National recognition for UAB, prestigious fellowships for 2 students

UAB recently received national recognition from Forbes, an acclaimed poet garnered a prestigious NEA fellowship and a senior engineering student earned a huge boost to her aerospace career.

UAB No. 1

UAB was named America’s No. 1 Best Large Employer for 2021 by Forbes magazine on Feb. 9, topping a list of more than 500 universities, hospitals and corporations. The largest public employer in Alabama, UAB has more than 23,000 workers.

To compile the 2021 list, Statista anonymously surveyed 38,000 Americans working for businesses with at least 1,000 employees. 

According to Forbes, respondents were asked to rate on a scale of zero to 10 how likely they would be to recommend their employer to friends and family.

“What makes Forbes’ recognition so meaningful is that it is based largely on whether our employees would recommend UAB to friends and family,” said UAB President Ray L. Watts.

POETIC HONORS

Lauren Goodwin Slaughter, an associate professor in the UAB English Department, is one of only 35 poets to receive a Creative Writing Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, according to UAB News.

About 1,600 people apply every two years, but fewer than 3% win fellowships. 

The $25,000 federal grant allows recipients to write, travel and do research.

Slaughter has written two poetry collections, published her writing in many journals and is editor-in-chief of NELLE, a UAB literary journal that celebrates writing by women. 

ENGINEERING SCHOLAR

Jordan Fuse, a senior in the School of Engineering, has been named one of only 44 Brooke Owens Fellowship recipients worldwide, and is the first from UAB, according to UAB News.

The Brooke Owens Fellowship is a nonprofit that recognizes exceptional undergraduate women and other gender minorities with space and aviation internships, senior mentorship and a secure professional network.

Fellows are matched to an executive mentor committed to helping them launch careers. 

During summer 2021, the fellows will start an internship at a partner company and gather virtually for the annual Brooke Owens Summit. 

Fuse, a mechanical engineering major, will work full time at The Aerospace Corporation in El Segundo, California.

She’s the first Brooke Owens Fellow to secure a full time job offer rather than an internship through the program. 

“It’s comforting to know that I will have access to a network of gifted professionals who are equally passionate about aerospace innovation,” Fuse said, calling the fellowship a “life-changing opportunity.”