Students News
- Posted 09.03.26
- 2 minute read time
For Autumn Blalock of Abbeville, Alabama, earning the University of West Alabama鈥檚 Distinguished Dissertation Award for the Spring 2026 commencement cycle was an honor that was deeply personal to her.
- Posted 08.24.26
- 1 minute read time
At summer commencement exercises held in August, Isabellah 鈥淏ellah鈥� Machen of Morris, Alabama, received the University of West Alabama鈥檚 top graduating student award.
- Posted 08.17.26
- 5 minute read time
Lane Westrope鈥檚 search for a career that would build on his agricultural background led him to the University of West Alabama, where he became the first student to earn a bachelor of business administration with an emphasis in agri-business during the Aug. 14 summer commencement exercises.
- Posted 08.13.26
- 5 minute read time
Most college students wait until after graduation to launch their careers. But not Cailin Burroughs. The Tuscaloosa native began her new job as a full-time staff accountant at JamisonMoneyFarmer PC, May 1, before earning her degree from the University of West Alabama on Aug. 14.
- Posted 08.05.26
- 4 minute read time
After years of advocating for children in Alabama鈥檚 foster care system, Shameeka Upshaw now helps students with disabilities and their teachers be successful.
- Posted 07.23.26
- 6 minute read time
Participants in the University of West Alabama鈥檚 Black Belt Teacher Corps Teach for Alabama program (BBTC) are learning innovative ways to use AI as a classroom support tool that enhances instruction rather than replaces teaching.
- Posted 07.01.26
- 6 minute read time
When the University of West Alabama launched its master鈥檚 degree in dyslexia therapy in fall 2024, Rachel Walters saw an opportunity to gain the specialized training she wished had been available when her brother struggled with dyslexia as a child.
- Posted 05.13.26
- 4 minute read time
Aileen Charles tends to choose the unconventional route. That mindset has taken the recent University of West Alabama finance graduate from kicking footballs at Northridge High School in Tuscaloosa to collegiate soccer and, most recently, preparing to hike the 2,600-mile Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) this summer.
- Posted 05.12.26
- 4 minute read time
Pursuing an associate degree in nursing at the University of West Alabama, Tanesha Slocum balanced service in the Army Reserve鈥檚 828th Battalion in Livingston with full-time college鈥攁ll while raising three children, welcoming a new baby and building a new marriage. On May 8, she added another title to her list: college graduate.