UAB Briefs: Grant renewal for Center for AIDS Research

In this weekly online feature, we keep track of interesting people and events on campus.

The famed UAB Center for AIDS Research, now in its 31st year, has seen its federal grant support renewed.

The School of Education is receiving positive attention for some of its online degree programs.

And Jefferson County residents can now obtain play therapy for children at the Community Counseling Clinic.

Know people, places and programs on the UAB campus that deserve a mention? Email jchambers@starnespublishing.com.

FIGHTING AIDS

The UAB Center for AIDS Research has received a $7.5 million grant renewal from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to continue its research regarding HIV and related disorders, according to UAB Media Relations.

That work includes basic science, therapeutics, prevention and community-engaged research.

CFAR will also focus more intensely on the HIV epidemic in Alabama and the Southeast and has established the “Ending HIV in Alabama” scientific working group.

This statewide, interdisciplinary group of researchers and physicians is led by Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo and Dr. Aadia Rana of the UAB Division of Infectious Diseases. 

“We’re positioned right in the epicenter of the HIV epidemic in the South, which means we are able to tackle some of the field’s most pressing emerging challenges and expand our role as leaders in the fight against HIV regionally, nationally and internationally,” said Dr. Michael Saag, CFAR director and professor in the UAB School of Medicine.

CFAR and the “Ending HIV in Alabama” group will focus on the 90-90-90 treatment goals in the state to be achieved by 2020:

—90 percent of people living with HIV will know their HIV status;

—90 percent of those who know their status will be engaged in receiving care and antiretroviral therapy;

—90 percent of those on antiretroviral therapy will achieve full viral suppression.

ONLINE KUDOS

The UAB School of Education has been praised by TheBestSchools.org for its online training programs. 

The Department of Human Studies was recognized as having one of the top online undergraduate community health and human services programs. The program provides flexibility along with access to internships with such community organizations as the YWCA and the Alabama Department of Mental Health.

And the online master’s degree program in reading education in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction was named one of the best in America.

“UAB’s reading and literacy program has seen tremendous success in providing techniques and training to teachers,” said UAB School of Education Dean Autumn Tooms-Cypres. “Our human services program provides graduates with the knowledge to drive change in communities.”

ACCESS TO PLAY THERAPY

The UAB Community Counseling Clinic provides affordable counseling services to Jefferson County residents.

And the center recently expanded its services to offer play therapy, in which a therapist creates a space in which a child can process his or her experiences through play, according to UAB Media Relations.

Play therapy is appropriate for children ages 3 to 10 who are experiencing a wide variety of challenges, including abuse, divorce reaction, anxiety and depression. 

The therapists use carefully chosen toys, games and art supplies to allow and encourage children to communicate their experiences through the language of play.

“Research suggests that play therapy is effective in treating a wide range of emotional and behavioral concerns in children,” said Dayna Watson, assistant professor in the UAB School of Education. “This program will allow us to serve younger children and expand on the excellent mental health counseling help we are providing to families.

Before receiving play therapy, children are screened and assessed to determine whether the clinic offers the level of care they need.

Fees for the clinic are assessed on a sliding scale, from $5 per individual session to no more than $30 per session. 

To schedule an appointment, call 996-2414.

Well-trained graduate students, supervised by faculty members, conduct the counseling sessions.