News – Page 3 – Community Affairs | The University of Alabama

Community Affairs Board of Advisors to Meet; Dr. Cathy Randall to Speak at Dinner

September 15th, 2016
in Community Affairs Board of Advisors, News

Members of the executive committee of the Board of Advisors of the UA Division of Community Affairs stand with Dr. Samory T. Pruitt (upper left) following their first meeting in April. From left, Divya Patel, Americus, Georgia; Katie Boyd Britt, Birmingham and Washington, D.C.; Joseph Bryant, Birmingham; Calvin Han, Stamford, Connecticut; David Bailey, Nashville, Tennessee; Victoria Javine, Tuscaloosa; and Rashmee Sharif, Tuscaloosa.

Members of the newly formed Community Affairs board of advisors listen intently to a fellow board member at the inaugural meeting of the group, held on campus in April. The group will return to campus for its next full work session in late September.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Division of Community Affairs
The University of Alabama
250 Rose Administration Building, Box 870113
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0113

Email: community.affairs@ua.edu
Phone: 205-348-8376

Sept. 12, 2016

By Diane Kennedy-Jackson
Community Affairs Publications Coordinator

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The Community Affairs board of advisors will meet on the campus of the University of Alabama Sept. 25-27 to discuss progress on initiatives and to formulate next steps toward meeting goals.

Formed in early 2016, the board is comprised of outstanding UA alumni committed to community engagement and student success. Members mentor current students and assist in recruiting outstanding future leaders. They also support campus-wide initiatives that increase student success and retention, facilitate student involvement in entrepreneurship and innovative initiatives, and support the development of thoughtful global and community leaders.

“I continue to enjoy working with such a wonderful group of leaders and look forward to the impact they will have on current and future UA students,” said Director of Community and Administrative Affairs Carol Agomo, who is facilitator of the advisory group.

While on campus, board members will participate in committee work groups and spend time hearing from three student panels on topics including academic success, global leadership and entrepreneurship.

“I am enthusiastic about reconvening on campus with my fellow board members,” stated Katie Boyd Britt, president of the advisory board’s executive committee. “I am honored to be working on this board with my fellow alumni and am enthusiastic about our next steps forward in our efforts for our alma mater and her students.”

Dr. Cathy Randall will be the guest speaker for the “Coming Back, Giving Back” board of advisors dinner to be held Monday, Sept. 26, at the Bryant Conference Center on the UA campus. Randall is chairman of the board of Pettus Randall Holdings, LLC, and is director emerita of UA’s Honors Program, as well as the former chairman of the board of Randall Publishing Company and a former news anchor at CBS-affiliate WCFT-TV.

Randall will speak to members of the board of advisors — many of them students at UA during a time of tremendous growth at the University — on the importance of giving back.

“I will be extending appreciation to them, not only for what they did when they were students, but also for what they aspire to do,” said Randall, who went on to note the importance of the University’s commitment to engaging young people and connecting them to the University’s mission.

Randall earned two Ph.D. degrees from UA and has been named one of the top 31 women UA graduates of the century. Her other honors and service roles include national president of Mortar Board, Inc. and chairman of the Alabama Academy of Honor (the 100 most outstanding living Alabamians).

Dr. Samory T. Pruitt, vice president for the Division of Community Affairs, said, “We are very pleased to have someone with the distinguished background of Dr. Randall to speak at our second meeting of the Community Affairs board of advisors. We look forward to hearing the committee reports on the progress they have made toward plans that support their goals for UA students.”

Britt is president of the advisory board’s executive committee. Other members are Joseph Bryant, vice president; Divya Patel, treasurer; Calvin Han, secretary; David Bailey, chair of the entrepreneurship and innovative initiatives committee; Victoria Javine, chair of the academic success and student retention committee; and Rashmee Sharif, chair of the global and community leadership development committee.

The Division of Community Affairs was created in 2004 and is recognized nationally and internationally for its leadership in community engagement. The division provided the leadership for the recent reaffirmation of the University’s Carnegie curricular and community engagement classification. The division also publishes the Journal of Community Engaged Scholarship, one of the leading refereed journals in the field.

Crosssroads Interfaith Event Draws Large, Involved Crowd

August 30th, 2016
in Crossroads, News

Photos by Jianlong Yang
CCBP Student
[envira-gallery id=”3226″]

By Taylor Armor
CCBP Graduate Assistant

TUSCALOOSA– Both religious and non-religious organizations filled the Ferguson Center’s Great Hall to exchange views and answer questions about their respective beliefs at the Explore Better Together interfaith event on August 22 sponsored by Crossroads Community Center.

