Watch the 2020 UA United Way Campaign celebration on the CCIS facebook page!
Council Hosts 15th Annual Excellence in Community Engagement Awards
- May 6th, 2021
- in CCBP
TUSCALOOSA — For the fifth time in six years, The University of Alabama was recognized as a Top Producing Institution for Fulbright U.S. Student Awards. Additionally, the 2020–2021 cohort sets a new University record with 17 students receiving Fulbright Award offers.
“We are immensely proud of our student Fulbright scholars, all of whom have earned a priceless opportunity to teach and conduct research in other countries,” said UA President Stuart R. Bell. “Not only will they grow personally and intellectually by building relationships with likeminded peers across cultures, they are also furthering UA’s mission of transforming lives throughout the world through distinctive academic and research projects.”
Now in its 75th year, the Fulbright U.S. Student Program is the premier educational exchange program of the United States Department of State. The Fulbright Award offers grants for independent study and research and for English teaching assistantships overseas. The highly competitive program selects about 2,200 award recipients from more than 10,000 applicants each year.
“UA’s repeated recognition as a Top Producer of Student Fulbright Awards reflects the quality of our applicants and the dedication of our faculty and staff to providing all students with a global perspective during their time at the Capstone,” said Dr. Teresa Wise, associate provost for International Education & Global Outreach. “The challenges of the pandemic have altered our delivery methods but not our devotion to offering a world-class and world-focused education.”
The UA students who received Fulbright Award offers in this year’s national competition are: Christine Allen (Spain), Austin Blair (Germany), Mason Olivia Blanke (Poland), Camille Carr (Colombia), Julia Coursey (Hungary), Caroline Smith Dean (Spain), Isabella Rose DeSheplo (Bulgaria), Lota Erinne (Spain), Logan Fenhouse (Spain), Amelia Wyant Gaither (Taiwan), Robert “Chad” Hankins (Germany), Asia Hayes (Spain), Joshua Kirks (Germany), Katherine Lightfoot (Germany), Ashley Tickle Odebiyi (Italy), Rebecca Paholski (Spain) and Ian Samlowski (Germany).
“These brilliant students deserve admiration for their dedication to their studies, and our university takes pride in their Fulbright honors,” said Dr. Beverly Hawk, director of global and community engagement in the Division of Community Affairs’ Center for Community-Based Partnerships. “We wish them all success as international travel resumes, educational institutions reopen, and winners have the opportunity to go abroad and serve.”
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — “The show must go on” is one of the most familiar expressions in showbiz, and despite COVID-19, that is exactly what will be happening during the 2021 Martin Luther King Jr. Realizing the Dream celebration.
While the two most familiar components — the annual concert and legacy banquet — will not occur this year, other important aspects of this annual celebration will take place.
The theme for the 2021 activities is Realizing the Dream Through Justice for All.
Among the activities planned is the premier of a documentary that will chronicle the vision and aspirations of those who founded the event in 1990, as well as its impact on individuals and the community. It will feature founders and key officials from Stillman College, Shelton State Community College, The University of Alabama and the Tuscaloosa Southern Christian Leadership Conference, who will recount their experiences.
Through the use of current and archival interviews, the documentary will feature those who have been recognized over the years, such as Reverend Thomas Linton, former Tuscaloosa police chief Ken Swindle, attorney Cleo Thomas Jr., and our youngest award recipients, including former students Kendra Key, Fan Yang, Melanie Gotz, Quin Kelly and Emma Mansberg.
The Center for Public Television is partnering with the Realizing the Dream Committee to produce the documentary.
In addition, a new Realizing the Dream website will be launched featuring photographic images captured over the years, not only from The University of Alabama archives but also from individuals who have participated in the annual events. To upload photos, visit http://communityaffairs.ua.edu/realizing-the-dream-photo-submission/.
Realizing the Dream activities will continue throughout the year on a quarterly basis and may include guest lecturers and performing artists. Events will be hosted in a virtual setting early in the year, with hopes for in-person activities later. Event details will be announced as they become available.
Among those events is an essay and art contest focused on the 2021 theme, Realizing the Dream Through Justice for All. The contest, which will involve middle and high school students from Tuscaloosa and the surrounding area, is sponsored by the Realizing the Dream Committee, which seeks to educate and keep the Dream relevant to the next generation. Selected students will be asked to share insights about their work in an online setting on Thursday, April 8, at 6 p.m. Those students featured will receive special recognition, as well as earn funding to support this important work at their respective schools.
