The University of Alabama

The University of Alabama Division of Student Life awarded the 2019 Penny Allen Awards to Brooke Bailey and Courtney Thomas. The Penny Allen Award is an annual award given to one student and one faculty or staff member at UA. The award recognizes selfless service, unfailing commitment, leadership and contributions to student life at UA.

Erin Behland, a University of Alabama graduating senior from Chicago, has received a Critical Language Scholarship to study Mandarin in China. Behland is majoring in international relations, history and anthropology with a minor in Chinese. She previously received a Critical Language Scholarship in 2017. Since her first scholarship, Behland has studied at The University of Glasgow in Scotland and traveled across Greece studying ancient western civilization via the UA in Greece study abroad program.

The Omicron Delta Kappa Society is the national leadership honor society for college students, faculty, staff, administrators and alumni that recognizes and encourages superior scholarship, leadership, and exemplary character. Membership in ODK is a mark of the highest distinction and honor. Omicron Delta Kappa recognizes and encourages achievement in scholarship; athletics; campus or community service; social and religious activities; campus government; journalism, speech and the mass media; and creative and performing arts.

Blue Key is a premier honor society that recognizes college students for balanced and all-around excellence in scholarship, leadership and service.

The Anderson Society is a leadership honorary that recognizes students who have made significant contributions to The University of Alabama. Twenty-four students are accepted each year; and seven honorary memberships are awarded to faculty and graduating seniors. While these contributions often take many forms, there are certain qualities of members of the Anderson Society that are prominently and ubiquitously found -- an immersion into some sort of community service, passion for improving the university community through both explicit and implicit means, and persistent effort to attain excellence in some sphere of university life. Once an Anderson initiate, members are expected to continue to devote themselves to service, some directly under the auspices of the Anderson Society, but much more individually.

Mortar Board is the premier national honor society recognizing college seniors for superior achievement in scholarship, leadership and service. The University of Alabama's Hypatia Chapter is one of the oldest chapters in the nation. Only a select few students on each campus are invited to join this esteemed society. Mortar Board members are presented with the opportunity to join a diverse group of students from different disciplines and interests.

The University of Alabama's Black Faculty and Staff Association recently recognized students who received premier academic awards for 2018-19. The students were honored on Black Scholars Day. The mission of the Black Faculty and Staff Association is to contribute to the betterment of UA a by serving as an advocate for educational equity, with an emphasis on African-American students, and the professional needs of its members. To that end, this organization promotes and provides opportunities for networking among individuals and groups to articulate mutual concerns and advance educational opportunities.

Two University of Alabama students have received Boren Scholarships for the study of languages in world regions critical to U.S. interests and underrepresented in study abroad.

Kiley Lord, a senior in the College of Communication and Information Sciences at The University of Alabama, was awarded the Franklin Shirley Award for the Top Undergraduate Honors Conference Paper at the Southern States Communication Association Convention in Montgomery, Alabama.

The University of Alabama Honors College selected 29 students to serve as college ambassadors during the 2019/2020 school year. Ambassadors represent the college during recruitment, alumni, and donor events on and off campus.

The University of Alabama's department of art and art history is presented the master of arts thesis exhibition of Katie Adams, titled "Space Between the Ears." The exhibition was held March 21-31, 2019, at Harrison Galleries, in downtown Tuscaloosa. Adams designs and builds sculptures that visually express the effects of neurological disorders on those afflicted as well as the people around them, both in form and through the media in which she works. "My sculptures examine the complications of neurological disorders," she said. "Each piece builds a perspective for viewers to experience simultaneously the breakdown of neurological systems as well as the disruption of function and communication." She wants the experience of viewing her sculpture to bring a realization to the viewer that, as she says, "perspective can be distorted without materially changing objects." Adams works with metal, glass, ceramics and photography for the work in this exhibition. "Each brain model is different: with each disease the portions of the brain affected are either missing or made of glass instead of metal," she said. Adams hopes that by bridging the gap between art and medicine through her work, she will help people understand what is happening physically and mentally with neurological diseases. Katie Adams is a graduate student in sculpture. Adams received the BA from Western Kentucky University in art with a concentration in sculpture. Her work has been included in numerous juried and group exhibitions including Height x Width x Depth (HWD) in Kettering, Ohio; 51st Annual National Drawing and Small Sculpture Show, Corpus Christi, Texas, and 24th Annual Jack Lunt Memorial Juried Art Exhibition, Bowling Green, Ky. She demonstrated at the 2016 Sculpture Objects Functional Art and Design Convention (SOFA) in Chicago. Her work consists mostly of metal, wood and glass components. Adams says that she searches to understand and combine nature's physical elements and systems with emotional connections.

