Southern 2020

MADE IN AMERICA 

ROWDY AT 40 

GINKGO LEGACY 

’SOUTHERN 

A Publication for Alumni and Friends Fall/Winter 2020 | Volume 45, Number 1 

BSC 

Birmingham-Southern College

sc snapshots 

STUDENT MUSIC FEST 

BSC students spent a Saturday afternoon in October listening to 

musical performances by fellow students during the 2020 Student 

Music Fest at Hill Amphitheatre. The event was sponsored by the 

Quest II Programming Board.

Letter from the President 

’SOUTHERN MAGAZINE 

VOLUME 45, NUMBER 1 

CONTENTS 

In a place dedicated to education, we have 

certainly learned a lot more than expected in 2020 

– a year of humility and confidence. 

Lesson #1: There is no crystal ball. While it is 

difficult to predict the future, it is really difficult to 

predict the future in the middle of a pandemic. On 

Thursday, March 12, we announced a plan to hold 

classes on campus for one more week, have two 

weeks of spring break, and then return to classes 

– online rather than in person. This plan gave 

students about 10 days to say goodbye to friends, 

pack up, and take care of things before cutting short 

their on-campus experience. 

Lesson #2: Plan for Plan B. On Friday, March 

13, the Alabama Department of Public Health 

announced the state’s first confirmed case of 

COVID-19. On Sunday, March 15, we completely 

changed our plans. We had to accelerate our 

departure from campus. 

Over the next 48 hours, we moved students off campus, denying seniors real closure to the end of their 

college experience. While we could not have changed this, we felt terrible about the abrupt end to face-toface 

instruction. From that point on, we have been determined to stay ahead of this virus, and to avoid any 

abrupt shifts that would further disrupt the lives of our students, faculty, staff, and their families. 

Lesson #3: Old dogs can learn new tricks. Once the campus was largely empty, all efforts turned to 

teaching, which would begin again in less than two weeks. For many of us who had not taught online 

(including me), we had to learn quickly. For a faculty whose mission is to teach to students in a 

personalized way, talking into a camera with no one else in the room was a strange experience. It lacked 

the student feedback that energizes us. Turning my course – Financial Markets and Institutions (Business 

375) – into online lectures was a humbling experience. Due to self-inflicted technical problems, my first 

recorded lecture took three tries. I am in awe of our faculty, many of whom had not taught online before. 

They all managed to prepare a half-term of three classes each over just 10 days. 

Lesson #4: We are nimble. This campus is more agile than I realized. This knowledge gave me confidence 

that we could create and follow protocols to minimize the risk of the spread of this virus, and return for 

in-person classes in August. 

We began by talking to experts around the country, as well as local health authorities. On June 30, we 

announced our “Return to the Hilltop” plan for fall term. Over the rest of the summer, we filled in the 

details, identified numerous obstacles, and completed the working plan before students returned. Learn 

more about how we achieved a successful fall term on campus in our cover story beginning on pg. 16. 

Looking ahead to E-Term and spring term, I wonder what obstacles we will face. I worry about mistakes 

we will make or moments when we don’t have the right answer. And then I think about the last nine 

months, when we made a lot of mistakes but then adapted. In fact, we have stayed ahead of this virus, 

providing the resources and care to keep students on campus, safe, and engaged. 

So we are looking forward, not just to spring term but beyond. We will continue to communicate 

frequently about our thoughts and actions as we guide the College through the pandemic. There will be 

more bumps in the road; this pandemic will humble us again and force us to adjust. And yet, from the 

experience of the past nine months, I am confident that we will successfully adapt to almost anything 

COVID-19 brings our way. 

Daniel B. Coleman 

President 

2 / ’southern 

Daniel B. Coleman, President 

DeLynn M. Zell ’86, Chair, 

Board of Trustees 

’Southern magazine is published 

by the Office of Communications 

at Birmingham-Southern College, 

Birmingham, Alabama 35254. 

Non-profit postage paid at B’ham., 

AL Permit No. 2575. 

©2020 Birmingham-Southern 

College 

Editorial Offices 

10 Stockham Building 

900 Arkadelphia Road 

Box 549004 

Birmingham, AL 35254 

Phone: (205) 226-4922 

E-mail: [email protected] 

Virginia Gilbert Loftin 

Vice President for Advancement 

and Communications 

Executive Editor 

Amy Bickers Abeyta 

Director of Communications 

Art Directors 

Traci Edwards 

Assistant Director of 

Visual Content 

Patrick Bradford 

Assistant Director of 

Visual Content 

Contributing Writers 

Glenny Brock ‘99 

Jennifer Jones 

Assistant Athletics Director 

Virginia Gilbert Loftin 

Vice President for Advancement 

and Communications 

Elizabeth Sturgeon 

Communications Coordinator 

Photography 

Cameron Carnes 

Photographer and Videographer 

Office of Alumni Engagement 

Jennifer Waters ’86 

Director of Alumni Engagement 

Hope Tucker Lyle ’20 

Alumni Coordinator 

www.bsc.edu 

DEPARTMENTS 

2 

Letter from the President 

4 

Campus Life 

10 

Office Hours 

11 

Off Hours 

12 

Panther Pride 

14 

The Next Chapter 

15 

A Day in the Life 

42 

Giving to BSC 

48 

Lifelong Learning 

FEATURES 

16 

The COVID Issue 

Alumni, faculty, staff, and students 

keep the BSC experience alive and 

well during the pandemic. 