This year’s event date was selected for its close proximity to the time Dr. King, a brilliant writer and orator, wrote his April 16, 1963 Letter from the Birmingham Jail. His message that day, “… Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere …,” was both timely and timeless.
Information about contest criteria and submission is available at http://realizingthedream.ua.edu. The submission deadline is Monday, March 15.
The Realizing the Dream Committee is comprised of representatives from The University of Alabama, Stillman College, Shelton State Community College and the Tuscaloosa Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC).
The Tuscaloosa SCLC has recently announced its Unity Day events, scheduled to take place on a virtual platform on Monday, Jan. 18. The Unity Day Breakfast will begin the day’s activities at 7:45 a.m. Reverend David Gay will be the speaker. A car parade will begin at 11 a.m. Those planning to participate should place signs on their cars and line up at the Beulah Baptist Church and Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School parking lots. Concluding the day’s activities will be a rally program at 6 p.m., featuring Reverend Clarence Sutton Jr. as the speaker.
For more information on how to view the Unity Day virtual programs and participate in the car parade, please contact Reginald Kennedy at rlkkennedy@yahoo.com.
Dr. Samory T. Pruitt, vice president of the Division of Community Affairs at UA and a member of the Realizing the Dream Committee, said, “We look forward to sharing these important annual events with the public, even if we are unable to do so face-to-face at this time. Dr. King’s legacy is too important for us to let something like COVID-19 prevent us from continuing to recognize what Dr. King means to our campus, community and state. The show WILL go on.”
For additional information, contact the UA Division of Community Affairs at community.affairs@ua.edu or 205-348-8376.
The University of Alabama, the state’s oldest and largest public institution of higher education, is a student-centered research university that draws the best and brightest to an academic community committed to providing a premier undergraduate and graduate education. UA is dedicated to achieving excellence in scholarship, collaboration and intellectual engagement; providing public outreach and service to the state of Alabama and the nation; and nurturing a campus environment that fosters collegiality, respect and inclusivity
Watch the 2020 UA United Way Campaign celebration on the CCIS facebook page!
By Diane Kennedy-Jackson
Publications Coordinator, Division of Community Affairs
As the campus community prepared for the rapidly approaching Thanksgiving holiday, UA United Way Campaign leadership shared an update on the 2020 campaign giving total to date. On Thursday, Nov. 19, Big Al joined Dr. Adam Brooks, campaign co-chair, in the WVUA studios to announce that this annual campaign, which supports those in need throughout our area through donations to the United Way of West Alabama (UWWA), had reached a giving total of $360,045.41, or 90% of this year’s $400,000 goal. The announcement was made from the WVUA studios via the College of Communication and Information Sciences’ Facebook page.
Joining the celebration virtually were Dr. Mark Nelson, dean of this year’s host college, the College of Communication and Information Sciences, as well as Campaign Champion Dr. Nicole Prewitt, UA President Stuart R. Bell, Campaign Treasurer Caroline Railsback, 2020 UWWA Campaign Chair Shelley Jones and Jackie Wuska, chief executive officer of UWWA.
Their unified message was to send a heartfelt thank you to every member of the University community who has given or will give to this ongoing effort, and to everyone involved in running the campaign.
Nelson thanked Adam Brooks and Lynn Brooks for serving as campaign co-chairs, as well as Dr. Samory Pruitt and his staff in the Division of Community Affairs for their behind-the-scenes role in this annual campaign. He also thanked Dr. Bell for the opportunity to host the 2020 campaign. “And to each of you, our faculty and staff, who shared your kindness with our community, thank you,” said Nelson
Bell thanked Dean Nelson and CCIS for leading the campaign this year, noting that the last time this college hosted the campaign was in 2011 following the spring tornadoes that year. “I promise that we will do our best to make the next time you host a year like any other, rather than a year like no other,” said Bel, who went on to thank the United Way of West Alabama, both for the work they are doing and for allowing the University the opportunity to be a partner in service to the community. “And to all who have donated or are still planning to, I thank you,” said Bell. “This year more than ever, our community is counting on us.”