The University of Alabama's Contemporary Ensemble presented an evening of music composed by students. "Composers Present" was performed April 12 in the concert hall of the Moody Music Building,

The National Alumni Association of The University of Alabama recognizes and honors one male and one female in the senior class to receive the Alumni Student Award. The association also recognizes and honors students in the senior class. The students have excelled in academics and extracurricular activities, shown strength of character and maturity and displayed exceptional hospitality.

The University of Alabama department of art and art history presents "Earthworks," the master of fine arts thesis exhibition of Patrick Hoban, April 16-30, at Harrison Galleries, 2315 University Blvd. in Tuscaloosa. The public is invited to a reception for the artist Friday, April 19, from 6 to 9 p.m. Hoban expresses the relationship between the fragility of humans and nature through art work that suggests force, separation and compression of materials. He works in ceramic and incorporates found objects in his art. "The moment when a plant breaks the surface of concrete and continues to grow is a forceful moment with which I relate," he said. "Being rooted in Philadelphia exposed me to the extremes of the natural world and how they interact with the spaces of an inner city. Childhood spent on beaches and by rivers, observing, experiencing, collecting and documenting the extreme forces of nature has allowed me to connect my personal struggles to those of nature. There will always be barriers to deal with, but much like nature, I must find a way to survive." Hoban is a graduate student in ceramics with an assistantship teaching ceramics and 3D design. He received the BFA in sculpture from Pennsylvania State University. Hoban's cast bronze sculpture of a jon boat is part of the Literary Capital Bronze Sculpture Trail commissioned by Monroeville, Ala., to be unveiled April 26 His work has appeared in the Tuscaloosa Monster Takeover project, the Alabama Clay Conference, and was selected for the Waterloo Arts 2018 Juried Exhibition in Cleveland, Ohio. His public art proposal for a sculptural bike rack to be installed near Government Plaza, was accepted by the city of Tuscaloosa. He was juried into the 19th Annual National K-12 Ceramic Exhibition in Kansas City, Mo. Hoban was the recipient of a full scholarship to ceramic summer class at Penn Valley School with the renowned artist, Chris Staley, and a recipient of the Emerging Artist Award at Malvern Preparatory School.

The University of Alabama's department of art and art history presents the master of arts thesis exhibition of Nasrin Iravani, "I'm a Woman Here Standing in the Mist." The exhibition will be through April 30 at the UA Gallery in the Dinah Washington Cultural Arts Center, in downtown Tuscaloosa. Nasrin Iravani is a graduate student in ceramics and serves as a teaching assistant in ceramics. Iravani received the MA in Handicrafts (ceramics) from Tehran University of Art. Her work is inspired by Persian art and she is particularly interested in figurative forms. She presents a critical view of ethical, social and cultural issues in her art work and is currently working on a collection of pieces titled Femininity, which refers to women's rights and concerns. "The history and culture of Iran, my home country, gives me a sense of identity, tranquility and confidence," she said. "I use symbols and signs of traditional Iranian art to showcase some of that history and culture. In my work, I explore feminine narratives in aesthetics, politics, history and personal experiences, and I use the concept of art as a tool to address contemporary women's rights and concerns." Iravani uses elements such as asymmetry, color contrast and the simultaneous presentation of the inside and the outside of some of her pieces to convey her own conflicts with Iran's traditional ways, especially regarding women. The title of her exhibition is taken from a poem, written by her husband the Iranian poet Saeid Ranjbar, which she feels expresses her relationship to the culture she loves but struggles with. "While incorporating signs of traditional and contemporary art, I strive to reflect the view that the relationship between tradition and modernity needs to be continuously reconsidered." Nasrin Iravani's selected international, national and juried exhibitions include L'artigiano in Fiera 2016, Milan; Fitur 2016, Feria de Madrid, Spain; International Handicraft Exhibition; Tehran; 46th International Art Show, Brownsville Museum of Fine Art (Texas); The Millennial Show (juried), TEJAS Gallery, Dayton, OH; Clay: A Southern Census (juried), New Orleans; 33rd Annual Alabama Clay Conference, Montgomery, AL; The Ritual Table: A Place of Memory, A State of Mind, Corning, NY; and Vitreous (juried), Clay Center of New Orleans.

