February 28, 2017 Kscope

UAB’S OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWSPAPER

VOLUME 57, ISSUE 7

Local official: Birmingham Fire Chief

Pulling a Steve Harvey at the Oscars

Charles Gordon Jr. discusses his ascent to Birmingham Fire Chief and what sparked his passion for community service. Read more on Page 4.

The 89th Academy Awards featured highs and lows with a jaw-dropping mix-up and a historic amount of black winners. Read more on Page 5.

The

Kaleidoscope MAGIC CITY HARVEST

BEST MEDICINE SHOW

Area group gives more than meals

Campus Dining gives leftovers to fight food insecurity CAMPUS STAFF REPORT

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n light of Alabama’s status as the sixth poorest and hungriest state in the country, UAB Campus Dining proudly serves as one of the donors to Magic City Harvest, a charity organization aiding local communities with food insecurity.

MCH has been a local food recovery network in Birmingham for 23 years. They transport excess food from local organizations and deliver to those that offer dining to people with economic difficulties or struggle with food insecurity in Jefferson, Talladega and Shelby counties.

“Instead of throwing the food away, Magic City Harvest takes it and recycles it into the community for the hungry,” said Rich Yokeley, director of UAB Dining and Board of Directors member of Magic City Harvest. “Our mission is ´No good food should go to waste.’”

In 2016, UAB Dining donated approximately 4,500 meals.

The Commons leads as the largest donator from UAB due to the unforeseeable amount of visitors every day, especially after events that give out free food on-campus. The Commons is left with a large amount of leftovers that is then donated to MCH twice a week, according to Yokeley.

Several local organizations such as hospitals, universities, catering and restaurants donate leftover food to Magic City Harvest who then transport it in refrigerated trucks to local charity organizations. Last year, a total of 1.2 million lbs. of food was donated to MCH from different dining locations, according to Yokeley.

“It comes from all over the city, it comes from all sources of food completely,” said Madrene Roberts, a Board of Directors member of the MCH. “It could be events, restaurants or individuals. We don’t warehouse that food, it goes out immediately.”

Roberts said they work out how much food to distribute by the poundage and how much a pound feeds. When the agencies get the food from MCH, they do not pay one cent from

PHOTO COURTESY OF ALI FRY Ali Fry, center, stands next to Natasha Mehra, right, and Katherine Boyer, left, during Friday’s Best Medicine Show at the Lyric Theatre.

Prescribed laughter UASOM takes the stage to poke fun at medical school life Chandler Jones Editor-in-Chief

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onths of impossible tests, timed quizzes, cramped hands and stiff necks have left the student body restless and, at times, hopeless.

UAB School of Medicine knows what to prescribe.

“Nothing can make

you feel as good laughter does,” said Macie Enman, a UAB medical student and producer of the 2017 Best Medicine Show.

The sold-out show took over the renovated Lyric Theatre Friday for an evening of performances and kinship that had its own Snap filter. Members of UASOM came out,

dressed to the nines, for an event that had the audience laughing, cheering and reminiscing.

“It’s really great to get everyone together and have fun,” said Rohith Vadlamudi, a second-year medical student.

Vadlamudi’s favorite act was the montage of Snapchat stories telling the lives

of the third-year students.

He said it evoked an “indescribable” feeling.

“It’s always somewhere nice and fancy, and you kind of tidy yourself up,” Vadlamudi said. “However, it’s also really goofy at the same time. It’s very relaxed, and everyone is just having

See UASOM, Page 9

SPORTS

Football returns for spring practice Head coach boasts a full roster as team preps for string placement Connor Gentry Sports Reporter UAB Football’s 2017 spring practice began on Thursday, Feb. 23 to the sounds of construction at the new UAB Football Operations Center and Queen’s “We Will Rock You” in the air.

The morning practice was the Blazers’ first spring practice in three years, after the shutting and subsequent

revival of the program.

Practice will culminate in a spring scrimmage which will take place Saturday, April 1 at Legion Field.

“Obviously, [it’s] just a huge day,” said UAB Head Football Coach Bill Clark.

“I think to be out on the facility and getting our turf out there. You can hear all the trucks and the noise that would normally be PHOTO BY IAN KEEL/PHOTO EDITOR

See FOOTBALL, Page 9

See MAGIC, Page 9

UAB Football’s first official game is set for Sept. 2.

INSIDE CAMPUS

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OPINIONS

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COMMUNITY

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SPORTS

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Campus

Page 2 February 28, 2017

RADIATION THERAPY

‘The right size for Birmingham’ Proton International and UAB bring new facility and treatment Anthony Roney Campus Reporter At UAB, a new facility bringing unique cancer treatment is about to begin construction. Proton International is collaborating with the university to bring the state of Alabama’s first proton therapy center ever.

Proton therapy is one of the most advanced forms of cancer radiation treatment today.

“Proton beam radiation therapy is a form of radiation and it utilizes a particle of radiation in contrast to photons, so normal radiation therapy utilizes X-ray photons,” said James A. Bonner, M.D., chairman of the UAB School of Medicine Department of Radiation Oncology and president of the University of Alabama Health Services Foundation. “The potential benefit is when you use a particle it has a physical characteristic where you can design them to where they can use maximum dose when it occurs at a certain depth and then stops. X-ray goes through and through.”

This essentially means that the proton radiation therapy is more concentrated on the exact cancerous area, Bonner said. It does this by stopping right at that spot,

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We’re hoping to break ground this summer. From the moment we break ground to the first patient we treat, we hope it will be two years.

— James A. Bonner, M.D. and, in this way, no other healthy tissue is damaged by the radiation.

The new facility is estimated to cost from $50 million to $75 million. Bonner said that the building will have one treatment room.

While that sounds small, it actually means that there will be more concentration from the equipment on the patient. This is in contrast to multiple room proton therapy facilities across the country which have to share the equipment for the whole building.

PHOTO BY IAN KEEL/PHOTO EDITOR The state-of-the-art facility will replace the UAB parking lot 55 on 20th Street and Fifth Avenue.

“It’s a system that will be just the right size for Birmingham,” Bonner said.

“And should really do well for our patients in the state of Alabama.”

Currently, the closest proton therapy centers are located in Knoxville, Tenn., St. Louis and the University of Florida at Gainesville, Fla. However, Bonner also said that the most popular

treatment center is at the MD Anderson Facility in Houston.

“We’re hoping to break ground this summer,” said Bonner. “From the moment we break ground to the first patient we treat, we hope it will be 2 years.”

The location of the future state-of-the-art facility will be located at the corner of 20th Street and Fifth Avenue.

Bonner said that the

facility was in the works about 10 years ago, but after the economy soured in 2008, development on the plans were halted.

