UAB Briefs: Student honored by AAF, 'Ablaze' on the Green, 'Dreams of Hope'
In this weekly online feature, we keep track of interesting people and events on campus.
A UAB senior has been chosen for a select group of students honored by the American Advertising Federation.
The university will celebrate diversity on campus with a special event on Jan. 15.
And a talented UAB professor helped create a new film for American Public Television.
Know people, places and programs on the UAB campus that deserve a mention? Email jchambers@starnespublishing.com.
Promising student
Hannah Bae, a UAB senior, has been selected to take part in the Most Promising Multicultural Student Program at the American Advertising Federation., according to UAB Media Relations.
Bae, from Vestavia Hills, is the first UAB student to be chosen for the honor and one of only 50 students in the nation to be picked for the class of 2020.
The program, in existence for nearly a quarter century, is an effort by the AAF to promote diversity and inclusion in the ad business.
A fourth-year student in the University Honors Program, Bae is a mass communication major with a concentration in public relations and a minor in public health.
She is also pursuing a master’s degree in health care organization and policy.
Bae has served as president of the UAB chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America and as a leader in the UAB Student Multicultural and Diversity Programs.
Share your light
UAB will celebrate diversity on campus and the university’s connections to the world when it hosts an event called “Ablaze: A Community of Light” on the Campus Green on Wednesday, Jan. 15, from 5-7 p.m
The event will include a short parade and a decorative lighting finale that will signify the power and of people coming together in unity, according to UAB Media Relations.
Participants will be able to display a commemorative light or a personalized paper lantern, both of which will be provided by UAB.
The event emcees will be USGA President Hana Habchi and Jeh Jeh Pruitt of WBRC-TV Fox 6.
Performers will include the UAB Rangeela dance team, Steel City Men’s Choir and some roving entertainers.
There will also be food, music, dance and other fun activities, including lantern making, cookie decoration, face painting, and a DIY snow globe station. The Magic City Eats food truck will be on site.
Attendees at “Ablaze” will check in near Heritage Hall.
Those wishing to design a personal lantern should go to the Hill Student Center on Jan. 14. Materials will be provided for free.
A new documentary
The film “Dreams of Hope” — directed by David Macon and UAB Professor of Music Henry Panion III — will premiere on Thursday, Feb. 6, on public television stations nationwide, according to UAB Media Relations.
The film tells the story of a special musical performance at 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, where four African-American girls were killed in a racist bombing in 1963. The TV premiere is part of Black History Month.
The film centers on the debut of Panion’s composition, “Dreams of Hope for Solo Violin & Orchestra.” Musicians and artists, including some from UAB, performed and contributed to the creation of the concert and the documentary.
An initiative called Violins of Hope contributed restored musical instruments to the event, including violins recovered from Nazi concentration camps.