The University of Alabama recently selected 40 students as Capstone Men and Women. Capstone Men and Women serve as official ambassadors of UA. They assist the University president's office, admissions and alumni during functions held on campus and in other locations, as well as host daily tours of the campus for prospective students and other visitors.

Down the road comes the Hear Here Alabama mobile audiology clinic. Stocked with equipment and staffed with eager undergrads and professionals, the clinic heads out several times a year from UA to health fairs, county health departments and other places in West and South Alabama to offer hearing screenings and do research in areas where audiology resources are limited. Now The College of Arts and Sciences is asking the public to help expand the mobile clinic's mission and reach as part of Bama Blitz, UA's online fundraising event for alumni, faculty, staff, students and friends. The Hear Here Alabama program is a "passion project" to which Bama Blitz contributors may give directly. Bama Blitz will run from noon April 10 to 8:31 p.m. April 11. "I love making a difference and seeing the look on people's faces when they get their sense of hearing back," said Madison McCullough, a senior from Sand Rock who helps run the clinic. "No one thinks about their hearing until it's gone." Research and screenings The project grew out of the research agenda of Dr. Marcia J. Hay-McCutcheon, associate professor of communicative disorders. After she came to UA in 2008, she started performing research on people with hearing implants. She discovered that because of lack of income and health resources, people with hearing loss in the Black Belt were not getting implants. To continue her research into hearing loss and implants, she had to reach out with more mobile resources. "Lots of counties don't have health care resources or hearing health care resources," she said. "I needed to go to the people rather than have the people come to me." So Hay-McCutcheon got the idea for the Hear Here Alabama mobile clinic. The program started in 2013 with $433,000 from UA's College of Arts and Sciences, the Office of Research and Economic Development, Academic Affairs, and the Center for Economic Development - money earmarked for buying equipment. Hearing and isolation Loaded with expensive instruments, the clinic represents a key research tool for Hay-McCutcheon. She and her colleagues have produced papers on hearing and memory, rural populations and social isolation for such publications as the International Journal of Audiology and the Journal of Clinical Psychology. "We're looking at hearing loss in general and trying to understand how it's associated with social interaction," Hay-McCutcheon said. "It makes sense that if you don't hear people, you withdraw from social interaction. It's just too challenging." Hay-McCutcheon, audiologist JoAnne Payne and a team of undergrads in the communicative disorders department head out both to offer hearing screenings and, if the participants consent, gather additional data. Each trip costs about $1,000. McCullough joins Hay-McCutcheon in performing the screenings in two booths in the quiet environment of the clinic as well as perform crowd control and keep the area tidy. Visitors who fail the hearing tests are offered referrals or discounts to the clinic on the UA campus. Sometimes people getting the screening are in for a surprise. "I had one man come in and say, 'My wife says I can't hear, but my hearing's fine,'" McCullough said. "If people fail the screening, we offer a discount to come to UA and get a full evaluation." Assessing needs Because the mobile clinic has to go to an area and come back in a day, the range of locations it can visit is limited. Places the truck returns to often include Pine Hill, Demopolis, Livingston and Selma as well as events in Tuscaloosa. The College is asking for donations to allow the truck to visit each community at least once a month over a one-year period. Hay-McCutcheon also would like to expand into Pickens County. "We'd like to more fully understand what the needs are in the community among professionals who work with people with hearing loss or people who have hearing loss," Hay-McCutcheon said. "We also need funds for the operation of the truck -- not just the upkeep of the truck, but upkeep on the equipment." People interested in contributing to Bama Blitz may go to https://bamablitz.ua.edu/. Bama Blitz will run from noon April 10 to 8:31 p.m. April 11.

