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On April 5, Christian Martin was recognized with two awards for his work at the College of Business’ Honors Day.

Martin was one of two students who received at least two awards and was grateful to earn them, stating, “It feels great to see hard work throughout the years paying off! To be recognized by the college is an incredible honor, but I couldn’t have done it without the support of my faith, family and friends. We have an amazing group of students within the college, and so I am deeply thankful that I was chosen to receive my awards.”

Martin also spoke about his experience in the College of Business, highlighting faculty and staff, career advancement opportunities and academic learning experiences as notable components of the college. “My personal experience within the [information systems] cyber program has been one of tremendous academic growth. With opportunities like the newly opened cyber lab, I was able to get hands-on with cyber elements like hubs, switches and servers, that normally are only seen within textbooks,” he explained. Martin also described his program’s application-driven curriculum by recalling one of his favorite memories: taking the IS 577 Network Defense & Security course with DJ Hovermale. “Usually when you think about class projects, they are simply tedious assignments to check off. However, with DJ’s class, our final project was to perform vulnerability assessments and penetration test reports on a mock “box” hosted on a virtual machine. It was an in-depth learning experience that put students on the front lines of [a] hypothetical cyber battle.”

Beyond studying at UAH, Martin is a member of the leadership team for the philanthropic event, Battle of the Buffalo. The event is held in memory of Paul Salmon, a UAH student who died in 2007 due to acute myeloid leukemia. Regarding his involvement in the Battle of the Buffalo, Martin said, “It takes nearly all year to plan the event that takes place in downtown Huntsville at Big Spring Park, but the results are always worth it when we are able to donate all the money to Russel Hill Cancer Foundation, Clearview Cancer Institute and Hudson Alpha.” Martin has contributed to the event for two years, and his team has raised nearly $70,000 in that time.

After graduating from UAH, Martin will go to Charleston, South Carolina to intern at the Naval Information Warfare Center as a security control analyst; it will be the second time he interns there. However, he will return to Huntsville to pursue a Master’s degree in cybersecurity.

Eli Williams, Brian Kemle, David Tollett, and Katie Weaver

Four students at the University of Alabama in Huntsville’s College of Business are collaborating on a dashboard that reports COVID-19 statistics.

Katie Weaver, David Tollett, Eli Williams and Bryan Kemle are the students who are continuing their work on a COVID-19 dashboard. The dashboard tracks various pieces of data about COVID-19 throughout the world, including confirmed cases, deaths, recoveries, active cases and fatality rates, and this information can be sorted by country, state and county level. Additionally, the dashboard allows users to select specific dates and date ranges to look at all of the aforementioned data. In its current state, the dashboard updates its information once a day.

This project required the students to create a user interface with two “ends,” and they decided to split this work in half; Williams and Tollett are responsible for maintaining the back end, and Weaver and Kemle are responsible for the front end. The back end collects data and formats it appropriately while the front end ensures the data is organized and presented clearly.

Both the front and back ends require different softwares, so the group spent most of its initial efforts testing different softwares to find the most ideal ones for the project. Every time the students used a different software they had to learn how to operate it, which made creating the dashboard a lengthy process. Currently, the front end team uses Power BI to host the dashboard which allows the information collected by the back end team to be displayed on a website. The back end team programmed and ran different scripts to gather the information needed for the dashboard. Describing what the back end team did, Williams said, “We simply got our data from a GitHub repository that’s … run by John Hopkins University, and then we just took that data and I wrote a Python script and just inserted all of it into our database hosted by Amazon AWS (Amazon Web Server).”

The students began working on the dashboard in January 2022. They took the Information Systems 210 course in the College of Business, and as the only computer science majors in the class, their professor, Mr. Chakri Deverapalli, presented them with a problem–COVID-19 trackers stopped updating information–and asked them if they wanted to try to solve it. The students were free to choose how to solve the problem, and the only requirement was that their project had to have a display of some sort.

The four students agreed that this is the most complex project they have worked on, so when they started, they faced several challenges. Reflecting on their experience, Williams said, “As computer science majors, we do a lot more like, lower level stuff. We hadn’t built like, data websites or databases … this was a really big learning curve for us, but we were able to figure it out piece by piece, it just took a while, definitely took a lot of trial and error.”