“It’s a great time for us to go in because if we went in 10 years ago we would have to be upgrading right now,” Bonner said.

Anthony Roney can be reached at roney16@uab.edu.

MUSLIM STUDENTS’ ASSOCIATION

On-campus Islamic group seeks to overcome stereotypes Anthony Roney Campus Reporter

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AB’s Muslim Students’ Association has been servicing the university and Birmingham community since their conception, all the while fulfilling their main goal of educating individuals about Islam.

According to their Facebook page, the Muslims Students’ Association at the University of Alabama at Birmingham is a student-run organization that strives to promote unity amongst Muslim and non-Muslim students, as well as education for those interested in Islam through on-campus and off-campus events and gatherings. The group consists of about 75 students and is open to all students at UAB. “It is a very active student organization with [a] wide range of activities to educate the UAB community about Islam,” said Akhlaque Haque, Ph.D., professor and interim department chair in the UAB Department of Government. “It works with interfaith groups and nonprofit organization in the UAB community and outside campus.”

The President of the MSA, Muhammed Amjad, explained that the organization is open to working with organizations of any religion and any general group.

He also said that the organization works with the community with various events.

“We have volunteer events called Project Downtown that involves coming in an early morning and packing sack lunches that are delivered to the Birmingham Firehouse Shelter,” said Amjad. “The MSA is also involved in making UAB a more diverse campus through working with different departments across campus to keep a positive and reinforced view of what we believe the true Islam and Muslim is.”

Ala’A Abdallah AbuSpetani, the secretary of the MSA, said that he wants to encourage all students to converse with someone in the group and that he believes engaging in dialogue will help facilitate cooperation and progress.

“We hope to encourage people to look past initial biases and to foster growth and unity within UAB and the greater Birmingham community,” Abu-Spetani said. “We encourage people to participate in our events to increase their own knowledge so that they may go out and spread it as well.”

Friday, Feb. 24 concluded Islam Awareness Week at UAB and the Muslim Student Association provided education and fun to the

students of UAB. Islam Awareness Week began on Feb. 13 and included a hot chocolate trivia session outside the Hill Student Center and, later, they also provided a class that taught the basics about Islam in the Mervyn H. Sterne Library entitled “Islam 101”.

The MSA held another information session Thursday, Feb. 16 that helped encourage a more inclusive community for the city of Birmingham. A group of individuals representing different faithbased, community and academic organizations came together to plan a program that would identify the common challenges encountering these groups, according to the MSA’s description.

The Muslim Student Association addressed Feminism in Islam in the Sterne Library on Monday, Feb. 20. It consisted of a panel discussion of current and former students speaking about women’s rights in the current Muslim world.

The final events included a seminar about the compatibility between the religions of Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. The final day included a free lunch and a free conversation with a Muslim outside the Hill Student Hill Center.

Anthony Roney can be reached at roney16@uab.edu.

GENERAL MANAGER OF

BlazeRadio

opinion Spring 2017 Chandler Jones Editor-in-Chief editor@insideuab.com

Tessa Case Managing Editor managing@insideuab.com

Kristina Balciunaite Campus Editor campus@insideuab.com

Surabhi Rao Community Editor community @insideuab.com

Jack Ryan Sports Editor sports@insideuab.com

Jason Grover Life and Style Editor features@insideuab.com

Ian Keel Photo Editor photos@insideuab.com

Tamara Imam Branding and Outreach Manager online@insideuab.com

Emily Cox-Oldham Assistant Photo Editor xander93@uab.edu

Chris St. John Head Opinions Columnist

Page 3 February 28, 2017

EDITORIAL BOARD

The need for speed Connor McDonald Opinions Columnist

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dderall: it’s God’s greatest creation, isn’t it? Got a paper due tomorrow that you haven’t started? Pop an addie, no worries. Got a long drive back to your parents’ place 4 hours away and it’s already 8 p.m.?

Don’t stress, just pop another one. Got any problem ever?

Just keep poppin’, Jimbo.

Adderall is a miracle drug.

It can turn anyone into an absolute machine. I know this because it is almost embarrassing how many times I have put off studying for an exam until a couple days before and still emerged with an A+ thanks to the drug. You just can’t go wrong with Adderall, can you?

Well, yeah, you can actually. As fun as Adderall is and as helpful as it can be, there’s an entire culture around the drug that should be discussed. Our society and its infinite embrace of pharmaceuticals has placed Adderall on a dangerous pedestal. Many view it as a drug that only makes your life easier, and, as someone prescribed Adderall, I can say that just simply couldn’t be further from the truth.

According to the DEA, Adderall is a schedule II controlled substance, which means it has a high potential

for abuse, with use potentially leading to severe psychological or physical dependence and are considered dangerous.

Adderall is famous for its boost but it’s almost just as famous for its crash. Let me tell you, the crash in this case can be more of a train wreck than a fender bender. Many are aware of how agitated Adderall can make people sometime after they’ve peaked but, with long-term use, it can get exceptionally bad.

A report by UCLA links Adderall abuse and extreme anger and being overly suspicious and distrustful. The smallest obstacles that pop up can send you into a fury of annoyance, and the bigger issues can get your blood boiling. I have absolutely freaked out on people more often than I care to admit because they made my day more difficult than I wanted it to be.

The issue runs a little deeper than that, though. Adderall has a weird way of making you completely emotionally unavailable to others. In the longterm, this affects every aspect of your life. It ruins your friendships, it ruins your relationships and it ruins your relationship with your own happiness. You begin to shut out people from your life for no reason other than that you just don’t feel like dealing with them. Just simply

having empathy for others can become very difficult. You can genuinely love somebody, take an Adderall and watch as that feeling of love just disappears after a couple hours.

The disconnect isn’t just between you and your emotions, though. Simply the act of just thinking becomes difficult. For me, personally, it’s like my head becomes empty. I can’t think of anything even if I wanted to. After peaking on Adderall, doing something as simple as keeping a conversation afloat can become nearly impossible. That feeling of dissociation from yourself and others seeps into every aspect of your daily life, and the worst part is how unaware of it you are until it’s too late.

There are even more serious consequences of Adderall abuse as well. Unless you have plenty of experience with the drug, you can become very prone to engaging in harmful behavior. When I first began taking it regularly in college, I dropped around 20 pounds within a month or two. I went from over-eating at almost five meals a day to under-eating at two meals a day.

Worse than that, long-term abuse can and will turn you into an addict whether you know it yet or not and this has the potential to destroy your life. I have found myself

craving Adderall in the past and I was lucky enough to recognize what that meant and what that could potentially mean for my future. Not everyone is so lucky. People overdose on Adderall and die.