A University of Alabama student team is continuing a three-year tradition of local outreach projects. The University of Alabama Astrobotics team and a group of engineering senior design students partnered with the RISE Center, a school for infants and preschoolers with and without special needs on UA's campus, to provide the children with a sensory cube to assist with in-class therapy. The sensory cube, called the Stimulation Station, is a 4-foot-tall, 2-foot-wide machine that was designed around the idea of an electronic fidget cube. This device helps with physical therapy, occupational therapy and music therapy in a way that is engaging for the children. "It increased the [engineering] students' awareness of the needs that they can help with," said Angela Parham, a physical therapist for the RISE Center. "It gave them an opportunity to offer their services in a way that meets specific needs for our children. It has been a learning experience for all of us." The Stimulation Station took one year to complete and was delivered to the RISE Center during a holiday party in December 2018. The cube is made up of three sides of interactive stimulation that the children can use to assist with different forms of therapy such as helping with muscle strength and the association of sounds to objects. "Sometimes they don't even know they're doing [therapy], because they're just playing," said Joylyn Boggs, RISE service coordinator. "The sensory cube provides a fun way to explore all of the areas of development." Specific aspects of the cube include a music center, push buttons to control various light patterns, mechanical games, elements that teach cause-and-effect, and a mirror to help with early developmental stages of crawling and standing. The Stimulation Station is made of clear Plexiglas to show the kids the wires and the LED blinking lights on the computers inside the machine. The cube has proven beneficial for students of all ages at RISE with children starting from 8-weeks old to 5- and 6-year-olds. The project has also proven beneficial to the UA students involved with this. Dr. Kenneth Ricks, electrical and computer engineering associate professor and Astrobotics faculty adviser, stresses the importance of students gaining a deeper perspective on the different challenges others are facing in life. Meeting the RISE students can do that. And, knowing the engineering students widens the world for the RISE children, too. "Let's see what we can do to introduce K-12 students to engineering and science and then show them how STEM can help the disabled." In addition to members of the Astrobotics team, the UA students who participated in the designing and building process of this project were Kevin Townsend, Kristin Harris, Cody Colangelo and Trent Gibson. "We've been doing projects like this for the past few years. And we really enjoy doing projects like this, and they're really special to us," said Max Eastepp, senior Astrobotics team lead. "We're building something that is not just going to sit in a room, it's really helping children and people in need."

The University of Alabama's department of art and art history presents a group exhibition by four BFA candidates: Samantha Joslin, Jonathan Lanier, Caroline Rothschild and Dana Tokarzewski. The quartet will display their work April 16-23 in the Sella-Granata Art Gallery on UA campus. A reception for the artists will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, April 18, in the gallery. The BFA is the professional degree for artists with a focused program of study in visual art. These students have completed intensive research in a primary and secondary concentration in art. Lanier's concentrations are in sculpture and ceramics. Since 2016, he has won several scholarship awards including the Farley Moody Galbraith Scholarship, Windgate Charitable Fund - Studio Arts, and the Paul R. Jones Endowed Scholarship. Lanier will also hold a solo exhibition of his work at Harrison Galleries in Tuscaloosa in May. Joslin's concentrations are in ceramics and sculpture. Her current body of work has come out of studio research that focuses on the exploration of forms, surfaces and interactions among different media. Joslin has won numerous scholarships and awards, including a UA Undergraduate Research & Creative Activity grant in spring 2019. She will exhibit her sculpture in a solo exhibition at Harrison Galleries in April. Joslin plans to continue her studies in a post-baccalaureate program that combines her ceramics and sculpture work. Rothschild's concentrations are in drawing and painting. Tokarzewski's concentrations are in digital media and photography. This group of BFA majors have approached their work from diverse viewpoints - from a focus on abstract form, to creating work that expresses the tensions of the outer world and nature, embodied in the inner conflicts common to all humans. The artists employ a variety of media to carry these ideas into physical form, using cast bronze, digital media, clay, wood, foam, paint, graphite, and photography.