Wuska spoke to the importance of the University’s role in this annual campaign, saying “Thank you so much to those of you who have paid your blessings forward by making a gift to the United Way of West Alabama. The need for our partner agencies’ services has never been greater, and we could not come close to making an impact in the community without the support of The University of Alabama. During this challenging time, we are grateful that you have faith in us to allow us to make a difference.”
Railsback thanked all donors for their generosity, as well as the UA facilities department for quickly setting up the drop box behind Rose Administration to accommodate those who wished to drop off pledge cards. She gave a special nod to Prathima Gilliam and her team in OIT who built the online giving platform, which was new this year. “We quite literally could not have had this year’s campaign without her,” said Railsback.
Prewitt noted that when she was asked to serve in this role this year, she welcomed the opportunity, in part because she knew she would have a great campus coordinating team, but also because she knew the generosity and kindness of the UA family.
“Since the COVID-19 outbreak in March, more people have sought assistance from the United Way of West Alabama than ever before — many of them for the first time,” said Prewitt. “I want to thank every member of the UA family who has already made or will make a contribution to the 2020 campaign. Your generosity and kindness are certain to have a lasting impact on our community.”
In a year that has brought unique challenges for us all, the global pandemic has shone a spotlight on the importance of sharing what we have with those in need, and in letting kindness be our story.
The campaign will continue through the end of the semester, and donations can be made through a secure, online giving portal at http://communityaffairs.ua.edu/2020-ua-united-way-headquarters/. Those who prefer to give via pledge card should contact Elizabeth Hartley at ehartley@ua.edu. Donations of at least $60 will qualify for a Donor Rewards Card containing offers from 34 West Alabama businesses.
The Division of Community Affairs leads the annual UA United Way Campaign with a structure that provides opportunities for UA colleges and administrative units to host the campaign each year. The United Way of West Alabama has 26 partner agencies and plays a vital role in improving the quality of people’s lives. Partner agencies from Bibb, Fayette, Greene, Hale, Lamar, Marengo, Pickens, Sumter and Tuscaloosa counties provide a variety of education, income-related, health and emergency-response programs to citizens throughout West Alabama.
Dr. Raphael W. Bostick, president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, addressed how the Federal Reserve is responding to the needs of rural communities on Sept. 23 in a presentation titled “Toward a More Perfect Economy: The Challenge and Opportunity of Rural Communities.” This virtual conversation was held in partnership with the Hale County Chamber of Commerce, the Chamber of Commerce Association of Alabama, Stillman College and The University of Alabama Division of Community Affairs.
Community representatives joining the conversation included Felecia Lucky, president of the Black Belt Community Foundation; Dr. Josh Pierce, the Robert Hunt Cochrane/Alabama Banker’s Endowed Chair of Banking in the Culverhouse College of Business; and Alex Flachsbart, CEO and founder of Opportunity Alabama.
Bostic’s responsibilities involve maintaining stable prices and monitoring financial risks to support the economy. With the Federal Reserve, Bostic helps regulate monetary policy through the setting of interest rates. The Atlanta Fed serves as a pipeline for financial lending, investments and small business partnerships.
Bostic said the COVID-19 pandemic, which has resulted in a significant drop in spending and a rise in unemployment, as well as concerns about eviction, has drastically changed how the Federal Reserve provides resources for local businesses and families. He said the Federal Reserve has responded with assistance to families and small businesses by creating the Main Street Lending Program to support businesses that didn’t qualify for the Paycheck Protection Program.
Rural areas are especially challenged, he said, to find solutions in gaining access to broadband connections, affordable housing and delivery of healthcare. With the increase of virtual meetings to ensure social distancing, access to the Internet is more important than ever for individuals and small businesses to complete daily tasks.
“What we have first and foremost is a public health crisis, and the thing that will determine the trajectory of the economy is the trajectory of the virus and the nature of that crisis,” Bostic said.
Bostic also addressed the importance of providing financial literacy for rural citizens, saying that every American must know where to find information and receive answers to their questions. For specific resources related to the COVID-19 pandemic, he recommended this website: https://www.frbatlanta.org/news/covid-19.aspx.