Students, faculty, Crossroads staff and community members participated in the night’s “speed faithing” activity during an event filled with conversation and laughter. Similar to speed dating, groups of attendees met with representatives from a religious or non-religious organization and after seven minutes moved to a new one.

Attendees met with the following religious and non-religious representatives: Zyad Jamalallail of the Muslim Student Association; Alex Hoffman of the Crimson Secular Student Alliance; Father Rick Chenault of St. Francis of University Parish; James Goodlet and Kate Broach of UKirk (Presbyterian) Campus Ministry; Lisa Besnoy of the Hillel Student Center; Parnab Das of the Indian Students Association, representing Hinduism; and Harshpal Singh, representing Sikhism, the world’s fifth largest religion, originating in the Punjab region of northern India.

Paige Bolden, coordinator of Intercultural Engagement at Crossroads, said interfaith activities like these give participants a chance to meet someone different than them, and ask “awkward questions” about their respective beliefs people avoid in everyday conversation. “We hope that they gain a better understanding (and) that this event helps build relationships and bridges between the religious and non-religious on campus,” Bolden said.

Parnar Das, a doctoral student in civil engineering, explains tenets of Hindu beliefs at the interfaith gathering.

Throughout the event, Lane McLelland, director of Crossroads, encouraged attendees to ask questions, listen and learn together, but that it was not a night of “challenging each other. Participating in this event and other Better Together programs at UA provides members of our campus community the opportunity to foster new connections for increased interfaith understanding,” McLelland said. “The strong relationships that are built through these dinners and dialogues and doing community service work together will be important for building bridges between groups on campus who might normally be divided by religious and philosophical differences.”

Bridging the divide between religious and non-religious beliefs has been central to the Crossroads Interfaith Initiative, which has modeled its work after the Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC.org). This interfaith movement promotes religious pluralism through respect for diverse religious and non-religious identities; mutually inspiring relationships between people of different backgrounds and traditions; and common action for the common good.

Carlisle Wishard, a senior in astrophysics from Washington, D.C., admitted that being an atheist in Alabama has been a different experience for her than living in her hometown. Wishard, a member of the Crimson Secular Student Alliance, said that the organization’s involvement in UA’s Better Together: Interfaith Youth Core program has fostered a sense of belonging for non-religious students and has opened dialogue with religious organizations on campus.

“If you don’t come from an area that is particularly religiously diverse,” Wishard said, “this is one of few opportunities to meet people that don’t think exactly like you. So I think it’s good for everyone, myself included, for people to learn about different religions and not feel bad about asking questions.”

For Parnab Das, the representative of the Hindu beliefs and the University’s Indian Student Association, the curiosity of the Explore Better Together participants inspired him to become more familiar with his beliefs and practices by the next event. “I’m not here to speak for the whole Hindu society,” Das said. “I’m here to present my beliefs and faiths about Hinduism. So, I feel I need to brush up on these things, so I can be more concrete, more specific and more knowledgeable and transparent for the next time that I’m here.”

Father Rick Chenault of University Parrish Catholic Church leads discussion about the role of women in the church.

A doctoral student in civil engineering, Das brought along a trifold poster board completely covered in information on Hinduism in an anticipated effort to answer any questions from his audience.

“We have so many wrong beliefs about other religions,” Das said. “This is a good platform to work on that, to question other religions and make ourselves knowledgeable, and to live a transparent life.”

For Gevin Brown, a senior from Birmingham, Ala. majoring in design for social inclusion, the event also reinforced that culture and religion aren’t interchangeable in understanding faith-based practices and beliefs.

“While I was at the Muslim [Islam] table,” Brown said. “[Zyad Jamalallail] mentioned that certain cultures in his country oppress women but his religion does not by any means. They go together very well, but it’s important to note the difference.” Brown, who has worked as a Crossroads student intern since his freshman year, has found that interfaith dialogue positively benefits the UA community.

“These kinds of events show and create cohesion,” Brown said. “They show that even though you’re ‘XYZ’, you can still come into these uncomfortable places and make friends and grow as a person.”

UA community members interested in participating in upcoming Better Together events should contact the Crossroads Community Center at 205-348-6930 or email crossroads@ua.edu.