The University of Alabama's department of art and art history is presenting the BFA solo exhibition of Samantha Joslin titled "Matter of Normalcy." The exhibition will be April 5-15 at Harrison Galleries in downtown Tuscaloosa. A reception for the artist will be from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday, April 5, in the gallery. Samantha Joslin's BFA concentrations are in ceramics and sculpture. Her current body of work has come out of studio research that focuses on the exploration of forms, surfaces and interactions among different media. "These interactions are reflective of life in its most intimate moments and conditions," she said. "My current body of work centers on pieces which imitate experience in life and the human form, thus speaking of the relationships between ourselves, the world around us, and its interpretations through emotion. I am interested in illustrating the human condition in a way which is simultaneously familiar yet peculiar and understandable yet puzzling. The balancing of such physical and conceptual contrasts leads to an investigation of visual formlessness, which obscures categorization. I want to expand upon this notion of blurring identity as it connotatively relates to social circumstances and interactions, and how visual factors like contrast, scale, visual speed and interactions of materials can subtly reflect these themes." Joslin was a UA Undergraduate Research & Creative Activity grant recipient in the spring of 2019 and a Windgate Fellowship nominee in 2019. She received the Carolyn Haddon "Julie" Matthews Memorial Endowed Scholarship, the Farley Mood Galbraith Annual Scholarship and the Paul R. Jones Endowed Scholarship. She was a student employee in the Sella-Granata Art Gallery and was awarded UA work-study grants in sculpture and ceramics. In 2018, Joslin was awarded a paid internship under Tuscaloosa sculptor Lee Busby. She has been awarded tuition grants to participate in 'Sculpture: Clay, Wood, and Steel' by Trey Hill, Anderson Ranch Workshop, Snowmass Village, Colo. and has served as a volunteer demonstrator in clay for the Arts Renaissance in Tuscaloosa Schools at Matthews Elementary School. She was also a member of Crimson Clay Club, serving as treasurer. After her graduation in May, Joslin hopes to undertake a post-baccalaureate program. "I am planning to focus mainly on ceramics while still incorporating sculptural elements and other materials." This exhibition is part of the bachelor of fine arts degree program in the department of art and art history at UA. For more information about all our programs, visit this link: https://art.ua.edu/academics/. Harrison Galleries LLC is at 2315 University Blvd. in downtown Tuscaloosa. Hours are Monday through Friday, 12:00 noon to 5:00 p.m., by appointment, and First Fridays of the month, 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. For more information call (205) 464-0054 or visit the website: http://www.firstfridaytuscaloosa.com/art-galleries/harrison-galleries-llc.

Rising senior Sarah Fields won The University of Alabama College of Arts and Sciences' 2019 Asian Studies Essay Award for her research on the Italian Jesuit painter Giuseppe Castiglione who served as a court painter during the Qing dynasty in China in the 18th century. Fields researched and wrote the paper, titled "Lang Shining: The Italian Jesuit and Chinese Court Painter," under the guidance of Dr. Doris Sung in Survey of Asian Art (ARH 254). Fields, who hails from Bethalto, Ill., is a studio art major with a double minor in advertising and art history. After she graduates in May 2020, she said that she plans to look for positions as an art director or creative director at an advertising agency. "While I don't plan on continuing my formal studies of art history," Fields said, "I love visiting museums and looking at pieces with context, so I hope to continue learning the subject." The Asian Studies program provides an interdisciplinary opportunity for study and research focused on the variety of cultural regions of Asia, particularly South Asia and East Asia. The program incorporates faculty and courses in a range of areas, including anthropology, art history, Asian languages, history, literature, political science, and religious studies.