Despite the progress they have made, the students still have plans for their project. One aspect they hope to enhance is the information they gather; they hope to utilize multiple reliable sources to gather the information the dashboard needs. Although their software is programmed to report COVID-19 recoveries, for example, the sole source they are using, John Hopkins University, no longer reports this statistic, so the group wants to find more sources to cover missing information. Currently, the dashboard is only accessible on Kemle’s Power BI account, so another major priority for the students is to make the dashboard public.

The students would like to brand their dashboard as a product of UAH, but have not fully planned out how to make it official. They are currently collaborating with Mr. Deverapalli, who has encouraged them to work toward publishing their dashboard under a UAH domain.

Patrick Doolin

On April 5, Patrick Doolin received the Departmental Honors in Information Systems Award at the College of Business’ Honors Day.

Doolin was part of the outstanding students in the College of Business who were celebrated on Honors Day. He remarked, “I am very honored to receive the award and it is very nice to see that people are noticing the work that I have put into my degree. I plan to continue to strive to do better in my school work and professional work to keep improving.”

Doolin is pursuing a major in information systems with a focus in cybersecurity as well as a major in marketing, and is also a JUMP! program student pursuing a Master’s in cybersecurity. Speaking about his three years at the College of Business so far, he commended the faculty and staff, noting that they “Are truly always willing to help and I never feel like I can’t approach them.” He also mentioned that the coursework under the guidance of his professors has allowed him to gain much hands-on experience. “The information systems degree path is certainly a hidden gem at UAH (The University of Alabama in Huntsville), and any student in the program is lucky to be able to gain such useful skills in such a welcoming environment,” Doolin said.

Looking ahead, Doolin will look to apply his knowledge from his areas of study. This upcoming summer of 2022 he will intern at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency as a cybersecurity engineer, and as a Scholarship for Service recipient, he will work in a government cybersecurity position after graduating. He also intends to complete his Master’s in cybersecurity at UAH.

Emily Boggs

On April 5, Emily Boggs was presented with the College of Business Departmental Honors Award in Marketing.

Boggs was humble in accepting her award, explaining that she was surprised to have been selected. “Honestly I was super surprised and thought they had the wrong Emily at first! I don’t consider myself a high-achieving student. I just try my best to apply what I learn to the work I do in and outside of school,” she said.

Speaking about her studies in the College of Business at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), Boggs mentioned the importance of the faculty and staff, noting their experience, knowledge and passion, and was thankful to have worked with some of them. She stated, “To any professors who I didn’t mention by name, please know that I’m so thankful for you and the time and energy you put into teaching and equipping your students to excel in college and beyond.” Boggs also commented on her peers, saying that collaborating with them helped her learn about teamwork and servant leadership. “I’ve worked with some very bright and innovative-minded students that have helped bring new perspectives to the table—to them I also attribute my success.” One more aspect Boggs highlighted was the curriculum; she particularly enjoyed the projects she did for her MKT 470 Social Media Marketing and MGT 499 Capstone courses.

Outside of UAH, Boggs is a part time administrative assistant at Bruderer Machinery Inc. and a digital marketing coordinator at Sangiacomo Presses Americas, both of which are linked companies that focus on making high-speed precision stamping presses used to manufacture metal products like soda cans. Boggs has embraced her roles and eagerly applied her marketing knowledge while also learning about machining manufacturing.

After graduating, Boggs will continue her work at Bruderer Machinery as a full time staff member. She is approaching post-graduation with excitement, but also caution, explaining that while she is looking forward to continuing her career, she is wary of focusing solely on success and achievements. “It’s not bad to desire [success and achievements], but if that’s all I ever care about and prioritize, then what will I be left with at the end of my life? I want to be remembered by others as serving and loving them far above myself,” she concluded.