Regularly. People also often drink while on Adderall so they can party more, but you can’t forget that Adderall is a stimulant and that you run the risk of severely harming yourself when crossing a stimulant with a depressant.

All of that said, Adderall is helpful to those who need it.

I’m barely able to function as an adult because of my ADHD, so it’s a risk I take every day.

Luckily for me, I’ve learned enough about my limits to understand how it affects me and how to moderate my use of it.

The risks associated with Adderall abuse are real, though. It’s not some fun drug that makes life easy. That false perception has undoubtedly led people down a dangerous path. If you somehow get your hands on some Adderall, please, be careful and be responsible. Respect the drug for its positives and negatives, and, most importantly, don’t fall into the trap of glorifying it because that is a one-way ticket to abuse.

Connor McDonald can be reached at conmcdon@uab.edu.

cstjohn@uab.edu

Anthony Roney Campus Reporter roney16@uab.edu

Wallace Golding Community Reporter wsgoldin@uab.edu

Trinity Dix Sports Reporter tri915@uab.edu

Connor Gentry Sports Reporter gcgentry@uab.edu

Sufia Alam Online Reporter sufia@uab.edu

Connor McDonald Opinions Columnist theconmcdon@uab.edu

Marie Sutton Advisor masutton@uab.edu

Patrick Johnson Production Manager plj3@uab.edu

The Kaleidoscope functions as a memeber of UAB Student Media in association with UABTV, BlazeRadio and Aura.

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ILLUSTRATION BY LEISHA CHAMBERS/CONTRIBUTOR

Speaking of mental health problems Chris St. John Head Opinions Columnist

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id you know UAB Student Health and Wellness Center also offers counseling services? Talking about problems can be one of the most effective ways to get over an issue. Unfortunately most people don’t want to talk about what is troubling them. There are hundreds of people on this campus that have been raped, bullied or molested and have never spoken about it to anyone.

Some people believe if they don’t talk about it and keep it hidden then the problem will go away. Keeping this stuff to yourself means you will keep it to yourself and not be free of it. You must talk about it.

I called the counseling services up and asked to get an appointment. I called on Tuesday and was told it would be the following Friday before I could be seen. I told them during the lengthy

appointment making process, designed to match you with the best counselor for you and your situation, that I wasn’t thinking of suicide. However, I shouldn’t be knocking on death’s door to get an early appointment. I do believe they are doing the best they can with what they have to work with. It is still a long wait, and during those ten days I can change my mind, or talk myself out of the appointment.

I didn’t think it would be cool if I told them I had suicidal thoughts and that I wasn’t eating or sleeping to get an earlier appointment then tell them when I arrived that I was lying to get an immediate appointment, and, by the way, how about an interview.

Since the beginning of this year they have seen 994 students which sounds like a lot, but compared to the vast number of students on campus this number is miniscule. More students need to

take advantage of the services being offered here. If you have a problem, you need to talk to someone about it.

They are also available if someone is worried about a friend and would like to consult with someone about how to help. This year they will provide several groups each week as well as online counseling that students can utilize to get additional support, although that may be weird. I’m not sure I would truly trust the other person on the other side of the screen to not be recording or completely alone in the room.

“Our top presenting concern is anxiety,” Dr. Angela Stowe, Director of Student Counseling Services said. “We also have a large number of students with depression and symptoms of depression.

Other issues that students seek counseling for include relationship issues, stress, trauma, substance use, eating disorders and adjustment to

college.”

One of the biggest barriers for seeking help that students face is overcoming the stigma that surrounds getting help for mental health concerns.

Addressing this problem Dr. Stowe said, “We are hoping that outreach efforts by our office, as well as several student organizations, are helping address the issue of stigma on our campus so that more students will utilize services for support at UAB.” Students, please be aware of all the services services available to you and take advantage of them. If you are having issues please go and talk to someone. You are not alone, and you do not have to face these problems alone.

You are not the first to face these difficulties, and, just like others have survived, this dilemma will not destroy you.

Chris St. John can be reached at cstjohn@uab.edu and on Twitter @cstjohn416.

community BIRMINGHAM OFFICIALS

Stumbling into service Fire Chief Gordon describes his journey into, up to the ranks of the department Surabhi Rao Community Editor Charles Gordon Jr. identifies himself as a father of 700. After only two and half years of his term as Fire Chief over all of Birmingham’s fire stations, the people of Station 1 have nothing but the highest praise for him.

“Out of my 17 years here, the chief we have right now is probably the best Chief that I’ve had since I’ve been here,” Lieutenant Joseph Kolodziej of Station 1 said.

“He’s moving us forward in a way that we haven’t moved in a long time. He picked a very good administration that put us in the right direction that we need to be in. A very proactive direction.

He also listens to the people down in the field, and that’s what’s important. He will actually come around, sit down and break bread with us and ask us what can be done to improve the fire department. To the rest of us, that means a lot.”

Chief Gordon graduated from UAB with an accounting degree thinking that he would pursue a career in that field. He happened upon applications to be a firefighter at a personnel board with various career opportunities listed and thus, his legacy began by way of chance. Gordon has worked at multiple fire stations and held diverse positions that range from administrative duties to his additional background as a paramedic. 28 years later, he has held titles that include EMS field supervisor, captain, platoon chief and assistant chief. Despite this sparkling resume, he speaks of his rise in the ranks with surprise.

“I would say it has been a dream come true but it has never been a dream of mine,” Gordon said. “To be honest with you, after making platoon chief I really thought that was as high as I would go.

I was a part of some things that was making way in the department, which made me qualified for the job. I’m somewhat of a shy person so there are some parts of the job, like what we’re doing right now, where you question yourself - are you really ready for this? But my friends have told me to just be myself and I think once you respect others it works out…I really just stumbled upon this job but it’s the perfect job for me.”

Despite his initial shock, Gordon has taken to his chief position with fervor and pushed many initiatives to better the department. He is in charge of ensuring smooth functioning of the department. He provides input and guidance into every

PHOTO BY SURABHI RAO/ COMMUNITY EDITOR Chief Gordon works to boost morale and improve facilities in the department.

division, including EMS, fire suppression, fire prevention and communications. He assesses the demands for services and finds funding to make sure those needs are met.

Instead of an issue in retaining firefighters, the department now sees a demand for jobs.

“There have been some times that it has been stressful but all in all I think having the opportunity to change the morale in the department and to put some things in place that you truly believe benefit our citizens is a rewarding experience,” Gordon said. “We’ve been able to put more rescue units in and attract firefighters from other departments just by bettering the morale.

Being in the department for 28 years, you learn what to do and what not to do. My thing is empowerment. Empower your employees. A lot of the things that went on haven’t necessarily been my idea. Others feel a part of the department and although you may not accept everything that’s brought to you, but the idea that it can be brought to you will really change things. If you make your employees want to come to work, they’ll serve the citizens in a better manner.”

