January 6, 2020: Dr. Barry P. Sleckman of the Weill Cornell Medicine assumed duties as new director of the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center. Dr. Sleckman had been selected the previous October.
January 13, 2020: Proton International at UAB, the state’s first proton therapy center, was opened with a ribbon cutting ceremony. The three-story facility is located on 20th Street South.
January 2020: The UAB Health System entered into a management relationship with Russell Medical Center in Alexander City, Alabama.
February 10, 2020: Jeffrey D. Graveline, a long-time member of the library faculty, became interim dean of UAB Libraries.
February 11, 2020: Dr. Gregg H. Gilbert presented the fifty-sixth Distinguished Faculty Lecture.
February 2020: UAB announced that its public radio affiliate WBHM-FM Radio was partnering with three other stations, Mississippi Public Radio (Jackson), WNNO (New Orleans), and WPFK (Baton Rouge), to establish the collaborative Gulf States Newsroom. Headquartered at WBHM 90.3 on the UAB campus, the Gulf States Newsroom is sponsored by National Public Radio and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
March 12, 2020: Due to the effects of the growing global pandemic of coronavirus (COVID-19), the University of Alabama System announced that classes on all three system campuses, UA, UAH, and UAB, would transition completely to an online or alternative instruction model for the remainder of March. UAB’s Spring Break – which was due to begin on March 16 – was extended until March 24 and students were instructed to not return to campus until further notice. All non-essential university events and activities, including all Blazer athletic competition, and all non-essential university-related travel were also cancelled for the time being.
March 15, 2020: Due to the growing global pandemic of COVID-19, UAB announced a Limited Business Model for all campus operations except for essential services through the end of the month of March.
March 20, 2020: UAB alumnus Andy Kennedy became the seventh head coach of the men's basketball team. Kennedy, a former Blazer star player and former assistant coach at UAB, had previously served as head coach at the University of Mississippi.
March 26, 2020: UAB announced the indefinite extension to its Limited Business Model due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
April 1, 2020: Kasia J. Gonnerman, previously of Vanderbilt University, became the second dean of UAB Libraries.
April 2020: With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, UAB opened a COVID Respiratory Clinic for patients who had tested positive for coronavirus but who had not been admitted to a clinical facility and who had remained at home. The clinic was operated by the Division of Infectious Diseases and the Department of Family and Community Medicine. It was housed in the former Regions Bank branch location, located on the street level of the parking deck of The Kirklin Clinic.
May 1-2, 2020: Due to the university's Limited Business Model implemented because of the COVID-19 pandemic, UAB provided virtual only commencement ceremonies for graduating students. Graduate degrees were awarded during an online-only ceremony on Friday the first, undergraduate degrees were awarded during an online-only ceremony on Saturday the second.
May 2020: Upon the retirement of Brian D. Shoop, Perry Roth became the interim head coach of the Men's Baseball team.
June 26, 2020: Terri Del Conte became the new head coach of Women's Beach Volleyball.
June 29, 2020: Governor Kay Ivey announced programs to provide COVID-19 testing and symptom monitoring for the state's public higher education institutions. The programs were developed by and are being led by UAB and the Alabama Department of Public Health and are being supported by funding obtained through the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act). The Testing for Alabama initiative will provide testing for every college student attending a public four-year or two-year college prior to the student's reentry to campus.
July 1, 2020: The University of Alabama Board of Trustees approved the creation of the UAB Health System Authority. Dr. William Ferniany became the first Chief Executive Officer of the new authority. He was also named as the CEO of the new UAB Health System/Ascension St. Vincent's alliance.
July 2, 2020: Betsy Freeburg became the head coach of Women's Volleyball.
July 2020: Dr. Jeffrey W. Holmes became the seventh dean of the School of Engineering. Dr. Holmes came to UAB from the University of Virginia.
July 2020: Joe Guthrie became the fourth head coach of Softball. He had previously served as an assistant/associate coach for the team.
July 2020: Reid F. Jones became the new Chief Executive Officer of UAB Medicine. Jones, a long-time UAB employee and UAB alumnus, retained his position as COO of UAB Hospital.
August 1, 2020: Dr. Kecia M. Thomas became the third dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. Dr. Thomas came to UAB from the University of Georgia.