The land currently occupied by UAH was a nineteenth-century cotton plantation called Avalon. Starting in the early 1800s, Avalon became one of the largest cotton plantations in Madison County. By 1860, 106 enslaved people worked the land and lived in 35 houses on the property. For several years, UAH history classes have been excavating Avalon-related sites under the direction of Ben Hoksbergen, Redstone Arsenal archaeologist. These classes uncovered the site of the enslaver’s dwelling (between the Nursing Building and Roberts Hall). 

We seek to know more about the enslaved people’s lives here at Avalon. Sadly, not much documentation exists in historical records. So this summer, the UAH History Department and the UAH Archives, with support from the Provost’s Office, enlisted the help of the Tennessee Valley Archaeological Research (TVAR) to use ground-penetrating radar in an attempt to locate where enslaved people were laid to rest on the property.  

Claiborne Sea of the TVAR spent three days in mid-May scanning two areas with ground-penetrating radar for that purpose. One area was near University Drive and the other around the existing Jones-Perkins Cemetery behind Morton Hall. We can’t wait to see what his work shows!

If you are interested in UAH campus history research, please donate to support the work of the UAH History Department, UAH Archives, and our community partners as we learn more about UAH’s history and erect markers to share that history with the community. 

Information provided by the Department of History and Dr. Christine Sears, Department Chair. For questions, please contact history@uah.edu.

An interview with Vishal Rameshbabu - by Dr. Andrei Gandila, UAH Associate Professor of History 

At 10 years old Vishal took his first college-level class, Honors 103 – World History to 1500. He earned an A in that class. To be fair, he didn’t do a perfect job. He lost points on his research paper about the origins of the First Crusade, because it exceeded the word limit. It was twice as long! Now, at 16, Vishal is enrolled in the capstone seminar HY 490 and in HY 401 Daily Life in Ancient Rome, both challenging, writing-intensive, classes. Vishal graciously agreed to share his experience which I’m sure will be a source of inspiration for everyone.

Dr. Gandila: When did you first become interested in history and how did it happen?

Vishal: I have always loved geography, and I’ve been reading atlases my whole life. Over time, I grew annoyed with how relatively stationary the present world was to me, so I looked over historical maps and historical cartographical animations online when I was about eight years old. From then on, it was a rabbit hole into the great states, empires, people, and the past. I soon read encyclopedia articles and watched documentaries about the ancient world, usually about Near Eastern civilizations, which drew my interest towards the cultural and societal history of long-gone cultures and societies.

Dr. Gandila: It is common for children to develop a strong interest for an activity but then to forget about it and move to something else. What kept your interest in history for so long?

Vishal: Nothing else has caught my interest as much as history ever in my entire life, but I expressed my interest in different ways over time, which may have kept my attention towards the subject for such a long time. I learned to channel my passion for history through event organization, writing, and teaching others on an individual basis, which I’ve never lost sight of and never lost my connection with. While my relationship with history has changed significantly over time (from an individual perspective to a broader, more communal perspective), my general interest has not.

Dr. Gandila: I know you have a particular interest in pre-modern history. What is your favorite culture and why?

Vishal: The Bactrians are very interesting to me. Their location at the crossroads between the Indo-Aryans, Hellenistic Kingdoms, and Eurasian Steppe granted them a very unique culture. Whether they were ruled by the mysterious Yuezhi tribes of the Kushan Empire or the Nomadic Hephthalite Empire, they maintained a variety of both odd and familiar practices. To me, there is nothing more incredible than a civilization that fits all the boxes and none at the same time. The Bactrians, who adopted Indian Buddhism and Persian Zoroastrianism but practiced artificial cranial deformation and lived in tents, are just that.

Dr. Gandila: You took HY 103 in the Fall of 2016. The previous fall I had your older brother Rahul in the same class. One day he came to my office and told me half-jokingly that his kid brother Vishal, who is in elementary school, wants to help him with his assignments for my class. You even visited the class one time, so he wasn’t joking. What convinced you that you could handle a college-level class at that age?

Vishal: At the time, whether I could handle the class or not was not on my mind. I saw it as a challenge and a fun experience. I had no idea what the class had in store, but I wanted to go beyond studying history on my own, and I thought HY 103 was perfect for just that. While I may have been naive about the class and its commitments at the time, I definitely made the right decision.