Included in Gordon’s work is his work in the community. The department took part in pushing a career technical education program at three high schools in Birmingham.

Wenonah, Huffman and Spain Park High School now all offer coursework that trains students such that they graduate with some level of initial qualification to enter the field.

He has also worked on a Fire Explorers program and spends time on charitable efforts in the community such as Toys for Tots. He works to strengthen relationships across the

city through happenings such as having lunch with winners of Citizen of the Month awards that he hands out.

“We deal in the business of tragedy, so when we can go out and put a smile on someone’s face through things like a Toys for Tots drive that makes a difference,” Gordon said. “Those are some of the better things about the job that I enjoy, not just showing up at someone’s house during a time of emergency, but being there at better times.”

Gordon plans to retire within the next couple of years, but before retiring he hopes to see paramedic staff on all his equipment, move to equalize the workload amongst units and bring facilities up to par. A challenge he describes is a necessary upgrade in some fire stations, as he sees the importance of making it easy for firefighters and other workers to be able to sleep and shower with ease while using some of the finest equipment out in the field.

Gordon has a few words of advice to anyone who may want to come up in the field as he has.

“It’s all about being respectful and having integrity,” Gordon said.

“If you say something, be true to your word.

You can be a smart person, but if you don’t have the integrity, dedication, desire or perseverance, it’s not going to matter. I think my thing is really caring for other people and putting myself in their shoes to understand how they would like to be treated. How can you set the stage to make things better for those that follow you?

That’s the message I like to send.”

Surabhi Rao can be reached community@insideuab.com and on Twitter @Cityrao17.

Page 4

February 28, 2017

City Council talks Ramsay, awards

Surabhi Rao Community Editor The Birmingham City Council met on Tuesday, Feb. 21 to discuss multiple dealings centered on events such as Ramsay High School’s football championship win.

Item 34 on the agenda transferred surplus property to the Land Bank Authority, which allows the city to take vacant or neglected properties and sell them to citizens for low prices in the hopes of revitalization. This was passed unanimously and without discussion.

Item 39 allocated $35,000 toward the Birmingham Board of Education in honor of Ramsay High School’s

football team on their recent championship win. The current plan intends for $5,000 to buy rings for the Ramsay High School football team, and another $30,000 to host a Bike Rodeo.

The Bike Rodeo will be held at multiple elementary schools across Birmingham, and details of this event are to be decided.

Mayor Bell organized for “Above and Beyond” awards to be presented to businesses in the community that have shown effort to willingly not only meet, but exceed the guidelines set by the Americans with Disabilities Act. Under the category of small businesses of

Birmingham, Marino’s Market in Ensley won this award as a store that has truly worked to eliminate barriers to the disabled. Under the category of large businesses, Regions Bank of downtown took this award home for their easy and convenient practices of inclusivity.

The Planning and Engineering Department was given an “Above and Beyond” award for their dedication to planning and executing a mission to serve disabled civilians and find ways to maximize accessibility for all in the city during transit.

Surabhi Rao can be reached at community@insideuab.com and on Twitter @Cityrao17.

Humans of Birmingham

Surabhi Rao Community Editor

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PHOTO BY SURABHI RAO/ COMMUNITY EDITOR Montego Brown, left, and Steezy 8 come to the skate park almost every day, which has been built by skaters.

Once I’m on it, it’s like I’m in my own world, and it kind of takes me away from my problems... Support your local skate shop. This park behind us isn’t built by the city, it’s made by people who skate. Buy [from] the skate shop, and we can build a skate park.

They’ll [mall posers] come out and party whenever there’s a big event, but you’ll never see them come back.

—Montego Brown

I’ve been skateboarding about seven years.

I love it. It’s my passion. This board, it’s not just a piece of wood. It becomes one with me. There are an infinity of tricks, so you can never not progress. Skating is kind of like math. You take one trick, put it with another trick, and that’s a whole new trick. I spend about 14 hours a week skating.

—Marvin (Steezy 8) Hicks

Life and Style

Page 5 February 28, 2017

89TH ACADEMY AWARDS

‘There’s been a mistake’ Wrong name called at Oscars causes uproar Jason Grover Life & Style Reporter

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onfusion reigned on stage as the apparent Best Picture winners, “La La Land,” delivered their thank you speeches. The announcers for the “Best Picture” category, Warren Beatty and Faye Dunnaway, were evidently sent to the stage with the wrong envelope. When Beatty showed confusion at the contents of the envelope, which read “Emma Stone: La La Land,” Dunnaway grabbed the envelope and announced “La La Land” as the winner.

The cast and crew of “La La Land” were on stage before the mistake was caught.

When Academy Awards personnel appeared on stage, it became clear that a mistake had been made.

“Guys, guys, I’m sorry.

There’s been a mistake,” “La La Land” producer Jordan Horowitz told the crowd. “‘Moonlight,” you guys won best picture.”

The gaffe was particularly unfortunate considering the racial implications. “Moonlight” features a predominantly African-American cast and an African-American director, Barry Jenkins.

In contrast, the cast and

PHOTO BY IAN KEEL/PHOTO EDITOR Oscar viewers sit and eat during a 89th Academy Awards viewing party at Rojo.

crew of “La La Land” are predominantly white.

“How do you misread ‘Moonlight?’” said Jervaughn Hunter, a biomedical engineering major. “It’s embarrassing.”

The Academy came under fire for a lack of diversity among nominees in both 2015 and 2016. Some criticized the Academy for overlooking pictures like F. Gary Gray’s N.W.A. biopic

“Straight Outta Compton.”

Some went so far as to call for a boycott of the 2016 Oscars because of the lack of recognition given to black actors and film makers.

2017, however featured a record number of African-American nominees, many of whom went on to win.

For some, however, the Best Picture slip-up overshadowed any steps the

UPCOMING CONCERTS

Academy may have made toward greater racial diversity.

“The hashtag last year was “oscarssowhite,” and then this year when the movie of the African American community wins, it gets upstaged by the predominantly white movie,” said Elise Tucker, an elementary and early childhood education major. “It was very strange to me that that happened.”

Despite the flurry of media activity surrounding last night’s ceremony, for many, the awards, as well as the “La La Land”/“Moonlight” mistake, are ultimately of no consequence.

“In the end, it’s just a few minutes of T.V.” said Hunter.

“It’s not going to ruin your life.”

Jason Grover can be reached at features@insideuab.com.

ALYS STEPHENS CENTER

Folds at the Lyric Meta-mysterious!

