Photos courtesy of UAB Archives
The University of Alabama at Birmingham’s College of Arts and Sciences has selected five presentations for the 2024-2025 Theodore Haddin Arts and Sciences Forum Series (also known as “Haddin Forums”).
Haddin Forums—named in honor of Associate Professor Emeritus of English Theodore Haddin, Ph.D.—are interdisciplinary forums where College of Arts and Sciences faculty present their ongoing research and scholarship to an audience of faculty, staff, and student colleagues from across the College. The goal is to offer scholarship that is interdisciplinary and translatable to a broad audience, celebrating and elevating the intellectual vibrancy present in the academic atmosphere of a College of Arts and Sciences.
As the College prepares for this year’s forum series, we would like to take a moment to celebrate Dr. Haddin’s life and legacy. Sadly, on September 1, Dr. Haddin passed away at UAB Highlands Hospital.
Dr. Haddin began his career in UAB’s Department of English in 1973. He was passionate about writing and music—among many other interests—and, throughout his career, he published three books of poetry: By a Doorway, The River and the Road, and The Pendulum Moves Off.
Dr. Haddin retired from UAB in August 1995, and he was named Associate Professor Emeritus in 1996. His colleagues remember him as a thoughtful and generous person.
“While immersed in the humanities, especially his beloved poetry and music, Ted’s intellectual curiosity spanned the whole spectrum of the arts and sciences,” said Mike Sloane, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Psychology. “His keen intellect invariably resulted in penetrating questions for speakers in the Haddin Forum or the University Honors Program’s public lectures, which he loved attending. Ted was a wonderful and generous member of the greater Birmingham community, and I will always treasure hearing his wonderful and erudite presentation on ‘Philanthropy: The Joy of Giving’ in our Fall 2021 interdisciplinary course on ‘Happiness.’”
“Ted was a wonderfully kind colleague who not only loved English but also ideas. He baked bread for the Humanities Forum, now aptly named for him,” said Greg Pence, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Philosophy.
A Celebration of Life Memorial Ceremony is scheduled for Dr. Haddin on Monday, September 16, at 2:00 p.m. at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Vestavia Hills, AL.
In lieu of flowers, the family respectfully requests any memorial gifts be made to the Bruce P. Wheatley Scholarship in Anthropology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Gifts can be mailed to UAB Gift Records, AB 1230, 1720 2nd Avenue South, Birmingham, AL, 35294-0112 or online at https://go.uab.edu/brucewheatley.
Below is the schedule for the Haddin Forum series. All fall forums are confirmed to take place in Heritage Hall 526, whereas the venue for the spring forums is still being finalized. Additional information about these events and the speakers will be available on the Campus Calendar (and in the CAS Faculty and Staff Newsletter) in the coming days.
All presentations take place on Fridays from 1:25 – 2:15 p.m.
October 4, 2024
"Detection of Recreational and Therapeutic Drugs in Wastewater"
Ellen Mwenesongole, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, J. Frank Barefield, Jr. Department of Criminal Justice
November 8, 2024
"What Concepts of Fitness in the Evolutionary Biology Literature Show Us about the Role of Chance in Evolution"
Marshall Abrams, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Philosophy
January 24, 2025
"Is Affirmative Action Racial Discrimination?"
Keshav Singh, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy
February 28, 2025
"Synchrony of the Reading Brain"
Rajesh Kana, Ph.D.
Associate Dean for Graduate and Continuing Education
Professor, Department of Psychology
March 21, 2025
"EmAI: Testing Artificial Intelligence Use for Inclusive Qualitative Research"
Tina Kempin Reuter, Ph.D.
Director, Institute of Human Rights Professor, Departments of Anthropology and Political Science and Public Administration
Amber Wagner, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science
Shanshan Lian, Ph.D.
Post-doc, Institute of Human Rights
Jason Lian
Researcher, Institute of Human Rights