A team composed of four undergraduates from The University of Alabama placed second in the statewide Global Health Case Competition on March 2. Ten teams of students from six universities across the state participated in the third annual competition, held at The University of Alabama at Birmingham. Each team presented to a team of judges theirplans for addressing indigenous child health outcomes in the face of development and deforestation in the Amazon rainforest of Peru. Presentations were judged on 17 criteria, including innovation, legal/ethical issues, and cultural acceptability of approach. Members of the University of Alabama team were Brooke Adams, sophomore management major; Ibukon Afon, senior nursing major; Jessica Drummer, senior public health major; and Rolanda Turner, a junior political science and psychology major. The team advanced to statewide competition after winning the campus-wide competition at UA earlier this year. The team received a cash prize of $1,000 in recognition of their placement.

Nearly 500 students at The University of Alabama highlighted their research and creative projects during the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Conference on March 27. The 12th annual conference is hosted by UA's Office for Undergraduate Research and the Office for Research and Economic Development. Poster presentations are grouped by research areas -- instead of by academic colleges or departments -- to align with national trends of using interdisciplinary approaches to problem-solving. The conference spurs interest in research among undergraduate students and helps students polish their communication skills, said Dr. Kim Bissell, director of the Office for Undergraduate Research. "We have got some pretty phenomenal students who are truly doing great things," she said.

Baily Martin, a senior at The University of Alabama, has received the 2019 Sarah Ida Shaw Award as a member of the Delta Mu chapter of the Delta Delta Delta sorority. The award is the highest the organization gives to a collegiate member. In her chapter, Martin has served as collegiate chapter president, academic development chair, recruitment preference day chair and collegiate alumnae relations chair. "I want to use the skills I have honed as a member to give back to the sorority, the campus, the community, the nation and the world," Martin said. Martin has a triple major in international studies, political science and Spanish and has participated in several organizations at UA, including Capstone Men and Women and the Blackburn Institute.

PRWeek named Alana Doyle, a senior in the department of advertising and public relations at The University of Alabama, its Public Relations Student of the Year. Doyle was one of two students from the College of Communication and Information Sciences on a national shortlist of five students selected for the award, along with Gabby DiCarlo. The winner was announced March 21 in New York City at the annual PRWeek Awards. "Over the last few days, I have been blown away by the love and support I have received from The University of Alabama," Doyle said. "I am so grateful to this school and the APR department for preparing me for success. The faculty and staff in the department are some of the most talented, inspirational and dedicated individuals I have ever met." This year's contest challenged applicants to create a campaign for Levi Strauss' wide-leg jeans that targeted Gen Z consumers. Doyle's campaign, #ComfortIsBack, suggested that comfort was the way to the Gen Z consumer's heart and that social media influencers on platforms including TikTok could serve as brand ambassadors showcasing the new fit of Levi jeans. "The campaign showed terrific understanding of how to marry a solid strategy to actual results - the primary reasons clients turn to PR experts," the PRWeek judges said. Doyle serves as a senior copywriter for the Capstone Agency, UA's nationally affiliated, student-run, integrated communications firm, and was awarded the agency's Star Client Team Member Award, Star Department Member Award and the Copywriting Challenge Award last year. She was also selected as Viacom's only intern to interview celebrities on the 2018 VMA's red carpet. "Alana's path to being the 2019 PR Student of the Year was paved by her never-stop work ethic," said Dr. Joseph Phelps, chair of the department of advertising and public relations. "Her drive and the skills she developed in our program are going to be incredible assets for the organization fortunate enough to hire her." Doyle is UA's second PRWeek Student of the Year winner. Maret Montanari received the Public Relations Student of the Year in 2018 and Katie Gatti was runner-up in 2017. The department of advertising and public relations is a part of the College of Communication and Information Sciences at The University of Alabama. For more information about the College, go to cis.ua.edu.

