Vaccine Plans
Which US vaccine plans actually helped hard-hit communities?: MIT Technology Review – June 7
… Public health and equity researchers were not surprised at the pandemic’s disparate effect on certain communities, according to Stephanie McClure, assistant professor of anthropology at the University of Alabama. Health disparities along racial and economic lines have the potential to become a national and local focal point—in April, CDC director Rochelle Walensky declared racism “a serious public health threat”—but that tide hasn’t yet turned, McClure says.
Flood Resilience
UA research to enhance flood resilience of coastal communities: Tuscaloosa Patch – June 7
Researchers at The University of Alabama are working to develop advanced computational earth science and coastal models that help coastal communities prepare for flooding from tropical storms and hurricanes.
Miss Alabama
Miss Alabama during COVID: ‘This definitely has been a rollercoaster’: Al.com – June 8
Pennington, a political science and history major at The University of Alabama, was the first black woman to be named Miss University of Alabama. (She won the Miss Alabama crown while competing with that title.) She’s also the second Black woman to be named Miss Alabama, following in the footsteps of Kalyn Chapman James, Miss Alabama 1993.
Al.com – June 11
Al.com – June 12
Tenured Faculty
Less than 1% of tenured UA faculty are biracial, Pacific Islander, Native American: Crimson White – June 8
Biracial, Pacific Islander and Native American faculty members account for less than 1% of tenured UA faculty, making them the least represented minority groups in the University’s tenure system. There is one biracial tenured professor and one Pacific Islander tenured professor. There are no Native American professors on tenure.
Hallowed Grounds
Historian Hilary Green on unearthing the stories of the enslaved people who built a university: WFAE 90.7 – June 9
The big state universities of the South — the places so many of us went to school, and still root for on football Saturdays — were often, and largely, built by enslaved people. That was certainly true at The University of Alabama, where a historian named Hilary Green came to work as a professor a few years ago. Her research into that hidden history led to a project called Hallowed Grounds, which includes a campus tour that nearly 5,000 people have taken.
Mural Project
Art alumni, faculty, and students combine forces in hotel mural project: Patch Tuscaloosa – June 9
Good things come when UA alumni, faculty and students work together to create something new in Tuscaloosa. UA alumna Andrea Gillespie of Nashville was hired by Cohen Investments to be the principal interior designer of a new hotel in Tuscaloosa, Homewood Suites by Hilton. Gillespie, who is owner and principal of AK Designs LLC and has designed hotel interiors for two decades, was excited about creating something in Tuscaloosa, and she wanted it to be special. Her design for Homewood Suites uses familiar UA campus and sports motifs in the guest rooms, but with a distinctive twist.
Gorgas House
Unique Marietta home modeled on Bama landmark now for sale: Tuscaloosa Patch – June 10
It’s easy to imagine University of Alabama graduates blinking in surprise, and perhaps exclaiming “Roll Tide!” upon seeing the Greek Revival-style home for sale at 731 Colston Rd. in Marietta. With its white-columned porch, brick arches and graceful double stairway, the home is a replica of the Gorgas House Museum, the oldest building on The University of Alabama’s campus in Tuscaloosa. Situated on nearly two wooded acres in the Kings Mountain neighborhood, the home, built in 1966, is on the market…
Animal Food Webs
How climate change is disrupting animal ‘food webs’ and what it might mean for the future: Genetic Literacy Project – June 11
It seems like each day scientists report more dire consequences of climate change on animals and plants worldwide. Birds that are migrating later in the year can’t find enough food. Plants are flowering before their insect pollinators hatch. Prey species have less stamina to escape predators. In short, climatic shifts that affect one organism are likely to trigger ripple effects that can disturb the structure and functioning of entire ecosystems. … Sasha Greenspan is a Research Associate at The University of Alabama.
Markers and Monuments
Hilary Green comments on the renaming of buildings: WDET-FM (Detroit, MI) – June 11
Dr. Green also serves as the co-program director of the African American studies program at The University of Alabama and has been doing a great deal of work around this issue on that schools. Dr. Green welcome to Detroit Today. Thank you for having me today. So you’ve been involved in the renaming process of some markers and monuments at The University of Alabama.