Lucky, president of the Black Belt Community Foundation, said the “challenges in the Black Belt are real when it comes to technology.” Outside of the pandemic, rural communities are also widely affected by differences in technological resources. While some areas are in abundance of information and materials, some families and businesses are challenged with finding access to certain assets. To meet these needs, she said, individuals and organizations throughout Alabama, including the Black Belt, are collaborating to evaluate opportunities in rural communities. Flachsbart reported that Opportunity Alabama, a 501c3 organization, is working on an initiative with the Delta Regional Authority to ensure people of the Black Belt have access to technical assistance to support more local projects.
Each autumn, The University of Alabama conducts its annual UA United Way Campaign in support of the United Way of West Alabama (UWWA). The campaign, like so many things in 2020, will look a little different this year, but the goal — to support UWWA and, by extension, its 26 partner agencies — remains the same.
This year’s host college, the College of Communication and Information Sciences, will utilize the WVUA studio to share the 2020 UA United Way Campaign Kickoff via the College’s Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/UACCIS) on Thursday, Oct. 8, at 2 p.m.
All are invited to join WVUA news director and anchor Lynn Brooks and director of the Communication Studies speaking studio Dr. Adam Brooks, who are serving as campaign co-chairs, as well as University of Alabama President Stuart R. Bell, Dr. Mark Nelson, dean of the College of Communication and Information Sciences, other members of the campaign leadership, and Big Al.
We look forward to connecting with you on Facebook as together we launch another exciting United Way Campaign at The University of Alabama.
Contact: Nicole Prewitt, nbprewitt@ua.edu, 205-348-9819
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The University of Alabama Division of Community Affairs will partner with the Hale County Chamber of Commerce to present Toward a More Perfect Economy: The Challenge and Opportunity of Rural Communities, a conversation with Dr. Raphael W. Bostic, president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
The event will be presented via Zoom webinar on Wednesday, Sept. 23, from noon–1:00 p.m. CT. Interested individuals are encouraged to register in advance at http://tinyurl.com/HaleCoBostic to receive Zoom login information, as well as to share questions for the panelists. The event will also be available via Facebook Live on the Hale County Chamber of Commerce Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/halecountychamber).
Bostic is the 15th president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. In this role he is responsible for all of the bank’s activities, including bank supervision and regulation and payment services. He also serves on the Federal Open Market Committee, the monetary policymaking body of the Federal Reserve System. Prior to joining the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, Bostic served as the Judith and John Bedrosian Chair in Governance and the Public Enterprise at the Sol Price School of Public Policy at the University of Southern California. He graduated from Harvard University in 1987 with a combined major in economics and psychology, and earned his doctorate in economics from Stanford University in 1995.
Additional presenters include Alex Flachsbart, founder and CEO of Opportunity Alabama and a University of Alabama (UA) alumnus; Felecia Lucky, president of the Black Belt Community Foundation, who earned the MBA from UA; and Dr. Josh Pierce, chair of banking and finance at UA’s Culverhouse College of Business. Each will speak briefly about their organizations and how they serve Alabamians.
Those who are unable to join during the live presentations will have the opportunity to tune in at a time that is convenient for them via the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s website (https://www.frbatlanta.org) and Youtube channel (https://www.youtube.com/user/AtlantaFed).
The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta serves the Sixth Federal Reserve District, which covers Alabama, Florida and Georgia, and parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee. The bank has branches in Birmingham, Jacksonville, Miami, Nashville and New Orleans.
Contact: Llevelyn Rhone, Hale County Chamber of Commerce, llevelyn.rhone@gmail.com
As a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, offices at The University of Alabama have been operating under a limited business model, including offices and centers throughout the Division of Community Affairs. This includes the Center for Community-Based Partnerships, the Student Community Engagement Center, and the Crossroads Civic Engagement Center.
While the initial outbreak required the cancellation of the remaining special events we normally host during the spring semester, it could not slow us from our mission. Knowing that the work we do with and within the community would become increasingly important, we pivoted to deliver the Division’s programs via technology platforms that allowed us to remain connected while maintaining physical distance. And we continued to plan for the future.
Now, as the University prepares for a return to campus in the fall, we continue to press forward — safely — with plans to continue many of our programs online into the fall semester. It’s a new space for a Division that bases its programs and activities on community engagement, but it has presented opportunities for us to explore new ways of doing things that can continue to have a positive impact when we get to the other side of this worldwide pandemic.