Each spring, a group of UA theatre students flies to New York to participate in a showcase known informally as Bama on Broadway. The showcase is designed to highlight students' skill as they perform for an audience that includes Broadway talent agents and often ends with performers signing contracts or being called back for auditions. Students prepare for the showcase by enrolling in a one-hour course designed to ready them for the one-shot performance. In the course, which is offered the preceding fall semester, students work together to find, choose and rehearse material that emphasizes each student's individual strengths.

The University of Alabama's Manderson Graduate School of Business's case team program continues to roll in victories. At the 16th Annual Race & Case Competition on March 1-2, hosted by the University of Denver's Daniels College of Business, the team finished third and collected $2,000. Manderson is within UA's Culverhouse College of Business. Case competitions are invitation-only events where students tackle a complex business scenario and present a solution to two separate panels of judges. This year at Race and Case, participants were asked to recommend breakthrough opportunities that would allow Western Union to accelerate its growth potential in the global money transfer business while taking into consideration the ethical and reputational implications of their recommendations. In addition, each team competed in a timed ski race held in Breckenridge. UA team members are Bryonna Rivera Burrows of Atlanta; John Clary of Knoxville, Tennessee; Everette Dawkins of Mountain Brook; and Smith Hart of Independence, Virginia. Eleven teams were selected to compete. Ninety percent of each team's total score comes from their presentation, and 10 percent comes from the race. For new skiers like Clary and Dawkins, this meant translating their analytical abilities to master Breckinridge's powder. "Race and Case provides an opportunity for us to test our business case strengths while also competing in a fun and light-hearted athletic aspect that brings the best memories," said Burrows, team captain. Quoc Hoang, case team adviser and director of experiential learning at the Culverhouse College of Business, encourages analytic evaluation and vibrant collaboration, which prepares teams for both the cases and the work force. For more information about MBA Case Team, contact Quoc Hoang at qhoang@culverhouse.ua.edu or visit the Manderson website.

The University of Alabama Graduate School has announced the recipients of the 2018-2019 Outstanding Graduate Student awards. The awards will be presented as a part of UA Honors Week (Monday, April 1, to Friday, April 5). Three faculty committees selected seven outstanding graduate students from students nominated by their individual departments and colleges.