Alt rock elder statesman makes Birmingham stop Jason Grover Life & Style Editor

through to mainstream success with the single “Brick” from their t 50, Ben Folds 1997 sophomore effort seems to be “Whatever and Ever showing a desire Amen.” to simplify. After touring The track peaked at with various chamber number 11 on the top ensembles and playing 40 charts, and was nodates with orchestras table for lyrics consistaround the world, Folds ing of an autobiographis now in the middle ical story about of his “Ben Folds Folds’ high and a Piano” Tour, school girlwhich will stop at friend having the Lyric Theater on an abortion.

March 1.

The Ben Folds is perhaps Folds Five best known as the Grover followed founder and titu“Whatever and lar member of the Ben Ever Amen” with “The Folds Five, which he Unauthorized Autobiformed in 1993 with ography of Reinhold bassist Robert Sledge Messner” in 1999, and drummer Darren which included the hit Jessee in his home state single “Army.” of North Carolina.

Since the breakup of The band’s name is Ben Folds Five, Folds typical of the wry wit has released three solo and clever wordplay albums, beginning in that has been a cen2001 with “Rockin’ the tral element of Folds’ Suburbs,” which was career: their name belies followed by “Songs For the fact that there are Silverman” in 2005 and only and were only ever “Way to Normal” in three members.

2008.

The Ben Folds Five Folds also served on were part of the thrivthe judge’s panel for the ing Chapel Hill music a cappella competition scene, which included show “The Sing-Off” such influential bands for four seasons from as Superchunk, Archers 2009-2013. of Loaf, Squirrel Nut Most recently, Folds Zippers and Southern released “So There,” Culture on the Skids. a collaboration with After releasing their the yMusic ensemble self-titled debut in that mixed pop with 1995, the band broke classical music. “So

A

There” featured several pop songs but ended with a piano concerto composed by Folds and performed and recorded with the Nashville Symphony.

Folds’ current tour is a step back from the orchestral grandiosity of “So There.” Although the tour will feature orchestral performances in some cities, it seems like a return to form for Folds, featuring, as the tour’s title states “Ben Folds and a Piano.”

The set lists for tour dates thus far have featured songs dating as far back as the Ben Folds Five’s 1995 debut, performed in an intimate setting featuring Folds unaccompanied, as he performed on his first solo tours.

All solo tour dates, including the Lyric performance, feature VIP access options, including reserved seats in the first five rows of the concert hall, sound check access and an AMAA (Ask Me Almost Anything…

About Music) Q&A sessions with Folds.

Texas singer-songwriter Sarah Jarosz will appear at the Lyric in support of Folds. Jarosz is touring in support of her 2016 release “Undercurrent.”

For tickets and more information, visit lyricbham.com or benfolds. com.

Jason Grover can be reached at features@insideuab.com.

Theatre UAB stages British writer’s farcical whodunit Sufia Alam Online Reporter

es, it becomes apparent that every character could potentially be ast members the killer. swept the stage Stoppard was floor and adknown for his thought justed sets while sound provoking dramas was checked, acting such as “Rosencrantz out traditional backand Guilenstern Are stage preparations as a Dead” and screenprelude to the coming plays for films such as metadrama.

“Shakespeare in Theater Love.” In “The UAB’s producReal Detective tion of Sir Tom Hound”, StopStoppard’s “The pard gracefully Real Inspector explores the Hound” ran dichotomy befrom Feb. 22 tween reality and Alam through 26 in illusion while The Alys Stephen’s satirizing contempoCenter’s Sirote Theatre. rary theatre critics and The setting was set in the parlor mysteries Birmingham, Alabama of writers like Agatha as an audience in the Christie.

Alys Stephens Perform“The Real Inspecing Arts Center viewed tor Hound” features an audience and two a farcical, over-thecritics watching anoth- top script that is er play which hapboth confusing and pened to be “The Real intriguing, and a plot Inspector Hound.” that becomes increasAs the play begins, ingly convoluted and two critics, Moon, confusing as the play played by Taylor progresses.

Dole and Birdfoot, The complicated played by Seth Burgess, nature of the plot bediscuss the play they comes apparent when are assigned to review: the cast of the play“The Real Inspector within-a-play, Felicity, Hound,” playing in played by Eboni Bookthe Criterion Theatre, er, Cynthia, played London in June 1968.

by Addie Counts and The play-within-aMagnus, played by play opens with a dead Dai’Sean Garett sit body at the center of down to a game of the stage. As the playcards. Over the course within-a-play progress- of the game, they re-

C

veal the nature of their romantic engagements which exposes each character’s potential motive for the murders. The play-proper becomes further complicated when the playwithin-a-play becomes its own reality, which Moon and Birdfoot are drawn into.

Stoppard hoped to intellectually challenge audiences by establishing a clear ending while leaving enough room for interpretation. Like contemporary playwrights such as Harold Pinter and Joe Orton, Stoppard hoped to provoke discussion among the audience, not only about the events of the play, but about the underlying themes.

Theatre UAB’s production was a good indicator of Stoppard’s effectiveness in this.

The majority of the audience exited the play perplexed and somewhat confused, which is in keeping with Stoppard’s intentions.

Theatre UAB will continue their season with their Festival of Ten-Minute plays, which runs from March 6 through 10 at the Alys Stephens Center’s Odess Theatre. For tickets and more information, visit www.uab.edu/cas/ theatre.

Sufia Alam can be reached at sufia@uab.edu.

Page 6 |Life & Style

The Kaleidoscope

February 28, 2017

SPOTLIGHT ON: GIANI MARTIN Giani Martin Contributed Report Honestly I am not exactly sure when or at what point my interests in art developed, but I do believe that it is a seed that God planted in me at birth has been watered and cultivated by the events and experiences in my personal life - and is still being nurtured to this day.

One major thing that I’ve discovered recently is that my emotional expression is delivered directly through my art work.

The subjects and themes that I decide to tackle al-

ways subconsciously end up being the voice for whatever my current state of feeling is.

BEHIND THE LENS Name: Giani Martin, age 22 Major: Art Studio BFA Art Medium: Photography, Videography, and New Media Favorite Color: Silver Advice for aspiring artists: You will start to learn more about who you are and your personality through your journey as an artist - so create, create, create!

PHOTO COURTESY OF GIANI MARTIN “The subject holds a piece of watermelon shaped in a way that is unconventional from its usual fashion. It boasts the celebration of the richness in African-American skin - and of culture and tradition. It also underlines the relationship ties between the black culture and the watermelon fruit specifically, again highlighting emotion and feeling through color, tone and contrasts between dark and light”

Artist Spotlight is presented by Aura Literary Arts Review. Deadline for the Spring 2017 edition was+ Feb. 27.