Community Affairs to Conduct STEM Entrepreneurship Camp for Students in High School

July 13th, 2016
in News, Spotlight, STEM Entrepreneurship Academy

Center for Community-Based Partnerships (CCBP) to Hold 10th Annual Awards Program and Luncheon

April 27th, 2016
in CCBP, News

TUSCALOOSA – A special awards program recognizing the best of engaged scholarship conducted by faculty, staff, student and community teams turns 10 years old on Friday, April 29. Activities begin with research poster presentations at 10 a.m., with the luncheon and program following at 11:30 in Sellers Auditorium of the Bryant Conference Center.

“The Excellence in Community Engagement Awards is one of the most important events on our calendar,” said Dr. Samory T. Pruitt, vice president for the Division of Community Affairs. “The ceremony brings campus and community together to give much-deserved recognition for the many examples of campus-community collaboration that take place each year.”

Special guests in attendance will be members of the newly created Community Affairs Board of Advisors, which is holding its first meeting on Thursday, April 28 at the Embassy Suites Hotel. Its purpose is to support campus-wide initiatives that encourage student success and retention, facilitate entrepreneurship, and support innovation and global leadership.

Among the awards to be presented are the following:

• Tera “CeeCee” Johnson, a junior in psychology, will receive the Zachary David Dodson Memorial Endowed Scholarship. This is the second year of the award named for the late CCBP work-study student.

• Dr. Beverly E. Thorn, professor of psychology, will receive the faculty Distinguished Community-Engaged Scholar award for her leadership, research and dedication to the people of Alabama.

• Calia Torres, doctoral student in clinical psychology, Dr. Thorn’s student, will receive the student Distinguished Community-Engaged Scholar award for her work with Whatley Health Services.

• Deborah Tucker will receive the community partner Distinguished Community-Engaged Scholar Award for her commitment to community service as CEO of Whatley Health Services.

Receiving Outstanding Faculty-Initiated Engagement Effort awards will be Thorn; Dr. Rebecca Allen, professor of psychology; Teri Henley, instructor of advertising and public relations; and Dr. Teresa Wise, associate provost for International Education and Global Outreach.

Fan Yang, doctoral student in social work, will receive an award for Outstanding Student-Initiated Engagement Effort. Two awards will be given for Outstanding Community Partner-Initiated Engagement Effort. Alberta McCrory, mayor of Hobson City, Alabama will receive one of the awards, and Buddy Kirk, Patti Presley-Fuller, and Rep. Alan Harper, all of Pickens County, will receive the other.

A highlight of the event each year is the presentation of research posters, which may be viewed before and after the awards program. This year a record 21 posters were accepted for presentation. Dr. Jen Nickelsen, associate professor of health science, oversees this activity and is also chair of the Travel Funds Committee. She will announce names of those receiving travel support for 2016-17.

Dr. Laurie Bonnici, chair of the Proposal and Seed Funding Committee, will announce names of the 2016-17 seed fund recipients. Dr. Rebecca Allen, who oversees the graduate fellowship awards, will announce names of those recipients. Calia Torres and “CeeCee” Johnson, co-chair the Student Involvement and Support Committee, will give a report on their committee’s activities during the past year. And Amanda Waller, chair of the Community Partnership Support Committee, will give the report for that committee.

Dr. David A. Francko, dean of the Graduate School, is chair of the CCBP Executive Committee responsible for the annual awards program. After Friday’s program, Francko will step down from his CCBP position. Dr. Peter Hlebowitsh, dean of the College of Education, will succeed Francko as Executive Committee chair.

Screen Shot 2016-04-14 at 11.25.25 AM — Deborah Tucker

UA Establishes Community Affairs Board of Advisors

February 23rd, 2016
in Community Affairs Board of Advisors, News

BoardOfAdvisors_ReleaseHeader

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The Division of Community Affairs of The University of Alabama has announced the creation of an alumni board of advisors made up of outstanding individuals with a commitment to community engagement and student success.

The board will support campus-wide initiatives that increase student success and retention and facilitate student involvement in entrepreneurship, innovation and development of thoughtful global and community leaders.

The board will also mentor current students and assist in recruiting outstanding future leaders.

“We are excited that these outstanding graduates are willing to come back and support their alma mater in such a meaningful way,” said UA President Stuart R. Bell. “It is clear that this group of former students represent the great future leadership of our country and the world.”

The executive committee of the Board of Advisors is made of Katie Boyd Britt, president; Joseph Bryant, vice president; Divya Patel, treasurer; Calvin Han, secretary; David Bailey, chair of the entrepreneurship and innovative initiatives committee; Victoria Javine, chair of the academic success and student retention committee; and Rashmee Sharif, chair of the global and community leadership development committee.