August 2, 2020: Returning from the International Space Station (ISS), the SpaceX Dragon capsule carried two UAB freezers on its return to earth. The Glacier freezer unit had been aboard the ISS since April 2014 and the Polar freezer unit had been aboard the station since July 2019. The Polar unit had been designed by the UAB Engineering and Innovative Technology Development team.
September 3, 2020: UAB Blazers defeated the Central Arkansas Bears 45-35 before a crowd of 12,000 at Legion Field. This was the first FBS game held in the country during an unusual COVID-19-affected 2020 football season.
September 17, 2020: Michael Brock was elected to the University of Alabama Board of Trustees. W. Stancil Starnes was elected president pro tempore of The University of Alabama Board of Trustees.
September 2020: For the fifth consecutive year, UAB set an enrollment record with a total of 22,563 students, an increase of 2.19 percent from the previous year. The number of graduate students increased by 6 percent to 7,512 students.
October 1, 2020: Dr. Michelle A. Robinson of the School of Dentistry became interim dean of the School of Education. Dr. Robinson had previously served as interim dean of dentistry from May 2018 until June 2019. She was the first faculty member to have served as an interim dean of two academic schools at UAB.
December 2020: UAB adopted the Okanagan Charter, becoming the first higher education institution in the US to adopt the charter and become a member of the Health Promoting Campuses Network.
December 2020: William Dahlberg became interim General Manager of WBHM-FM Radio.
2020: During the fall, UAB students in the Science and Technology Honors Program, in conjunction with the UAB Sustainability office, created a monarch butterfly waystation at the corner of 10th Avenue South and 14th Street adjacent to the university's new Honors Hall. It is only the second certified monarch butterfly habitat within the city of Birmingham.
February 5, 2021: The University of Alabama Board of Trustees approved the closure of seventeen research centers and institutes at UAB.
February 9, 2021: Forbes named UAB as the best large employer in the nation. The university was at the top of a list of more than 500 public and private corporations, universities, and companies.
April 2021: Two small beehives complete with two queen bees and some 40,000 worker bees were installed in the UAB Gardens to increase pollination in the campus and Southside area. The bee waystation is located in a fenced area across from the UAB Solar House.
April 30, 2021: Dr. Robert M. Centor presented the fifty-seventh Distinguished Faculty Lecture, “The Importance of Clinician Educators.” Because of the global COVID-19 pandemic, the lecture was presented virtually in an online platform.
April 30/May 1, 2021: Because of the continuing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, UAB held outdoor commencement ceremonies at Birmingham’s Legion Field, the first time at that venue and the first outdoor ceremony in UAB history. Graduate students attended a ceremony on April 30 and undergraduate students attended a ceremony on May 1. UAB students who had graduated during virtual-only ceremonies in 2020 were invited to participate.
May 14, 2021: Kari Bellville became the head coach of the Women's Golf team.
May 2021: UAB and the Birmingham Organizing Committee for the 2022 World Games announced that UAB would provide some of the housing needed by athletes, coaches, and officials and the university would host several competitions at UAB venues during the World Games, to be held in Birmingham July 7-17, 2022. Lacrosse would be held on the PNC Field, Tug of War at the track facility, and racquetball and squash in the University Recreation Center. UAB Medicine would be the official sponsor for medical services during the World Games.
June 3, 2021: Justin DeSanto became the head coach of Men's Tennis.
June 2021: For the fourth time, UAB Medicine received the LGBTQ Healthcare Equality Leader designation for 2020 from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.
June 2021: Casey Dunn was named as the fifth head coach of the Men's Baseball team. Dunn had previously served as head coach at Samford University.
July 6, 2021: Ann Alquist became executive director and the fifth General Manager of WBHM-FM Radio. Alquist came to UAB from Rhode Island Public Radio.
July 14, 2021: Matt P. Whall became the eighth head coach of the Men's Golf team.
September 17, 2021: Kenneth O. Simon was elected to the University of Alabama Board of Trustees.
September 28, 2021: The University of Alabama Board of Trustees approved the renaming of the medical school as the UAB Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine following a gift of $95 million by Dr. Heersink and his wife, Mary. Dr. Heersink, of Dothan, Alabama, is a renowned eye surgeon, innovator, and entrepreneur. The Heersink gift, which is the largest single gift in the history of UAB, will also create the university's Marnix E. Heersink Institute of Biomedical Innovation and the Mary Heersink Institute for Global Health.