Style profile Name: Gavin Helmi Year: Junior Major: Neuroscience

Shop this look: Helmi is wearing dark grey chinos and a light grey sweater from H&M, a striped Polo shirt topped with a navy pea coat from Uniqlo and desert boots from Clarks. His glasses are from RayBan.

Style Inspiration: Helmi said he didn’t have a specific style inspiration, but he thinks that Jude Law dresses well. He likes to shop at Uniqlo, H&M, Banana Republic and on eBay.

sports

Page 7 February 28, 2017

BASEBALL

PHOTO BY UAB ATHLETICS/KAMP FENDER UAB pitcher Matthew Calvert proposes to his girlfriend, Amanda Love, as their son Easton Calvert looks on before the game against the Creighton University Bluejays.

Diamond on the diamond The Calvert family has magical day as pitcher proposes, records two outs in game Trinity Dix Sports Reporter

F

eb. 19 was a sunny afternoon that was about to get brighter for sophomore left-hand pitcher Matthew Calvert and then-girlfriend Amanda Love. Before the game, Calvert caught the ceremonial first pitch from Easton Calvert, their son. Before they could walk off the field, Calvert handed the ball to his son and dropped to one knee to propose to Love on the diamond.

Her answer to the question was “yes.”

Calvert attended Clay-Chalkville High

School and played four seasons of baseball under Head Coach Bubba Roberts, according to UABsports.com. Love also attended ClayChalkville High School, and the lovebirds met there. Calvert and Love started their relationship in their sophomore year and have been high school sweethearts ever since.

In April of 2014, Love gave birth to their son. Calvert felt that while it was not ideal to have a baby at the age of 17, he thought everything worked out for the best.

According to The Trussville Tribune, Calvert had other

scholarship offers from colleges such as Charleston Southern University, Northwest Florida State College, Wallace State Community College and Florida International University.

His son was the reason for the choice he made: Calvert said he chose UAB because he wanted to be close to home and to be the best father he could be to his son.

On the day of the proposal, Calvert let his friends and family on that he was going to propose to Love on the diamond. Before the pre-game ceremony, everyone knew that he

was going to pop the question, except for, that is, Love.

Love picked out the ring herself a while back and this made the experience all the more exciting in Calvert’s eyes as he hid the ring from his future wife.

“I kept [the ring] until the day of,” Calvert said. “I had it in my back pocket. [I] tried to make sure she couldn’t see my backside so she wouldn’t be able to tell anything.”

At first, Calvert said he did not have a case of the butterflies regarding asking Love if she would marry him.

As the time grew closer to the ceremonial first pitch, Calvert began to feel nervous and once the moment arrived, he felt his heart racing.

Despite the knot in his stomach, everything sailed smoothly for him. Calvert even finished the 9th inning against the Creighton University Bluejays with

two strikeouts in seven pitches. He said that, overall, the event was a pretty fun time for him.

“I’m blessed for the life I have, the son I have and the fiancè that I have,” Calvert said.

“I’m thankful for it.”

Both Love and he decided that it was best to wait until he graduates to marry. They felt that decision would give them enough time to plan everything and have what they needed to do figured out.

Trinity Dix can be reached at tri915@uab.edu.

Blazers conquer the Crusaders Trinity Dix Sports Reporter

After three wins against Creighton University to begin the season, UAB Baseball suffered a 7-2 midweek loss on the road against the Alabama State University Hornets. The Blazers made up for it by winning two of the three games in their series against the Valparaiso University Crusaders.

On Feb. 24, the Blazers conquered the Crusaders by five runs.

UAB had a close game against the Crusaders, winning by a run over Valparaiso on Feb. 25.

UAB dropped the third game of the series on Sunday. This was their first home loss of the season.

“You [aren’t] going to win them all, especially in this game,” said Brian Shoop, UAB Baseball Head Coach.

“I would actually make a stand in to 15-3 if we could continue that.

That would be the best we’ve ever done. That would be fantastic. I’m happy with the way we play at home over the stretch. Not today, but over the stretch. This is a hard game. So that’s

something I am happy with, not disappointed in.”

In the first game of the series, nobody scored a run until the Crusaders’ James Stea knocked in a run. They took the lead by one in the third inning.

The Blazers’ responded with a run of their own courtesy of freshman first baseman Thomas Johns. After this, UAB held Valparaiso scoreless.

Freshman outfielder/ infielder Colton Schultz, senior outfielder Riley McCown, junior infielder Price Visitainer and sophomore infielder Carter Pharis all scored runs for UAB. McCown accounted for a double that brought in two runs from Schultz and Pharis for the Blazers.

With a final out caught by sophomore outfielder Jared Nixon, the Blazers won 5-1.

In the second game of the series, the Blazers had a strong start, scoring a run by Visitainer in the first inning.

In the ninth inning,the Crusaders threatened to tie the game. Valparaiso’s Christian Barczi batted Sam Shaikin in, scoring

a run for their team.

With two of Valparaiso’s players on second and first base, senior left-hand pitcher Thomas Lowery struck out Stea. The Blazers won 3-2 on Feb. 25.

In the third game, UAB had a bad start.

In the first inning, they allowed two runs.

From there on, the Blazers did not score a run until the seventh inning, where redshirt sophomore outfielder Brewer Hicklen scored after a Valparaiso’s wild pitch.

Hicklen recorded a double in the third inning and a triple in the seventh inning in this game.

“He’s a great athlete,” Shoop said. “We count on him to be one of our guys. He didn’t play any in the summer because of football. He played limited in the fall. He’s gotten off to a little bit of a slow start, and I hope that with more repetitions that he comes back to the level he was playing at last year because he’s a really, really talented athlete. We need him to do well.”

Trinity Dix can be reached at tri915@uab.edu.

Bring us your: Plastic bottles Aluminum cans Paper & Flat Cardboard *No Liquids or Foods* Learn more about our mission at www.uab.edu/recycle.

Page 8 |Sports

The Kaleidoscope

February 28, 2017

SOFTBALL

Knocking it out of the park: hitting dingers The Blazers use the long ball to power their way to three wins over the weekend Jack Ryan Sports Editor Debuting the new additions to Mary Bowers Field, the UAB Softball team won three of five games in the UAB/Samford Classic.

The three wins came against Murray State University, Iowa State University and Samford University while UAB dropped two games to Indiana University.

In game one against Indiana, UAB pitchers gave up seven runs including two home runs. The Hoosiers scored early as a run came in the first inning and never looked back.

Another run came in during the second via a bases-loaded walk. In the sixth and seventh innings, Indiana blasted two home runs into the woods at Samford.

Indiana’s pitcher, Emily Goodin, quieted UAB’s bats. She pitched a complete game. UAB did not record a single

hit off of her while only getting two runners on base during the game.

