FREE BOOKS FOR ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED LIBRARIES – UA’s School of Library and Information Studies will award more than $7,000 in new books for children and young adults to six, economically disadvantaged Alabama libraries in late February. The school’s Book Bonanza for the Black Belt (and Beyond) program was founded in 2009. Since then, the program has donated more than $80,000 in free books to nearly 40 different Alabama libraries. For more information, contact Rand Nelson, james.nelson@ua.edu, 205/348-6416.
MUSEUM OFFERS FUN PROGRAMS FOR CHILDREN – UA’s Alabama Museum of Natural History kicks off its spring children’s programs this week with Growing Up Wild Preschool Morning from 10 a.m. to noon Friday, Feb. 3. This event is open to caregivers and their preschooler; the cost is $2 per participant and caregiver. Museum Monday is an after-school program for kindergarten through second-graders and will be held from 3:30 to 5 p.m. Monday, Feb. 6. The cost is $8 per participant. This month features “Physics is Phun,” where students will conduct physics experiments and learn about concepts such as kinetic energy, ramps, velocity and more. For more information, contact Kim Eaton, UA media relations, 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu.
CAMPAIGN FOR BOOKS – UA’s Center for Economic Development’s Books for the Alabama Black Belt campaign runs from Wednesday, Feb. 1, to Tuesday, Feb. 28. The campaign offers an opportunity for students and area residents to donate new or gently used classic and award-winning books frequently found on school reading lists for K-12 children. Donation boxes will be placed on campus in Bidgood Hall, Capstone Village, Gorgas Library, McClure Library, Nott Hall and Smith Hall. Books also may be dropped off at the UA Center for Economic Development office at 621 Greensboro Ave. For a complete list of appropriate books, visit the center’s website: www.uced.ua.edu/books-for-the-black-belt.html. Distribution of the books will be made to the schools within the 13 counties in early summer. For more information about the book campaign, contact Sally Brown at 205/348-8344 or sally.brown@ua.edu. For assistance, contact Richard LeComte, media relations, rllecome@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782.
SCHIZOPHRENIA ADDRESSED AT MINI MED SCHOOL – Dr. Thad Ulzen, a professor and chair of the UA College of Community Health Sciences’ department of psychiatry and behavioral medicine, will present “Schizophrenia – A Most Disabling Mental Illness” at noon Thursday, Feb. 2, as part of a lecture series for UA’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, or OLLI, program. He will discuss the scientific understanding of the illness’s origins, its treatment and its outcome for patients, families and communities. The presentation will take place in the Bryant Conference Center’s Birmingham-Central Room. For more information, contact Kim Eaton, UA media relations, 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu.
CCHS CO-SPONSORS AFRICAN FILM FESTIVAL — The fifth annual Tuscaloosa Evening of African Film, co-sponsored by UA’s College of Community Health Sciences, will be Saturday, Feb. 4, at the Bama Theatre in downtown Tuscaloosa. The adult program begins at 6 p.m. with two award-winning short films and one feature-length film. A children’s program begins at 2 p.m. with a live performance of African Dance, music and storytelling, followed by an award-winning children’s animation movie. For more information, contact Kim Eaton, in UA media relations, at 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu.
UA OFFERS ENGINEERING COURSE … IN GERMAN – This spring 13 UA engineering students are learning automotive engineering through a class taught entirely in German, most likely the first German-taught engineering course for American students in the Southeast. For more information, contact Adam Jones, UA media relations, 205/348-6444 or adam.jones@ua.edu.