According to Dr. Samory T. Pruitt, vice president for community affairs, the executive committee of the board has begun pulling together outstanding talent from UA alumni for membership on the inaugural Board of Advisors.

“The caliber of individuals willing to serve has simply been amazing,” Britt said. “We are all so eager, excited and appreciative of this opportunity to serve our University in this manner, and we are looking forward to our first meeting on campus in April.”

The Division of Community Affairs was created in 2004 and is recognized nationally and internationally for its leadership in community engagement. The division provided the leadership for the recent reaffirmation of the University’s Carnegie curricular and community engagement classification. The division also publishes the Journal of Community Engaged Scholarship, one of the leading refereed journals in the field.

Recently, Pruitt was elected president of the board of directors of the Engaged Scholarship Consortium, a group of national and international higher education institutions committed to community-engaged scholarship. His leadership has been recognized with induction into the Academy of Community Engagement Scholarship.

“The recognition we have received for our work on campus and internationally is most gratifying, and I am looking forward to the contributions this outstanding group of servant leaders will make to our society now and in the future,” Pruitt said.

The board will hold its first meeting April 28 and 29 on campus.

The University of Alabama, a student-centered research university, is experiencing significant growth in both enrollment and academic quality. This growth, which is positively impacting the campus and the state’s economy, is in keeping with UA’s vision to be the university of choice for the best and brightest students. UA, the state’s flagship university, is an academic community united in its commitment to enhancing the quality of life for all Alabamians.

CONTACT: Richard LeComte, media relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782
SOURCE: Carol N. Agomo, Division of Community Affairs, 205/348-7405

UA Recognized as a Top Producing Institution in Student Fulbright Awards Competition

February 23rd, 2016
in News, Spotlight, Uncategorized

FulbrightWinner_ReleaseHeader

UA Recognized as a Top Producing Institution in Student Fulbright Awards Competition

TUSCALOOSA – The University of Alabama has been recognized as a top producing institution for student Fulbright awards, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education. Eleven of 30 UA applicants received the award during 2015–2016, one of the highest success ratios in the nation.

The Fulbright U.S. Student Program offers grants for independent study and research projects and for English teaching assistantships overseas. The highly competitive program makes approximately 1,500 awards each year.

“Our success in placing students in the Fulbright U.S. Student Program demonstrates the far-reaching international scope of our excellent academic programs and the high value of a University of Alabama education,” said Dr. Kevin Whitaker, UA interim provost. “We continue to take pride in the many excellent and promising young people who choose UA for their academic studies.”

Ten UA graduates won awards as teaching assistants and one UA graduate received a Fulbright research award for the 2015–2016 academic year.

“It is an honor for UA to be listed as a top producer in the U.S. Student Fulbright competition,” said Dr. Teresa Wise, associate provost for international education and global outreach. “The Fulbright Program provides life-changing opportunities and experiences for our students.”

University of Alabama graduates serving abroad on Fulbright Awards are Brianna Adams (Czech Republic), Lisa Bochey (Peru), Nichole Camille Corbett (Turkey), Kathryn Crenshaw (Brazil), Scott Leary (Spain), Conner Nix (Spain), Charles Henry Pratt (Brazil), Jenna Reynolds (Spain), Hailah Saeed (Malaysia), Erin Smith (Turkey) and Russell Willoughby (France).

The Capstone International Center and the Global Café Program in the Center for Community-Based Partnerships, an initiative of the Division of Community Affairs, are partners in the UA Fulbright advising initiative, and their work together has resulted in the increased number of UA students who have won Fulbrights, said Dr. Beverly Hawk, UA Fulbright program adviser.

Students interested in applying for next year’s Fulbright program can learn more atinternational.ua.edu/fulbright/ and us.fulbrightonline.org, or by sending an email tobeverly.hawk@ua.edu.

A Fulbright informational event will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 1, at Global Café in Capital Hall, 270 Kilgore Lane, on the former Bryce Hospital campus. The event is free and open to the public.

Other top producers this year include Harvard (31), Michigan (29), Northwestern and Yale (26), UNC-Chapel Hill (15), Texas-Austin and UVA (14), Duke and Ohio State (12), Florida State, Tufts, Maryland and Alabama (11). For the full list of top student Fulbright program producers, see http://chronicle.com/article/Top-Producers-of-US/235384?cid=rclink.

SOURCE: Dr. Beverly Hawk, Director of Program Services, bhawk@ua.edu, 205/348-7392