UAB AT A GLANCE

In the 1960s, a small extension center of the University of embarked on a mission to become a center of quality education. During the next 30 years, tremendous strides in education and medicine transformed this hub of learning into an independent campus known as the at Birmingham (UAB). Today UAB is one of the country’s premier urban public universities, with approximately 17,000 students. UAB’s influence reaches into every facet of the Birmingham community, improving the lives of residents through innovative , education, and active community involvement. As an educator, a campus encompassing 82 city blocks thrives with opportunities to gain a real- world education in the arts and humanities, business, dentistry, education, engineering, health related professions, medicine, natural sciences and mathe- matics, nursing, optometry, public health, and social and behav ioral sciences.

Recently a point of land in Antarctica was named after a UAB professor and marine biologist who dives beneath the Antarctic ice to study organisms living there.

In health care, UAB is a world leader in research, patient care, and innovative biomedical educational programs. In cutting-edge research centers, UAB scientists are seeking cures for diseases like cancer and heart disease. In addition, many UAB physicians are consistently ranked among the nation’s best by national publica- tions. UAB’s impact on the community is quite obvious. As Alabama’s largest single employer, more than 52,900 jobs in Birmingham are UAB-related, including approx- imately 16,000 UAB employees. Plus, UAB energizes the local, state, and regional economies with more than $2.9 billion of UAB-related business volume.

A University Challenging the Future • An impressive 90.6 percent of UAB’s 1,933 faculty members hold an academic or professional doctorate in their fields.

• With a student-faculty ratio of 18 to 1, UAB’s world-renowned visionar- ies and problem-solvers share their expertise and experience in the class- room and lead others to the brink of discovery. UAB enriches Birmingham’s cultural • A young, dynamic, exciting place, UAB tackles the problems of today landscape through a diversity of people and offers a preview of the world of tomorrow. It’s where creativity and and activities such as athletics, perform- innovation are campus traditions—and where successful futures begin. ing arts, theatre, social service, and much more. 2004 Blazer Football www.uab.edu • A UAB professor is a member of the An Education with Athena Integrated Science Team, a group of 21 scientists around the world Experience involved with NASA’s Mars missions • The UAB Department of Philosophy’s Center for the Study of through 2005. Ethics and Values in the Sciences is the only one of its kind in America to explore ethical issues related to the general practice of science.

• The first program of its type in America, the UAB Center for Educational Accountability researches, designs, and imple- ments models that measure the effectiveness of K-12 schools and higher education.

• The UAB Health Education program ranks first in the nation for faculty mentoring and seventh overall, according the American Journal of Health Education.

• The Alys Stephens Center’s newest venues include a 1,330-seat concert hall and intimate recital hall praised for their acoustics, a state-of-the-art theatre, and a special performance space that can be completely rearranged for every production.

• Engineering students create and present design proposals for public projects, ranging from highway interchanges to Birmingham’s VisionLand theme park.

• UAB is located just blocks from Alabama’s financial, corporate, and economic hub. Special contacts and partnerships with local businesses open doors of opportunity for students.

championship to earn its first NCAA Tournament berth. A season earlier, the UAB Athletic Achievements women captured the C-USA regular season title. • Blazer football earned its first postseason bowl appearance with the berth in the 2004 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl. The Blazers have finished as • Former UAB men’s golfer Graeme McDowell Conference USA runner-up in three of the six seasons UAB has been com- was the nation’s No. 1-ranked collegiate golfer peting as a football-playing member of the league. UAB has C-USA's third- in 2002 and won the Fred Haskins Award. The best overall record since becoming a football member. men’s golf team has advanced to the NCAA • In 26 seasons of competition, the Blazer men’s basketball team has Championship three of the past four seasons. enjoyed 23 winning seasons, has made 19 trips to postseason tournaments (11 NCAA, 8 NIT), and has won seven conference championships. UAB • The Blazers field 17 intercollegiate teams as advanced to the NCAA’s Sweet 16 last season, knocking off tournament No. a Division I member of the NCAA and a found- 1 seed Kentucky in the second round. ing member of Conference USA. • The women’s tennis team has won four conference titles in the past 12 • Vonetta Flowers (right), a former UAB track seasons. Also, in 1997, a team member became the first UAB player to win & field All-American, made history in February an NCAA Grand Slam event and later became the top-ranked female ama- of 2002 when she won a Gold Medal at the teur player in the country. Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City. • The men’s soccer team advanced to the NCAA Championships in three of Flowers became the first Winter Olympics Gold the last four years and a fourth time overall in 2001. The team won the Medalist ever from Alabama when she teamed 1999 C-USA Championship and advanced to the NCAA Final 8. with Jill Bakken to capture the two-woman bobsled competition. • The UAB women's soccer team won the 2004 Conference USA Tournament www.uabsports.com World-Class Health Care

• Forty-nine UAB physicians are listed in the most recent edition of The Best Doctors in America, a highly selective directory that includes only one percent of all physicians in the country.

• In the 2004 rankings by U.S. News & World Report, 14 specialties at UAB were listed among the best in the nation—cancer cardiology and cardiac surgery, gynecology, hormonal disorders, kidney disorders, orthopedics, otolaryngology (ear, nose, and throat), and rheumatology. Additionally, 2004 marked the 13th consecutiv e ranking for rheumatology and the ninth for cardiology.

• The UAB School of Nursing is one of only 11 World Health Organization collaborating cen- ters for international nursing in America and one of only 36 in the world.

• UAB is a national leader in organ transplantation. Its organ survival rates are among the best in the nation, patient survival rates exceed the national average, and waiting time for transplant is among the shortest nationally.

• In UAB’s School of Health Related Professions, the surgical physician assistant program is one of only three such programs in the country, and the radiation therapy p rogram is one of just 10.