September 2021: For the fiscal year of 2021, UAB received more than $848 million in extramural research grants and awards, a one-year increase of 33 percent. UAB ranked in the top three percent of all universities in the US and each of the six health science schools ranked in the top 10 in National Institutes of Health funding awarded to public universities.
September 2021: UAB reported a fall enrollment of 22,000 students and a record first-time student class of 2,415 freshmen. Total enrollment was down approximately 2.4 percent, but freshmen enrollment increased 12 percent. The UAB student body was 42 percent minority.
October 2, 2021: UAB hosted Liberty University in the inaugural game held in the new Protective Stadium in the Uptown Neighborhood in downtown Birmingham. The Blazers fell to the Liberty Flames 36-12 before an announced attendance of 37,167.
November 1, 2021: Dr. Lisa Schwiebert from the Department of Cell, Developmental and Integrative Biology, became the interim dean of the UAB Graduate School.
November 5, 2021: The University of Alabama Board of Trustees approved the renaming of UAB's on-campus soccer field as PNC Field.
November 18, 2021: A virtual open house was held for UAB's new Mary Heersink Institute for Global Health.
January 1, 2022: Dr. Selwyn M. Vickers became the fifth CEO of the UAB Health System, he retained his positions as dean of the Heersink School of Medicine and as Senior Vice President for Medicine.
January 2022: Upon the retirement of Doreen C. Harper, Dr. Linda Moneyham became the interim dean of the School of Nursing.
January 2022: The UAB Health System entered into a management relationship with Northwest Regional Health in Winfield, Alabama.
March 8, 2022: The University of Alabama System Board of Trustees approved the sale of the engineering division of the UAB-affiliated Southern Research Institute (SRI) to Kratos, a national aerospace company headquartered in Delaware. Dr. Joshua Carpenter, president of SRI, explained to the board that the sale would allow SRI to "narrow our focus to life sciences, an abiding strength of UAB."
March 29, 2022: Dr. Smita Bhatia presented the fifty-eighth Distinguished Faculty Lecture, "The Art of Surviving and Thriving."
March 30, 2022: The inaugural Rickwood College Classic was held at Birmingham's historic Rickwood Field, the oldest surviving ballpark in the US. The UAB Blazers defeated Birmingham-Southern 10-4.
April 8, 2022: The University of Alabama Board of Trustees approved the closure of ten research centers and institutes at UAB.
May 3, 2022: Dr. Casey Weaver, a professor of pathology, was elected to membership in the National Academy of Sciences, the third UAB faculty member to be so honored.
June 1, 2022: Dr. Maria Rodriquez Shirey became the fifth dean of the School of Nursing.
June 1, 2022: Dr. Shadi S. Martin became dean of the UAB Graduate School and vice provost for graduate and international education.
July 1, 2022: A.J. Daugherty was named as the fifth head coach of Softball.
August 1, 2022: Dr. Daryl Green became the sixth Chief of Police. He was recruited to UAB from the city force of Lansing, Michigan.
August 1, 2022: Upon the retirement of Bill Clark, Offensive Coordinator Bryant Vincent became the interim head coach of the Blazer football team. Vincent had served as Clark's assistant head coach.
August 23, 2022: Jesse Lawley became the head coach of the Women's Golf team. She had been a student athlete on the Blazer team.
September 16, 2022: Jeff Gronberg was elected to the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees.
September 2022: William Dahlberg became the executive director and General Manager of WBHM-FM Radio after having served in an interim capacity. Dahlberg had formerly served as the station's membership manager and deputy director.
September 2022: Fall enrollment totaled 21,639 students, a decrease of 2.92 percent from the prior year. UAB had enrollment decreases for undergraduate and master's students, but had an increase of 4.15 percent for doctoral students.
September 2022: Dr. Anupam Agarwal became, for the second time, acting dean of the Heersink School of Medicine and acting vice president for Medicine.
September 2022: UAB announced the receipt of a $10 million gift by alumnus J. Frank Barefield, Jr., the largest single donation by an alumnus in university history. The funds were split between the Collat School of Business and the Department of Criminal Justice. In recognition of the gift, The University of Alabama System Board of Trustees renamed the department as the Barefield Department of Criminal Justice, the first named academic department at UAB.
