College News

Laura Rector, a 2003 graduate of The University of Alabama, has been named events coordinator for the Culverhouse College of Commerce, replacing Susan Newman who moved to a similar position at the UA law school.

Rector earned a degree in restaurant and hospitality management and has been employed in the event planning and hospitality profession since graduation, including serving as banquet manager for the Summit Club in Birmingham, where she was involved in coordinating a number of themed events for large groups.

Rector, a native of Pleasant Grove, also has hotel management experience with the Hilton Family.

The first class of The University of Alabama’s Executive MBA program in Huntsville is in place and has already exceeded expectations.

“We are absolutely thrilled with our first Huntsville class,” said Susan West, assistant dean and head of the Manderson Graduate School of Business at UA. Read More

Dr. J. Michael Hardin, associate dean for research at the Culverhouse College of Commerce, has been appointed to the board of the Alabama Quality Assurance Foundation, a nonprofit, physician-sponsored organization designated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) as Alabama’s Medicare Quality Improvement Organization (QIO). Read More

TUSCALOOSA, Al. - More than 1700 articles of clothing have been collected over the past year for distribution to impoverished children in Third World countries, thanks to the combined efforts of The University of Alabama’s Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) and Cintas Corp.

The collection of clothing, from students, faculty and staff, made the local Cintas Corp.’s “Clothe the Kids” program the most successful in the company’s South-Central Region history.

“Clothe the Kids” was started in 2003 by Cintas Corp. in conjunction with Matthew 25 Ministries to raise awareness of the need for children’s clothing in foreign countries. The program collects donations of slightly used clothing and/or money for new clothing to help impoverished children in Third-World countries.

Since the program began more than 500,000 items of clothing have been donated. This year with the help of the SIFE team, Cintas, Tuscaloosa expects to be in the top-10 collections in the nation. Stacey Bledsoe, human resource manager for Cintas, was instrumental in helping the SIFE team reach its goals. “With SIFE’s help we were able to exceed our goals for this year,” Bledsoe said. “I look forward to having SIFE and UA’s help again next year.”

The prestigious Austin Cup, awarded each year to the top graduating senior in The University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration, was awarded this year to W. Steven Spiehler, Jr., a major in health care management. Read More