A University of Alabama College of Engineering student is among the top 20 science, technology, engineering and math students in their 20s across the country and internationally. Peyton Strickland has been named as one of Aviation Week's 20 Twenties for 2019. Peyton Strickland has been named one of Aviation Week's 20 Twenties for 2019, sponsored by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. The Pelham, Alabama, native is the first UA student to receive this award. An awards ceremony will be held to honor the 20 students on March 14 in Washington, D.C. "It's incredible to think about, when I think about everything that has happened in my life I just think that only God can do it," Strickland said. "It means a lot to me that out of everybody in the United States and the international pool of candidates, to be one of the top 20 aerospace students, it's crazy to think about." Strickland is in his third year at UA and is working on completing his bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering by May 2020 and his master's degree, through the accelerated master's program, by December 2020. Finalists for this award are decided based on the nominees' academic achievements, current work toward their career goals and community service efforts. Strickland has previously worked with the MITRE Corporation in support of the U.S. Department of Defense Missile Defense Agency and is considering working in an area related to rocket propulsion in the future. In addition to his work and studies, Strickland volunteers at Central High School in Tuscaloosa where he teaches students about the use of coding in science and engineering and the basics of the programming language C++. "I won an undergraduate scholarship from the NASA Alabama Space Grant Consortium, and you're either supposed to write a paper about research being conducted at your school, or you can do a one-time community outreach [project]," Strickland said. "So, what started as a one-time thing just kept happening and happening. I really enjoy going over there and helping with the kids." Strickland received recommendations for this award from three UA professors of aerospace engineering, Dr. Semih Olcmen, Dr. John Baker and Dr. Mark Barkey. Strickland credits these three professors and more for his successes at Alabama. "I think this award is as much for the faculty and staff as it is for me. One can not become a 'good' student without great teachers who make it possible to become a successful student through great lessons and teachings. I have been blessed to work with some of the best professors and staff in the country, and this award is a testament to their hard and successful work." - Peyton Strickland Strickland is a member of the Alabama Rocket Engineering Systems, or ARES, initiative at UA. ARES is a student-led program with the goal of taking UA to the forefront of collegiate rocketry. Olcmen, Strickland's graduate adviser, nominated him for the award based on his academic achievements and philanthropic efforts in encouraging students in low-income areas to pursue a career in research. "I have no doubt that Peyton will excel in any research career that he will choose to work in," Olcmen said. "His attention to detail, pursuit of knowledge, work ethic and creativity to think of new solutions will take him to the pinnacle." Strickland has chosen to continue his master's education at UA because of the quality of the faculty throughout his undergraduate experience. "Dr. Baker and Dr. Barkey have given me an opportunity to work in the aerospace office since my first day in school, and Dr. Olcmen has pushed me to pursue excellence each and every day," Strickland said. "They are the reasons I chose and continue to choose UA."

Congratulations to members of a Manderson Graduate School of Business MBA case team. Assembled from Manderson's student roster, the team took multiple awards home to Tuscaloosa from the recent Katz Invitational Case Competition on Feb. 8-9.at the University of Pittsburgh. Competing against 11 teams from the country's top business schools, the team placed second and received $5,000 in scholarships. Additionally, the team won the Best School Spirit award. The Manderson MBA case team with the check for $5,000. From left to right: James McCool, Lacey Cencula, Justin Chambers, and Esther Workman. The team was represented by Lacey Cencula of Birmingham; James McCool of Mountain Brook; Esther Workman of Montgomery; and Justin Chambers of Memphis, Tennessee. Workman was also awarded Best Presenter. "It was an honor to represent Manderson and the University of Alabama in Pittsburgh," Workman said. "Participating in the Katz Invitational Case Competition was a wonderful learning opportunity and chance to solve a real world business question. We were able to draw on each team member's strengths to create a strategic and comprehensive recommendation. Winning second place, Most Spirited and Best Presenter are incredible accomplishments after competing in the competition for only the second time ever." This year's invitational was the seventh annual case competition hosted by the University of Pittsburgh's Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business in partnership with Crane Co. Each year, the competition offers a challenging, multifaceted business case based on a strategic challenge faced by the sponsoring company. The case tests teams' ability to analyze the situation and provide recommendations. The participating teams were given the case just two weeks before the competition. "With only two weeks to create a strategic recommendation for Crane Co., a Fortune 500 company, our team began working the minute we received the case prompt" McCool said. "We knew we were up against some of the most competitive MBA Programs in the country including Rutgers, Baylor, Florida and LSU. This fueled our motivation to produce the best pitch we could. Although it was a bumpy ride, we all agreed that we created a final product together that was far superior than any of us could create individually." The Manderson team advanced from a preliminary round where their room included teams from the University of Florida and Rutgers. They were joined by Baylor and the University of Pittsburgh in the finals. "In just two weeks, the team completed an extensive research phase, developed a winning thesis, built a beautiful slide deck and wowed judges in both the preliminary and final rounds," said Quoc Hoang, the team's coach and director of experiential learning. "While the awards and prizes are impressive, I'm most proud of how the team came together. I had the privilege of spending a lot of time with these students who worked hard, felt highs and lows throughout the case period and tasted success this past weekend with this great result." For more information about the MBA case team, contact Quoc Hoang at qhoang@culverhouse.ua.edu or visit the Manderson MBA website.