On Saturday, the tournament moved to Mary Bowers Field as fans got to experience the new seating around the field for the first time. UAB played two games, one against Murray State and the other against Iowa State.

In the game against Murray State, UAB freshman pitcher Claire Blount dazzled as she pitched a complete-game shutout.

During the game, she struck out four batters while only allowing two walks. This was the first complete-game shutout of her young career.

“She threw well,” said UAB Softball Coach Marla Townsend. “She had an outstanding weekend.

She got ground balls and kept the other team on their toes.”

On the offensive side, UAB used Mur-

ray State mistakes and hot hitting to propel them to a 4-0 win. In the fourth inning, UAB junior catcher Molli Garcia scored on a passed ball. In the fifth inning, senior outfielder Joanna Fallen lined a double to score three runs to help UAB secure the victory.

In the second game against Iowa State, the long ball helped launch UAB to victory. The Blazers came out swinging early.

In the first inning, junior outfield Madison Millsaps jacked a towering home run to center field to give UAB a quick 1-0 lead.

Iowa State answered back with a home run of their own to tie the game. Then, senior infielder Amy Waters took aim at the cars in the parking lot with a two-run home run.

UAB would later score three runs in the fifth inning and win 7-1.

“Absolutely [we are figuring out a

PHOTO BY JACK RYAN/SPORTS EDITOR UAB freshman pitcher Claire Blount is at the plate against Indiana University on Sunday, Feb. 26.

lineup],”Townsend said. “The good thing about it is we have 13 student athletes in the starting lineup. They may not be a starter but they are definitely in the lineup.”

On the final day of the tournament, UAB squared off against the Hoosiers and crosstown rival Samford.

The rematch against Indiana was a tale of missed opportunities.

UAB’s Blount held the Hoosiers scoreless until the sixth inning. In the sixth, Blount walked two batters, and Indiana brought the

runners in on a double.

The two runs proved to be the deciding factor in the game. UAB could not capitalize with runners on base and left nine runners stranded in the game.

“We played extremely well,” Townsend said. “We lost the freeby war so we lost the game.”

In the final game of the tournament, UAB overpowered Samford as they scored a season-high ten runs. UAB scored one run in the second inning. In the third inning, junior infielder Rachel Dunsford

knocked one out of the park to add on three runs. UAB would later score three runs in the fifth and seventh innings to win 10-2.

“Hitting is contagious,” Townsend said.

“We had three big innings with three runs.

They are relaxed and they are having fun.”

UAB exits the weekend with a 4-9 overall record. The Blazers host the University of Alabama Crimson Tide on Feb. 28 at 6 p.m.

Jack Ryan can be reached at sports@insideuab.com and on Twitter @kscope_sports.

BASKETBALL

PHOTO BY IAN KEEL/PHOTO EDITOR UAB Men’s Basketball Head Coach Rob Ehsan looks on as Middle Tennessee State University defeats UAB on Sunday, Feb. 26.

Late dagger lifts Blue Raiders over UAB UAB falls with seconds left going into last week of the season Connor Gentry Sports Reporter The UAB Men’s Basketball team squared off against the No. 1 team in Conference USA, the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders, on the afternoon of Sunday, Feb. 26. The Blue Raiders had a regular season championship title on the line with this matchup.

The Blue Raiders (25-4, 15-1) came into this game comfortably seated in the top spot in the conference. They looked to hold their lead as well as to clinch the regular season championship for the conference.

“Very hard fought basketball game, I thought, by both teams,” said UAB

Men’s Basketball Head Coach Rob Ehsan.

“At the end of the day [MTSU] made one more play than us. We were right there. Very proud of our guys. I thought we showed today that if we play with a great amount of intensity, togetherness and if we take care of the basketball, we can beat anybody in our conference.”

MTSU took 59 shots throughout the course of the game and converted 26 of them for 44.1 percent. Senior forward Reggie Upshaw led the Blue Raiders in scoring and rebounding. Upshaw tallied 19 points and pulled down six boards while shooting 57.1 percent, eight of 14 from the floor and three of four from 3-point

range. MTSU redshirt senior forward and Birmingham native JaCorey Williams chipped in 15 points and five boards of his own.

The Blue Raiders outrebounded UAB 33 to 26, but the most telling part of this statistic was that MTSU grabbed six more offensive rebounds than UAB. This allowed the Blue Raiders to score 11 more second-chance points than the Blazers.

UAB converted 22 of their 45 shot attempts for 48.9 percent and were led in scoring by junior forward Chris Cokley. Cokley scored 22 points on six of 12 shooting and made all 10 of his free throws. Junior forward William Lee tallied 17 points of his own on

seven of eight shooting.

The Blazers committed eight turnovers in the first half of the game but only gave up one in the second half.

“I think we made a huge jump today,” Cokely said. “We are improving. We will get back to work tomorrow. We just have to be physical.”

The Blazers’ bench players outscored the Blue Raiders’ bench 26-17, with almost all of UAB’s points coming from Cokley.

“He [Cokley] was a beast,” Ehsan said. “He did what we need Chris Cokley to do. Tosin [Mehinti] was very good today. Maybe not in the stat sheet, but he was a physical presence down there today.”

Cokley passed the

late Cameron Moore for No. 20 on the alltime scorers list at UAB with his performance.

Moore played for the Blazers from 2008 to 2012 and was honored before the game. He passed away in October of 2016 while training overseas in Macedonia.

The game was tied with less than a minute left when Tyrik Dixon drove down the lane and connected with JaCorey Williams, who knocked down a 17-footer to put the Blue Raiders ahead by two with four seconds left in the game. The Blazers inbounded the ball and got it to senior guard Dirk Williams.

Williams had a good look for a game-winning 3-pointer, but it rimmed out as the

buzzer sounded.

“It’s a formation that we practiced and tweaked a little bit,” Ehsan said. “We got the ball to Hak [Hakeem Baxter] in the middle of the floor so he can make a play. He made a wise and unselfish pass while under duress with the clock running down. He had the awareness to make the good pass. I’ll take that every day of the week in that situation. They did a heck of a job executing it. He just didn’t make the shot.”

The Blazers lost by a final score of 66 to 64.

They have two home games remaining in the regular season against Florida Atlantic University and Florida International University.

Connor Gentry can be reached at zcgentry@uab.edu and on Twitter @zcgentry.

February 28, 2017

The Kaleidoscope

Page 9P

UASOM

From Page 1

PHOTO COURTESY OF CHRISTEN PITNER Magic City Harvest employees and volunteers are preparing to be given to the hungry in the local community.

Magic

From Page 1

that food. There are about 25 of these area agencies including the Firehouse Shelter and the Love Lady Center.

