UNA News Releases

UNA Music Faculty Wins International Award

Jun. 03, 2026

Dr. Martin Hebel, music composition and theory faculty member at the University of North Alabama, has won Second Prize in the Alexander Zemlinsky Prize for Chamber Music Composition for his piano trio Ashfall.

UNA Teacher Candidates Achieve 100 Percent First-Time Pass Rate on edTPA

Jun. 02, 2026

Teacher candidates in the University of North Alabama’s Spencer College of Education and Human Sciences achieved a 100 percent first-time pass rate on the Education Teacher Performance Assessment, or edTPA, for the 2025-2026 academic year. All 152 candidates in the College exceeded the Alabama State Department of Education’s required score on their first attempt, demonstrating their readiness to enter the classroom and serve students across a range of teaching fields.

UNA Student Marks 16th to be Selected for Prestigious Fulbright Program

May. 20, 2026

Jadra Gann, a Secondary Education major at the University of North Alabama from Hamilton, has been named a U.S. Student Fulbright recipient from the U.S. Department of State and the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. Gann is the 16th student recipient at UNA since 2017.

UNA’s ACONHP Hosts Signing Day for Nursing Apprentices

May. 19, 2026

Students in the Accelerated Nursing Program who have been interviewed and selected by sponsoring hospitals have signed their Apprenticeship Agreements. These individuals represent the second cohort in the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions at the University of North Alabama to take this exciting next step in their healthcare careers.

UNA Professor Receives Louisville Institute Grant

May. 15, 2026

Dr. Ansley Quiros, a Professor in the Department of History at the University of North Alabama, has received a grant from the Louisville Institute through its Grants for Researchers program for the 2026-2027 academic year. Dr. Quiros, a historian of race and religion in the modern United States, received $55,000 for her work on her second monograph, Committed: Charles and Shirley Sherrod as a Model for Civil Rights Activism.

Featured News Items

Fall 2025 Nursing Cohort Sees First-Ever 100 Percent Pass Rate on Licensure Exam

Every student in the Fall 2025 cohort from the Anderson College of Nursing and Health Professions Bachelor of Science in Nursing program has completed their rigorous national licensure examination with an unprecedented 100 percent first-time pass rate.

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Spencer Family Names UNA’s College of Education and Human Sciences

Through a generous gift to the University of North Alabama, James “Jim” Spencer and his wife, Sherry, have established an endowment for UNA’s College of Education and Human Sciences to name the College the Colonel (Ret.) James and Sherry Spencer College of Education and Human Sciences.

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• North Alabama in the News

• University of North Alabama teacher candidates see perfect pass rate on certification assessment
  Jun. 02, 2026 - FOX 54
• Alabama universities work to address nursing shortage
  May. 20, 2026 - WAFF 48
• ‘More than just 120 credit hours and a graduation’; How UNA became one of Alabama’s fastest-growing universities
  May. 18, 2026 - 256 Today
• Kilby robotics team wins Energy Award at world championship
  May. 13, 2026 - FOX 54
• UNA nursing cohort achieves 100% passage
  May. 13, 2026 - Franklin County Times
• Global art exhibition to open at UNA Gallery
  May. 11, 2026 - TimesDaily
• UNA nursing cohort achieves 100% passage
  May. 08, 2026 - TimesDaily
• UNA nursing program records first-ever 100% NCLEX pass rate
  May. 08, 2026 - 256 Today
• UNA hosting Sport Leadership Summit for coaches, athletic leaders
  May. 07, 2026 - 256 Today
• UNA grad earns second Fulbright, heads to Austria
  May. 07, 2026 - TimesDaily

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It is the University of North Alabama’s position and practice to have a constructive relationship with media and provide accurate information. Please direct all media inquiries to the Director of Media and Public Relations, media@una.edu, 256.765.4392.

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