Dr. Gandila: One time, one of your classmates came to me after class and whispered “Who is that kid, and how come he knows so much about everything?” How did you feel in a room with students so much older than you?

Vishal: It was natural to me. I think in the present day I might even be more apprehensive about a situation of that sort than I was then. I just enjoyed the environment for what it was and the age difference between me and my classmates rarely crossed my mind, if ever. In-class discussions, the only thing I cared about was offering my perspective to my classmates regardless of who I was.

Dr. Gandila: What is the most important thing you learned from your college experience so far?

Vishal: Through academic writing and class discussion, I figured out how to communicate information beyond just a series of rote memorized facts. I learned how to offer opinions and insight and tie information together, not only in history but in general. That shift in mentality and experience has helped me immensely in bringing my knowledge further than my own mind. I found that teaching others involved shaping information with your own personal perspective and nuance.

Dr. Gandila: How do you see your future and will it include the study of history?

Vishal: I am likely going to be involved in the academic side of history for the rest of my life. I hope to study history at both the undergraduate and graduate levels and enter academia from that point. I’m considering entering historical podcasting or non-fiction historical writing as well. Even if my plan to become a full-time academic historian does not come to fruition, I will definitely be involved in the academic study of history regardless.

Dr. Gandila: Why is history important and why should people care about it?

Vishal: It is impossible to truly understand human society without knowing the context behind everything from the beginning of civilization. In order to think critically about today’s world, and think critically in general, the study of history is a very important tool. History offers cautionary tales and murky waters that real people saw and fought through which are extremely valuable and impossible to replicate in any other field. Even though pre-modern history doesn’t have a direct correlation with the present world, some things never change. The politics of the Late Roman Republic offer significant insight into political intrigue and demagoguery that still ring true today. The rise of Islamic empires in India created similar demographic shifts to the ones of the modern Near East.

Dr. Gandila: We live in a digital age and the focus is shifting from the human experience to technology, robotics, and automation. What is the future of history as a discipline and should students continue to major in history?

Vishal: A fully digitized and automated society requires a lens into the past, especially as societies shift exponentially through technological development and cultural change. In a world where technology morphs the cultural and political landscape to unrecognizable levels, keeping track of the past can only grow more challenging and more necessary. In predicting the future of a dynamic world through past political and cultural events, whether in the realm of diplomacy, policy, or economics, the historical record will be necessary. Understanding traditional military conflict, global diseases, and political failure will also be needed, even in a time where those events grow rare and foreign, as those crises can show up unexpectedly, especially in societies unequipped with the historical knowledge of preventative measures. Studying history should be more viable over time, especially as other careers simplify or become defunct through automation and technological progress, and history grows more necessary to the modern, erratic world. There should be greater demand for historical knowledge in the future, both modern and non-modern, when institutions and societies demand a broader and more comprehensive understanding of the ever-growing and convoluted human past.

For questions about our Department of History, please contact history@uah.edu  

The Department of Art, Art History & Design’s annual juried student exhibition showcases exciting work from students across the disciplines. The show includes studio artworks in Drawing, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, Sculpture as well as Graphic Design and Animation. Awards selected by Guest Juror Michael Dickins. Congratulations to all participants and award winners. The Exhibit will be on display in both the Wilson Hall and Salmon Library Galleries until May 6, 2022. 

2022 Student Awards List

Campus and Community Awards

Evans Best of Show Award - $1000 – Any Category – Ayuka Schichinohe – “Chef’s Pick”

President’s Award - $500 – Any Category – Ace Lemley – “Cremated Womanhood”

Provost’s Award - $500 – Any Category – Tiffany Hawkins – “Hunter”

Christine Curtis Student Excellence Award - $500 – Any Category – Victoria Scogins – “Untitled”

Dean’s Award for Painting - $250 Painting/Drawing Category – Tiffany Hawkins – “Fate of Rivers”

Jeffrey Bayer Memorial Scholarship Award -  $300 -Tiffany Hawkins

Mayor’s Purchasing Award – Mady Urbanski – “Tempo”