We encourage you to follow the University’s updates at healthinfo.ua.edu, and to stay abreast of Community Affairs happenings on our website and on our social media pages.
We wish you good health, and we continue to look forward to the day when we can get back to the work of community engagement on a face-to-face basis.
The 2020 Realizing the Dream Distinguished Lecture Series, titled VOTE, Everyone and Everywhere, will take place Thursday, March 12, at 6 p.m. in Stillman College’s Stinson Auditorium, with voter registration and voting rights restoration education taking place prior to the event and beginning at 4:30 p.m.
All are encouraged to participate in voter registration if they are not already registered, to learn about the process for restoring their right to vote if applicable, and staying for the panel and discussion that follow.
The panel will feature representatives of The Andrew Goodman Foundation, as well as Dana Sweeney, Statewide Organizer at the Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice and a 2018–2019 Puffin Democracy Fellow with The Andrew Goodman Foundation.
At the height of the civil rights movement, Andrew Goodman joined Freedom Summer 1964 to register African Americans to vote. On his first day in Mississippi, he and two other civil rights workers, James Chaney and Michael Schwerner, were murdered by the Ku Klux Klan. The Andrew Goodman Foundation was created in 1966 by Robert and Carolyn Goodman to carry on the spirit and purpose of their son Andrew’s life. Today, the foundation’s work harnesses the legacy of courageous civic action to grow new leaders of change.
Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice is a non-profit, non-partisan 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to work to achieve justice and equity for all Alabamians. Alabama Appleseed is a member of the national Appleseed Network, which includes 18 Appleseed Centers across the U.S. and in Mexico City. Alabama Appleseed is also a member of the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law’s Legal Impact Network, a collaborative of 36 advocacy organizations from across the country working with communities to end poverty and achieve racial justice at the federal, state and local levels.
All are encouraged and invited to this free event, which promises to be an enlightening and inspiring discussion about the importance of exercising the right to vote. Come as you are and bring a friend.
The event will be hosted by Stillman College, a member of the Realizing the Dream Committee, which is comprised of Stillman, Shelton State Community College, the Tuscaloosa Southern Christian Leadership Conference and The University of Alabama.
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Realizing the Dream Committee exists to raise consciousness about injustice and promote human equality, peace and social justice. It creates educational and cultural opportunities for growth, empowerment and social change so that every person may experience the bounty of life’s abundant possibilities. The Distinguished Lecture Series is an integral part of the Realizing the Dream activities in west Alabama.
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Grammy-nominated singer and songwriter Jonathan McReynolds commanded the stage at the 31st annual Realizing the Dream Concert on Sunday, January 19, as students and community members gathered to cheer the enthusiastic performance at Moody Music Concert Hall in celebration of the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Student representatives Harrison Adams, University of Alabama Student Government Association (SGA) President; Obi Bruno S. Ndubueze, Shelton State Community College Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society president; and Kylon Freeman, Stillman College SGA president, welcomed the audience and recognized Legacy Award winners Emma Mansberg, Chris England and Mary Allen Jolley, who received awards on Friday, for their services and achievements performed in the spirit of Dr. King.
Sunday night’s concert brought the weekend to its peak. Audience members were excited and eager for McReynolds’ performance. The Chicago native began his career in a college dorm room and has grown to become a distinguished artist around the world, receiving a Dove Award, a Grammy nomination and multiple Stellar Award nominations.
McReynolds captured the audience at the outset by singing his hits “Great is the Lord” and “Gotta Have You.” Audience members were impressed by the artist’s powerful vocals, clapping and cheering throughout the concert. “Not Lucky, I’m Loved” was a crowd favorite.
McReynolds, drawing on personal experience, shared that he doesn’t take all the credit. He said his songs are inspired by an authentic relationship with God. The audience was moved by his story and applauded the artist for speaking about his experience.
The energetic performer kept the guests on their feet the whole night. As he sang about faith and freedom, many lifted their hands with praise. McReynolds reminded the crowd that faith in God should frame every part of life, and testified that this is what he is truly about.
The Realizing the Dream Concert and Legacy Awards Banquet, whose purpose is to shine a spotlight on peace and unity that inspires us all to make a better tomorrow, is sponsored by The University of Alabama, Stillman College, Shelton State Community College and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.