October 2022: Three UAB faculty members were named to the National Academy of Medicine, Drs. Marie-Carmelle Elie (Emergency Medicine), James M. Markert (Neurosurgery), and Alan T. N. Tita (OB/GYN).
December 2, 2022: Trent Dilfer became the sixth head coach of the Blazer football team. The former NFL quarterback and Super Bowl Champion (2000) had been named as the new coach two days beforehand.
2022: Donna Williamson became the seventh chair of the UAB Commission on the Status of Women.
January 18, 2023: Lisa Mann became the fourth head coach of Women's Soccer.
January 2023: Dr. Scott Snyder, a member of the faculty and the school's associate dean for Research, became the interim dean of the School of Education.
February 3, 2023: After having served in an interim capacity, Dr. Anupam Agarwal became Senior Vice President for Medicine and dean of the Heersink School of Medicine.
February 3, 2023: After having served in an interim capacity, Dawn Bulgarella became the sixth CEO of the UAB Health System. She was the first female selected to oversee the health system.
February 2023: UAB's economic impact on the Alabama economy was reported at $12.1 billion annually with an impact in the Birmingham area of $8.3 billion. With nearly 28,000 employees, UAB remains as Alabama's largest single employer and it supports or sustains over 75,500 jobs in the Birmingham metropolitan region and one of every 20 jobs in the state of Alabama. In addition, UAB affiliated Southern Research generated an additional economic impact of $221.8 million in the state.
April 3, 2023: Dr. Teresa Taber Doughty became the seventh dean of the School of Education.
April 12, 2023: Dr. Casey Weaver presented the fifty-ninth Distinguished Faculty Lecture, "Coming Full Circle."
May 5-6, 2023: UAB, the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, and Rotary International hosted the 2023 International Peace Conference in Birmingham. Dr. Tina Kempin Reuter, director of the UAB Institute for Human Rights, was one of the conference organizers and hosts.
May 2023: The first patient to receive a uterus transplant at UAB gave birth to a baby boy, the first baby born out of the program of the UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute and UAB Medicine. Drs. Brian Brocato, Deidre Downs Gunn, and Paige Porrett headed the team of physicians and staff.
July 1, 2023: Dr. Nicolaas Geurs became interim dean of the School of Dentistry.
July 1, 2023: UAB became a full member of the American Athletic Conference. The American is headquartered in Irving, Texas.
July 1, 2023: Dr. Christopher L. Shook became the seventh dean of the Collat School of Business.
July 31, 2023: A groundbreaking ceremony was held for Frances and Miller Gorrie Hall, the second phase of the Science and Engineering Complex. Gorrie Hall is planned as the new home for the School of Engineering.
July 2023: Art patrons and UAB benefactors Lydia Cheney and Jim Sokol funded the first non-faculty endowed position at UAB, the Lydia Cheney and Jim Sokol Endowed Directorship of AEIVA. Incumbent John Fields became the first holder of the endowed directorship.
August 2, 2023: Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, the director of the UAB Division of Infectious Diseases since 2016, was announced as the new director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), one of the distinct components of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
August 17, 2023: Delaney Clesen announced as the fifth head coach of Women's Beach Volleyball.
August 17, 2023: A ribbon cutting ceremony served as the official opening of the East and South Science Halls, the first phase of the Science and Engineering Complex.
August 25, 2023: Travis Pope became the head coach of Cross Country and assistant coach of Track and Field.
August 26, 2023: Grammy Award-winner T-Pain headlined a Welcome Back Concert on the Campus Green as part of Blazer Welcome, a four-week celebration for the new academic year. Rapper Nando STL was the concert’s opening act.
August 30, 2023: Ezequiel Gils became the head coach of Men's Tennis.
September 1, 2023: Scott M. Phelps was elected president pro tempore of the University of Alabama Board of Trustees.
September 18, 2023: Lou Baverso became the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the UAB Health System following the retirement of Reid F. Jones. Baverso, who was recruited to UAB from the University of Pittsburgh, assumed responsibilities for the management of UAB Hospital, ambulatory services (the clinical component of UAB Medicine), the UAB Callahan Eye Hospital, and several related support services.