Women’s & Gender Studies Emerging Woman Artist Award - $100 –  Any Category (Female) – Courtlyn Hart – Aspects of One’s Self

Art Club Award (1^st Place)  - $125 –  Any Category – Cari Sheets – “Venus II”

Art Club Award (2^nd Place)- $75 – Any Category – Molly Brazier – “Untitled”

Huntsville Museum of Art Award – Eriel Gibson – “Unstrung Marrionette”

Animation Awards

Pinnacle Solutions Best in Digital Animation Award - $500 – Any Animation (Models and Shorts categories under Animation) – Tucker Youngblood – “11Second Club Animatic”

Media Fusion Digital Animation Excellence in Modeling Award 1^st Place -  $100 –  Animation/3D Models Category – Sophia Stephenson – “1994 Polly Pocket Magical Mansion”

Media Fusion Digital Animation Excellence in Modeling Award 2^nd Place - $50 –  Animation/Modeling Category – Dylan Coleman – “Pendragon’s House”

Media Fusion Digital Animation Excellence in Animation Award 1^st Place - $100 -Animation/Shorts Category – Vaughn Oeth – “Good Omens Animation”

Media Fusion Digital Animation Excellence in Animation Award 2^nd Place - $50 Animation/Shorts Category – koi Vargas-Fernandez – “Salsa Girl”

Digital Illustration Award  - $100 – Digital Illustration Category – Courtlyn Hart – “Gold Star Channel 11”

Photography Awards

Huntsville Photographic Society Photography Award - $100 Photography Category – Madison Dalton – “Seeing Double”

Nick Lavenant Peasant T-Shirt Shoppe Photography Award - $100 Photography Category – Jacob Chatfield – “Misery”

Southerland’s Photo Excellence in Photography Award – $50 Gift Card – Lolia Chiekh “Syria My Love”

Printmaking Awards

Michael Crouse Excellence in Printmaking Award - $100 Printmaking Category – Anna Beam – “Third Story”

Nick Lavenant Peasant T-Shirt Shoppe Printmaking Award - $100 Printmaking Category - Emma Gould – “Borderless”

Katie Baldwin Excellence in Printmaking Award - $50 –  Printmaking Category – Stevie Evans – “Claby”

Painting/Drawing/Mix Media Awards

Erzulie Johnson-Veasey Painting Award - $100 – Painting/Drawing Category – Cari Sheets – “Sketchbook -1”

Mixed Media Award - $100 Mixed Media Category – Alyssa Eady – “Devouring My Inner Sanction”

Graphic Design Awards

Advertising and Marketing Materials Award in Graphic Design- $100 – Graphic Design/Advertising and Marketing Category – Rinata Bauzhanova – “Music Magazine”

Advertising Illustration Award in Graphic Design Award- $50 – Graphic - Design/Advertising Illustration Category – Rebecca Brown – “Hidden Channel”

Sculpture Awards

Chris Taylor Excellence in Sculpture Award –  $150 Sculpture Category – Cindy Dahm – “Suitcase”

Gallery of Exhibition and Reception

Skyview Media

A University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) student has established himself at The Bridge on campus to run his new business.

Caleb Blair is the owner of Skyview Media, a company that specializes in professional aerial photography and videography using drones. Blair is currently targeting the real estate industry due to the extensive construction projects happening throughout Huntsville. He explained that the value of Skyview Media’s services for real estate is providing aerial photos and footage that shows a different view of new residences that is otherwise difficult to obtain. In addition to real estate, Blair is also focusing on working with people to complete personal projects. Anyone with photography or videography related ideas can contact Skyview Media to get high quality aerial images and videos. Blair believes the services offered by Skyview Media will be especially valuable for marketing strategies. Aerial media presents a unique perspective that catches people’s eyes, which is ideal for individuals and companies’ advertising efforts.