• UAB is a state-of-the-art, full-service clinic that furnishes a full range of adult outpatient care. Housing more than 30 specialties and more than 600 specialists under one roof, UAB Kirklin Clinic conveniently provides in-house diagnostic testing, surgery services, a pharmacy, and educational seminars.

• The School of Medicine at UAB is among the nation’s best according to the 2004-05 U.S. News & World Report ranking of medical schools. UAB is ranked 25th in the research category, three spots higher than the previous ranking in 2002. In the primary-care category UAB was named the 30th best school in the country, the same rank held in 2002.

• Three medical specialties at UAB are also ranked in the top 20 nationally by the magazine: AIDS (No. 5), women’s health (No. 8) and internal medicine (No. 19). A Leader in Science and Research • UAB students routine receive prestigious scholastic awards, currently one of the best in translating including Goldwater, Truman and Rhodes scholarships. Rounding research findings into patient treat- out the UAB experience are UAB Blazer athletics. ments.

• In funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), UAB • The UAB Health System (UABHS) again ranks No. 20 overall with five schools in the Top 20: Health joined “Healthcare’s 100 Most Wired Related Professions (No. 1), Optometry (No. 4), Public Health and Health Systems” in the (No. 10), Nursing (No. 17) and Medicine (No. 16). July 20, 2004, Hospitals and Health Networks, the Journal of the American • A world-renowned research powerhouse, UAB houses more than Hospital Association. 80 centers working to protect the environment, revitalize inner cities, develop treatments for cancer, and much more. • Through the CIREN (Crash Injury Research and Engineering Network) Center, Mercedes-Benz and UAB are partnering to ana- • UAB’s Comprehensive Cancer Center was one of the nation’s first lyze and prevent automobile accidents among the elderly. such centers designated by the National Cancer Institute. It is Dr. Carol Garrison, President Dr. Carol Z. Garrison was named president of the University of Alabama at Birmingham in July 2002. She had served as acting president at the University of Louisville where she had served as provost since 1997. As provost she was both chief academic and chief operating officer, responsible for the oversight of all depart- ments and divisions, including the medical center. Dr. Garrison, a native of Montclair, N.J., earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill. She received her master’s degree from the School of Nursing at UAB in 1976 and earned a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Certificate from UAB in 1978. From 1976-78, she was an assistant professor of nursing at UAB. In 1982, she earned a Ph.D. in epidemiology from the University North Carolina - Chapel Hill, where she was an assistant professor. She joined the faculty at the University of South Carolina in 1982, was named professor and chair of epidemiology and biostatis- tics in 1992, and in 1994 became associate provost and dean of the graduate school. In 1997, she joined the University of Louisville as provost. In addition to her skills as an administrator, Dr. Garrison is a respected researcher and educator. During her career, Dr. Garrison has received more than $5.9 million in federal research funding. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa, Delta Omega and Sigma Xi and was twice honored as the Carolina Distinguished Professor. As UAB’s sixth president, Dr. Garrison oversees Alabama’s largest employer, with nearly 16,000 faculty and staff and an operating budget of $1.4 billion. UAB attracts some 16,000 students from around the nation and the world to its six liberal arts and sciences schools and six health-professional schools. With nearly $400 million in sponsored research, UAB is among the top 20 universities in the country in funding from the National Institutes of Health. Watson Brown, Athletics Director Now in his 10th season directing UAB’s football fortunes, Watson Brown added an additional role to his list of responsibilities two years ago — and an important one at that — assuming the position of Director of Athletics for the Blazers. Named as AD in November of 2002, Brown has been working fast and furious to keep the Blazers’ athletic program moving forward, in addition to his usual duties at the helm of UAB football. There’s no doubt the progress of UAB football has been impressive. Having competed at the NCAA Division I- A level only since 1996, the Blazers have been bowl-eligible three of the past five seasons, finishing 7-4 in 2000 and 6-5 in 2001. The Blazers earned their first bowl invitation last season with their appearance in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl. Highlighting the recent achievements were a 2000 victory at LSU and boasting one of the nation’s top defensive units. UAB has the third-best record in Conference USA over the past six seasons and this year’s accomplishments will keep the Blazers among the league’s top-ranking programs over that period. A veteran of 32 years in coaching, Brown was the offensive coordinator at the University of Oklahoma (1993-94) before coming to UAB. In 1991 and 1992, Brown was the offensive coordinator at Mississippi State under head coach Jackie Sherrill. Brown also served head coaching stints at Vanderbilt (1986-90), Rice (1984-85), Cincinnati (1983) and Austin Peay State (1979-80). A native of Cookeville, Tenn. and a former standout quarterback at Vanderbilt, Brown is married to the former Brenda Arnold. They have two children: daughter Ginny, who was a four-year letter winner in basketball at Georgia State University (1996-00), and son Steven, who is a 2004 graduate of Vestavia Hills High School. Dr. Johnny Scott, Faculty Athletics Representative Dr. Johnny W. Scott, professor of nuclear medicine and assistant dean of the School of Medicine at UAB, was named faculty athletics representative by former UAB President W. Ann Reynolds, June 28, 2000. Scott joined the UAB faculty in 1978 as an assistant professor of clinical pathology and nuclear medicine. He was promoted to associate professor in 1983 and professor in 1991. In 1999, he was named assistant dean for the School of Medicine to direct efforts to recruit minority students and faculty to the medical school. A native of Westfield, Ala., Scott received his medical degree from the School of Medicine at UAB. He also holds a Ph.D. in physical chemistry from the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa and a master’s degree in nuclear chemistry from the University of Pittsburgh. He earned his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Clark College in Atlanta.