September 2023: UAB was recognized as one of the 2023 Great Colleges to Work For by Modern Think, a human capital consulting firm.
September 2023: Fall enrollment totaled 21,160 students. The UAB student population was 63.1 percent female and 36.3 percent male.
November 3, 2023: J. Steven Roy was elected to the University of Alabama Board of Trustees.
November 2023: UAB announced a record-breaking $774.5 million in extramural research grants and awards for fiscal year 2023, an 8.2 percent increase from the previous year. The amount is an increase of 73 percent over a nine-year period. UAB remains in the top one percent of all institutions receiving funding from the National Institutes of Health, with over $413 million received for the year.
December 22, 2023: Dr. Michelle A. Robinson became the interim provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs following the retirement of Dr. Pam Benoit.
2023: The Dora and Sanjay Singh Cultural Arts Fund was established at UAB to support global programming and educational outreach by UAB Arts Alliance. It was named in honor of major UAB benefactors.
February 1, 2024: Dr. Janet Woodruff-Borden became provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs. Dr. Woodruff-Borden was recruited to UAB from the University of Oregon.
February 2, 2024: The University of Alabama System Board of Trustees approved the change in name of the School of Education to the School of Education and Human Sciences. Dr. Teresa Taber Doughty remained as dean of the newly renamed UAB school. The renaming was announced publicly in May.
March 17, 2024: In their inaugural season as conference members, the Men's Blazer Basketball team defeated the Temple Owls 85-69 to win the American Athletic Conference championship tournament. The conference's 10th anniversary tournament was held in Fort Worth, Texas. The Blazers had a season record of 23-11 and earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament as champions of the American Conference.
April 1, 2024: General Counsel Sid J. Trant became the interim chancellor of the three-campus University of Alabama System.
April 30, 2024: A ribbon-cutting ceremony officially opened the UAB Early Learning Center, an $11 million on-campus facility for use by UAB employees and students. The Center can house 228 children and 46 infants and includes an exterior playground. The UAB Early Learning Center is located on 10th Avenue South.
May 1, 2024: Dr. Cheri L. Canon became the tenth president of the University of Alabama Health Services foundation and the chief physician executive for the UAB Health System. She was the first female to hold those positions.
June 1, 2024: After serving as interim dean for the past year, Dr. Nicolaas Geurs became the tenth dean of the School of Dentistry.
June 7, 2024: The University of Alabama System Board of Trustees approved three new research centers for the UAB Heersink School of Medicine, the Center for Lung Analytics and Imaging Research (CLAIR), the Center for Integrative Structural Biology, and the Center for Neuroengineering and Brain-Computer Interfaces.
June 7, 2024: Charlie Hoyle became the ninth head coach of the Men's Golf team.
June 25, 2024: UAB announced it would be acquiring the Ascension St. Vincent's Health System after unanimous approval by the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees. UAB will obtain all Ascension St. Vincent facilities in Birmingham as well as those in Jefferson, Blount, Chilton, and St. Clair counties, including the Trussville Freestanding Emergency Department and the One Nineteen Campus. Some 5,000 employees and clinicians will transition to UAB upon completion of the sale, planned for fall 2024, and all the facilities will be rebranded as UAB St. Vincent's.
June 28, 2024: A groundbreaking ceremony was held for the new Biomedical Research and Psychology Building, a planned eight-story, $190 million project to be built along University Boulevard between the Hill Student Center and Volker Hall.
July 5-10, 2024: UAB Medicine served as the official medical partner for the Transplant Games of America which was hosted in Birmingham.
July 11, 2024: A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held for the new UAB Medical West hospital, located off Interstate 459 in the Bessemer-McCalla area. The nine-story facility has 200 beds, 12 operating rooms, and is adjacent to a seven-story medical office building. UAB Medical West opened for patients on August 3rd. Keith Pennington is the CEO of the hospital..
July 2024: Dr. Paulette Patterson Dilworth was appointed first vice president for Access and Engagement.
August 7, 2024: Taylor Smartt was named as the sixth head coach of Softball.
September 2024: Fall enrollment totaled 20,905 students. Doctoral and master level student enrollment increased, but the undergraduate enrollment decreased from 2023.
Chronology maintained by Tim L. Pennycuff and last updated 18 September 2024