Currently, Blair’s short-term goals for his business are establishing a presence and making connections. He is focusing on finding and working with clients to promote his services, but in the future there are several avenues he wants to pursue. One of these avenues is aerial mapping which can provide 3D scans of buildings as well as measure the volume and area of buildings. Thermal imaging is another possibility, which can be used to scan solar fields to identify what panels absorb the most sunlight and may help build more efficient panels. Yet another area Blair would like to expand into is the agriculture industry; drones can map fields to see what areas plants may best thrive in.

Skyview Media started operating from The Bridge at UAH in January 2022. Speaking about how the space has helped his business, Blair said that The Bridge has allowed him to protect his business under Limited Liability Company (LLC), which is important because the use of drones can be legally complex. The Bridge has also let Blair establish a business address for Skyview Media, and sharing the Invention to Innovation Center (I²C) with other individuals who do business presents the opportunity for networking. “As I sit here for longer and get to meet more and more people that work in The Bridge and in the I²C itself, I wanna build those connections, and I think that’s where it will really help me,” Blair said.

The Bridge is the literal bridge that connects the UAH College of Business and the I²C building at UAH. Sponsored by the College of Business, The Bridge serves as an incubator for student-owned and run businesses. Students must submit applications with credentials of their company before being accepted into The Bridge program. Currently there are two companies at The Bridge. For inquiries about The Bridge program, contact Drew Yarbrough at dwh0012@uah.edu.

Emily Prestridge

A University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) student helped Huntsville residents file their taxes this spring through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program.

Sarah Prestridge worked in the VITA program from January to March taking on different responsibilities as she helped many submit their taxes. Prestridge did not simply file taxes, she counseled people so they could make the best choices while completing their taxes. She guided clients through the full tax filing process which included making sure they understood information about their returns, inputting their own information into the system, answering questions, and more. Additionally, Prestridge was an “advanced volunteer” which allowed her to oversee fellow volunteers; she answered questions they had and conducted quality reviews of their work to ensure the tax filing process was successful with each client.

The VITA program provided free tax filing aid to individuals earning less than $60,000 per year, and when asked about the demographics of the clients Prestridge served, she explained that they were immensely diverse. “I helped out people as young as 15 who had their first job and they were filing, and then I helped people as old as 87 … it was a lot of families, and a lot of young single people, a lot of retired people, it was a mix,” she said. Because of the diverse clients she attended, her workload also varied; she typically completed five tax returns and quality reviewed another five in a single day, but depending on who came in, sometimes she completed approximately ten tax returns in a day.

Prestridge discovered the VITA program through Mona Foroughi, the Career and Internship Advisor for the College of Business. Foroughi sent Prestridge information about interning for the program, she applied and was accepted. Prestridge also commented that at the time, she had recently taken a tax class, so she was interested in applying her new knowledge at a job. Speaking about the relevance of the internship, Prestridge mentioned “It was cool that it matched the curriculum.”

Another positive aspect of Prestridge’s work is that it helped many people in Huntsville, which made her efforts more meaningful. “I know taxes are really scary for a lot of people, and it’s lower income families just so that they had the personal time to come in and ask any questions. It was nice to see that it was in Huntsville … you’re actually helping people that you’re gonna see in your community and it’s making a difference … it’s very community-driven,” she explained.

Prestridge is studying accounting and hopes to graduate in the winter of 2022. She wants to work after graduating to see what sector in accounting she would like the most, but is considering pursuing a master’s degree after spending some time in the workforce. She commented, “If I get my master’s, I want to take at least a year off just to give myself a break and get some field experience to know which way I wanna go … see if I want to stay with taxes or go more into private or go into consulting. There’s a lot of options.”

Emergence

UAH BFA photography major Justin LaMar Ward's multimedia works explore identity and the ways that the pandemic brought isolation and subsequent introspection. Ward's narrative exhibition is a journey through reckoning, confrontation, disintegration, and eventually - growth.

His combination of photographs and digital imagery, light, and projection invites the viewer to empathize with the experience of loss, grief, and betrayal and to witness the artist’s development of a sense of balance amidst the shifting winds of the pandemic, and ultimately a discovery of interior freedom and an openness to trust and faith.

For those unable to attend the show in person, here are a few pieces from his exhibit. Photo Credit: Maleah Taylor ('22 BFA Graphic Design)