How has the Alabama Virtual Library helped you?

What: "My AVL Story" video contest, open to all Alabamians 

Who:  The Alabama Virtual Library Council

When:  Contest opens Friday, February 13th, 2015 and closes Friday, March 13th, 2015

Where:  Post videos to YouTube, Vimeo, Google Drive or any other online video hosting site, and include the link to the video in your entry!

Why: To let everyone know about what an awesome resource the AVL has been for YOU!

Post by Alabama Virtual Library.

Einstein Bros Bagels is almost here!

The construction has been shrouded (literally) for a while now, but Einstein Bros Bagels is almost ready for business in the Samford University Library!

We were under serious construction for awhile.

The construction inside the library was shrouded in mystery...

The patio construction progressed apace.

Finally close to the finished product.

The inside is revealed!

Not sure we'll be able to resist coffee and bagels right downstairs.

Maybe this backhoe will stay as a permanent fixture?

Seating along the east windows on the first floor.

Another view of the space.

Looking forward to sitting outside with shade from the oaks next to the library.

We'll let you know when it's time for the grand opening, but in the meantime, come take a look!

Regina M. Benjamin, Surgeon General of the United States, 2009-2013

"Regina M. Benjamin, M.D., M.B.A., was appointed by President Barack Obama as the 18th United States Surgeon General in July, 2009 and served a four-year term. Dr. Benjamin also oversaw the operational command of 6,700 uniformed public health officers who serve in locations around the world to promote, and protect the health of the American People. Dr. Benjamin served simultaneously as Surgeon General and as the first chair of the National Prevention, Health Promotion, and Public Health Council (National Prevention Council) ─ 17 cabinet-level Federal agencies that developed the road map for the Nation’s health – The National Prevention Strategy.

"Before becoming “America’s Doctor,” she served her patients at the rural health clinic she founded in tiny, Bayou La Batre, Alabama, keeping the clinic in operation despite damage and destruction inflicted by Hurricanes Georges (1998) and Katrina (2005) and a devastating fire (2006).

"She has a B.S. in chemistry from Xavier University of Louisiana, an M.D. degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and an M.B.A. from Tulane University. She attended Morehouse School of Medicine and completed her family medicine residency in Macon, Georgia.  Dr. Benjamin is the recipient of 22 honorary degrees. 

"She is former associate dean for Rural Health at the University of South Alabama College of Medicine in Mobile and past chair of the Federation of State Medical Boards of the United States. In 1995, she was the first physician under age 40 and the first African-American woman to be elected to the American Medical Association Board of Trustees. She served as president of the American Medical Association Education and Research Foundation and chair of the AMA Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs. In 2002, she became the first African-American female president of a state medical society in the United States when she assumed leadership of the Medical Association State of Alabama.

"As Surgeon General, she focused her attention on prevention. Under Dr. Benjamin’s leadership implementation of the National Prevention Strategy (2011) became a reality, providing an unprecedented opportunity to shift the nation from a focus on sickness and disease to one based on wellness and prevention.  Her vision paper, The Surgeon General’s Vision for a Healthy and Fit Nation (2010), showed Americans how to choose nutritious food, add more physical activity to their daily lives, and manage stress. She was an active supporter of the First Lady’s Let’s Move! (2010) initiative for children and Go4Life (2011), which encourages older adults to adopt or continue healthy lifestyles. Dr. Benjamin is noted for regularly leading community walks, exercises and dance.  The Surgeon General’s Every Body Walk! initiative (2013) encourages Americans to add walking to their daily routine to gain long term health benefits. 

"Her philosophy proved popular: people should enjoy becoming and staying fit.  Efforts championed by Dr. Benjamin in The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Support Breastfeeding (2011) highlighted the links between breastfeeding and healthy babies, promoted Baby Friendly Hospitals and encouraged businesses to support women who choose to breastfeed.  She released two official reports updating the dangers of tobacco use: Report from the Surgeon General on How Tobacco Smoke Causes Disease: The Biology and Behavioral Basis for Smoking-Attributable Disease (2010) and Preventing Tobacco Use Among Youth and Young Adults: A Report of the Surgeon General (2012). The 18th Surgeon General and National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention released the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention (2012) to reduce the number of deaths by suicide, a public health issue that results in the death of 100 Americans each day. 

