washington High School (University of Alabama).
Area students receive National Merit scholarships
Evansville (Indiana) Courier-Press – July 18
This year’s list of National Merit Scholarships includes a recent addition of students receiving college-sponsored awards. This year, 176 public and private high education institutions in 45 states and the District of Columbia sponsored more than 3,800 merit scholarships. The scholarship amounts are between $500 and $2,000 annually for up to four years of undergraduate study at the institution financing the scholarship. . . . Five Castle High School recipients are: Mitchell Cron, Justin Banks, Richard Gerst, Jeremy Server and Laura Jane Titzer. . . . Server is going to the University of Alabama for chemical engineering.
Interstate 94 reopened following protest
Ambienta Ja (Brazil) – July 19
More than 100 protesters were arrested late Saturday night after they gathered on Interstate 94 in St. Paul, shutting down the busy highway in both directions. At least 309 people have been arrested over the weekend in NY and Chicago, and in St. Paul, Minnesota, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where two black men, Philando Castile and Alton Sterling, were shot to death by police. . . . Union contracts, meanwhile, often allow the destruction of police misconduct records, require the withholding of names of officers involved in shootings and grant police steep discounts on punishment even when police chiefs try to fire them, notes Stephen Rushin, a law professor at the University of Alabama who specializes in policing.
Parenting Styles Linked With Workplace Behavior; Can Parents Be Accountable For Job Problems of Their Children?
Parenting Herald – July 18
Having troubles in your job can actually be linked to how you were brought up by your parents. A study has found a connection between parenting styles and how your children behave in the workplace when they come of age. “It seems cliché, but, once again, we end up blaming mom for everything in life. It really is about both parents, but because mothers are typically the primary caregivers of the children, they usually have more influence on their children,” according to Dr. Peter Harms. . . Harms is a researcher from the University of Alabama.