“For a long time, nobody would let us have food,” Roberts said. “They didn’t want to be financially responsible.”

Roberts said that after a while, the federal government began implementing several laws such as the Good Samaritan Act of 1996 to cut down on wasting of food. These laws would prevent food-suppliers from being sued if somebody fell ill due to the donated food.

Roberts added that there was, in fact, a certain uniqueness to Magic City Harvest.

“Magic City Harvest is the only Birmingham area food donation center that started its roots and is still operating,” Roberts said.

According to the Talk Poverty website, 20 percent of adults and 25 percent of children in Alabama live in poverty, which is a total of 900,000 people. Despite its wealth and hunger ranking, Alabama also ranks as the second most obese

state. Jefferson County ranks as No. 39 in food insecurity and over 20 percent of children here live in poverty, according to MCH. “For me [food insecurity] is people that are hungry, and they don’t have means to buy food or access food,” Yokeley said.

“If someone goes to bed hungry, that’s food insecurity.”

MCH works to recover and redistribute perishable food, as well as to educate the community on food insecurity and obesity in the local area.

MCH also makes sure to keep their activity environment-friendly. The 1.2 million lbs of food that was not wasted in 2016 avoided a large release of methane gas, according to the MCH website.

Turning food waste into animal feed and compost is also a prospect of the company. At the moment, MCH is in the process of hiring dietetic interns who will work with the soup kitchens in order to develop well-balanced meals.

“To take and repurpose the food in a way that is a nutritious meal is a way that we see sustainability,” Yokeley said.

Another project that MHC and UAB Dining is working on is to introduce the Food Share app to Birmingham. The app will allow MCH to work with a larger number of smaller restaurants in the city area.

Other charity work that UAB Dining does is the “Donor-to-Diner” program. Students have the opportunity to give away meals to other students who are facing food insecurity. The upcoming “Donor-to-Diner,” event called ”One Meal Initiative,” was Feb. 10. UAB students received the opportunity to donate food swipes to other students in need.

Donors solely fund a lot of MCH’s operations, such as the maintenance of the trucks.

The organization is, therefore, constantly in need of support from the community. Opportunities to volunteer or donate to the organization and greater community are available on the MCH website.

“It’s a tough business,” Yokeley said.

“But it’s a great mission.”

The Campus Staff can be reached through editor@ insideuab.com and on Twitter @UABKscope.

a good time. It’s entirely the students that put them together. This is something that means a lot to us.”

The variety show consisted of 10 live acts and 15 comedy videos, all done by medical students. Some students performed cultural dances, others took the stage with their instruments.

“It’s a huge chunk of us,” Enman said. “It has been really nice, because I would never have known some of these people without this.

Like the fourth years are applying for residency, the third years are in the hospital, so it has brought us all together.”

Comedy reigned though, as humorous videos and acts sparked the most cheers from the crowd.

From professors reading their bad feedback from students out loud to students debating the superiority of the fourth and fifth floors of Volker Hall, inside jokes stemming from the traditional lives of those in UASOM connected the audience.

“We sold out the Lyric in nine days, which is incredible,” Enman said. “…We’ve never sold as many tickets as there are in the Lyric Theatre. We went announcing on Facebook and all these social media sites. When they dropped, we sold 400 tickets in our first day. The Lyric seats 750 people. We’ve never been able to do anything like this before. It’s amazing. I didn’t expect it, anything like it.”

Enman has been at work putting together this night for the last year. She accepted her position last February and has worked with Student Affairs and numerous levels of the medical school community to

ensure its success. Auditions began back in Fall. Enman and her team brought in groups across campus to make sure that the videos and acts were suited for all audiences.

Furthermore, the team read scripts and reviewed ideas to work with performers to perfect the show.

UAB Departments of Surgery and Medicine presented this year’s show and all proceeds went to support Equal Access Birmingham, a student-run free clinic in downtown Birmingham.

“What we are able to do with all that money is provide,” Enman said. “So, this year we did a women’s health clinic and a mental health clinic. That’s one of my favorite parts, getting to see where all this money goes. Getting to see all our hard work and all that we did to raise all this money, and it goes to health care, which is really what we want to do.”

Enman prides herself in doing something fun for the medical student body. She sees it as a much-needed, well-deserved study break.

“Balancing this role with med school has been challenging, but It’s been so rewarding,” Enman said. “I’ve gotten to communicate with so many different positions around the hospital that I would never have been able to meet. I’ve gotten to talk to deans at the school, so many people who are crucial to the school of medicine. It’s been a huge connection for me. It’s allowed me to grow so much with my relationships with the people in the school. It’s given me a good reason to laugh every day.”

Chandler Jones can be reached at editor@ insideuab.edu or on Twitter @chanjone7.

PHOTO BY CHANDLER JONES/EDITOR--IN-CHIEF The Best Medicine Show took over all 750 seats inside the Lyric Theatre Friday.

PHOTO BY IAN KEEL/PHOTO EDITOR Offensive and defensive lineman get in their stance as the offense prepares to run drills during the first spring practice since UAB Football’s program was shut down in 2014.

Football

From Page 1

bothersome, but it’s good noise, even the business building. [It’s] terrific for our university. It’s real now. It’s not make-believe.”

Practice began with each unit — offense, defense and special teams — running drills to get loose and warmed up.

Soon after, the offense

began running red-zone plays near the end-zone.

Finally, the Blazers are preparing for football season, just like every other NCAA football program in the nation.

“It was good,” Clark said. “I thought it was really good. It’s like a game with its ebbs and flows, and we are out there for two to two and a half hours. For a first

day, it was really good.”

After the shutdown of the program, many of the players either graduated or transferred. Only a few players remained at UAB, but some of them are familiar names, like linebacker Shaq Jones or wide-receiver Colin Lisa.

This proved to be a problem for Clark who had to recruit a young roster of mostly high

school players, convince players to leave the schools that they were attending or pull players in from junior colleges.

However, with two years to sell #TheReturn to potential players, he was able to put together a roster of 118 players from all over the country, and all will be fighting for starting positions during spring practice.

“Spring ball is for competition,” said Quarterback A.J. Erdely. “If you love competition, spring ball is for you. No job is secure.

Everyone knows that and is just fighting for a spot.”

The UAB Athletic Department is currently selling season tickets for the 2017-18 football season, as well as parking passes for the

Blazers’ six home games at Legion Field. Both tickets and parking passes can be purchased from UAB’s Athletic Department.

The first game back for UAB will be against in-state rival Alabama A&M University on September 2.

Connor Gentry can be reached at zcgentry@uab.edu and on Twitter @zcgentry.

Page 10

The Kaleidoscope

February 28, 2017

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