"In 2013, Dr. Benjamin joined leaders of five U.S. federal agencies to announce Advancing Healthy Housing: A Strategy for Action, which unifies federal efforts to expand healthy housing, demonstrating the connection between housing conditions and residents’ health.  She helped launch MyPlate (2011) and the Spanish version MiPlato (2011) to help educate Americans about nutrition and healthy eating. She continually supported the national Script Your Future medication adherence campaign. She promoted the value of health IT systems and electronic health records.

"During her tenure as Surgeon General, Dr. Regina Benjamin was ranked as one of the '100 Most Trusted People in America' (Reader’s Digest May, 2013)."





Regina M. Benjamin (2009-2013). Surgeongeneral.gov  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 11 Feb. 2015. http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/about/previous/biobenjamin.html#PAGE_4

A Look Back: Step Sing in the '60s and '70s

Step Sing began on campus in 1951, but really got going in the 1960s when costumes and props were added to the performances. 

Here are some pictures from the Special Collection of Step Sing performances of the past. 

The Step Sing winners of 1962 pose with their trophies.

Sandra Evans sings during the Delta Zeta Step Sing show in 1966.

Alpha Phi Omega performs in Step Sing in 1972. Their show had a river boat theme and they won first place in the Organizational Division of Step Sing.

Phi Kappa Pi performing in Step Sing on November 16, 1974. The show as entitled, "My Special Angel". Phi Kappa Pi won the Fraternities Division of Step Sing that year.

Chi Omega performs in Step Sing in 1979.

Next week, we'll share some pictures from Step Sing in the 1980s and 1990s. Good luck to all the groups performing this year!

Text and photographs provided by Rachel Cohen and the Special Collection.

Lonnie G. Johnson, Inventor

"Lonnie G. Johnson, inventor and engineer, was born in Mobile, Alabama, in 1949.  Mr. Johnson holds over 80 patents, with many still pending, and worked on the Galileo, Mars Observer, and Cassini Missions, but he is best known as the inventor of the Super Soaker.
  
"Lonnie attended W. H. Council Elementary School and Williamson High School in Mobile, Alabama.  At the age of 18, as a senior in high school, he won first place in a national science competition at the University of Alabama for his invention of a remote controlled robot, called 'Linex,' which he made from junkyard scraps.

"He attended Tuskegee University on a mathematics scholarship and was elected to the Pi Tau Sigma National Engineering Honor Society. He graduated with distinction with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1973, and completed a Master of Science degree in Nuclear Engineering two years later. In 2001, Lonnie was awarded an honorary Doctorate in Science from Tuskegee University, and currently serves on the faculty as an adjunct professor.

"As a Captain in the Air Force, he was awarded the Air Force Achievement Medal, and received the Air Force Commendation Medal on two separate occasions. During his Air Force career he received the CINC SAC Nomination for Astronaut Training as a space shuttle mission specialist.

"He served as Chief, Data Management Branch of the 31st Test and Evaluation Squadron, Strategic Air Command, Edwards AFB, California. He also served as Manager, Advanced Space Systems Requirements for Strategic Air Command (SAC) Headquarters, Offutt AFB, Nebraska; and as Acting Chief, Space Nuclear Power Safety Section of the Air Force Weapons Laboratory, Kirkland AFB, New Mexico.

"During his nine year career with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, he received multiple achievement awards from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for his work on spacecraft system design. He worked on the Galileo and Mars Observer projects, and was instrumental in the Cassini (Saturn) Mission.

"In 1992, Lonnie’s invention, the Super Soaker® water gun, generated over $200 million in retail sales. Total retail sales to date are close to one billion dollars. In 2000, Lonnie was named to the Inventor Hall of Fame for his invention of the Super Soaker®.

"Also in 1992, the Cobb County, Georgia Chamber of Commerce named Johnson Research and Development the 'Small Business of the Year.'

"Articles on Lonnie Johnson have been featured in a number of publications including Inventor’s Digest, the New York Times, and Time Magazine. He has appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show and was featured in a Science Times/National Geographic television segment.

"Lonnie Johnson currently holds over 80 patents and has over 20 more pending. He has authored six technical publications. Additional patents are held by his companies, Johnson Research and Development, Excellatron Solid State, and Johnson Electro-Mechanical Systems.

"Johnson serves on the Board of Directors of the Georgia Alliance for Children and the Hank Aaron 'Chasing the Dream' Foundation; and has served on the Board of the Commonwealth National Bank."

You can find out more about Lonnie Johnson in the library's "Leading Alabama" display on the first floor in front of the Circulation Desk. 



Text from the Johnson Research and Development profile.