22 

Made in America 

A student-written production 

focuses on the prompt, “Today my 

world is ...” as students reflect on 

their lives in 2020. 

24 

Ginkgo Legacy 

The iconic campus ginkgo trees 

have “family members” around the 

city and beyond. 

34 

The 

COVID Issue 

‘SOUTHERN MAGAZINE // VOLUME 45, NUMBER 1 

22 

26 

Alumni Features 

BSC highlights graduates Renee Harmon 

‘83, Greg King ‘96, Kenton Myers ‘11, 

and Bill Smith ‘96; plus, a tribute to 

Ibrahim “Abe” Salem Fawal ’54 

32 

BSC Virtual Book Clubs 

Alumni, faculty, staff, and community 

members connect online for BSC’s firstever 

Virtual Book Clubs. 

34 

Rowdy at 40 

Celebrate our favorite campus cat as he 

celebrates a milestone. 

37 

Distinguished Alumni 

Awards 

Meet the 2020 Alumni Awards honorees. 

14 

32

Campus campus life Life 

Articulation Agreements 

Smooth Transfer Process 

In October, Birmingham-Southern College and Wallace Community 

College (WCCD) in Dothan, Alabama, signed an articulation agreement 

that will expedite the completion of a bachelor’s degree at BSC for 

WCCD students. The contract with Wallace Community College - 

Dothan is BSC’s twelfth articulation agreement. 

“Birmingham-Southern is making the transfer process more 

efficient through articulation agreements. Now, students who started 

their education somewhere else can more easily transfer to BSC 

and complete their bachelors’ degree in our personalized academic 

environment,” President Daniel B. Coleman said. 

This academic year, BSC welcomed 42 transfer students – many of 

whom came to BSC from a community college. 

“We are grateful to President Daniel B. Coleman and his faculty 

and staff for their desire to partner with us and open new doors for 

our students,” said Dr. Linda C. Young, Wallace Community College 

- Dothan President. “It creates a seamless pathway for eligible WCCD 

graduates who want to continue their higher education with one of 

Alabama’s great private colleges. The partnership serves as an excellent 

example of the two institutions working together, keeping student 

success as a top priority.” 

In recent years, BSC has completed articulation agreements with the 

following two-year colleges: Bevill State Community College, Calhoun 

Community College, Chattahoochee Valley Community College, 

Coastal Alabama Community College, Gadsden State Community 

College, Jefferson State Community College, Lawson State Community 

College, Northeast Alabama State Community College, Shelton 

State Community College, Snead State Community College, Wallace 

Community College - Dothan, and Wallace State Community College. 

Panther Partnerships 

PRESERVE PAVILION 

After years of planning and fundraising, construction for the 

Turkey Creek Nature Preserve classroom pavilion is well underway 

with support from Birmingham-Southern College and other 

community partners. 

Southern Environmental Center Director Roald Hazelhoff, 

Turkey Creek manager Charles Yeager ’10, and Pinson Mayor 

Hoyt Sanders offered a preview of the project during a Sept. 25 

event. The pavilion will serve as an outdoor educational facility as 

well as a general gathering space for visitors to the preserve. 

“We have been working with Birmingham-Southern, the 

Freshwater Land Trust, and new partners at the preserve to swap 

Photo: Dr. Andy Gannon and his invertebrate zoology students explore 

Turkey Creek during a class trip to the preserve this fall. 

30 acres of flood plain on Sweeney Hollow with 30 acres of land 

that was part of the original Turkey Creek project, on which is 

going a pavilion,” Sanders says. 

Made up of 466 acres, Turkey Creek Nature Preserve is a 

critical habitat for biodiversity as the home to seven protected 

and endangered species, including the Vermilion Darter, which 

lives only in Turkey Creek and nowhere else in the world. The 

Southern Environmental Center has co-managed the preserve for 

a number of years and stays involved in their events and projects, 

like the pavilion. 

Hazelhoff is looking forward to the many uses of the new 

facility, especially for field trips focused on Alabama’s biodiversity. 

As director of the Southern Environmental Center, housed on BSC’s 

campus, he leads many educational trips at the College and at the 

preserve that will make use of the new space. 

Other faculty, staff, and students are also active with Turkey Creek. 

Professor of Biology Dr. Andy Gannon took his invertebrate zoology 

class to the preserve to “look for critters” in October, and many BSC 

students have the opportunity to work at Turkey Creek each summer. 

During summer 2020, sophomore Lora Dunn and senior Emily 

Wise interned at Turkey Creek, where they worked in the greenhouse, 

built a shaded structure, replaced invasive species with native plants, 

and created social media content. Both Dunn and Wise were happy to 

get out of the house, continue their internships during the pandemic, 

and participate in various Turkey Creek restoration projects. 

“I’m really glad to see Turkey Creek doing their part by remaining 

available for people to get outside during the pandemic but also 

remain as safe as possible,” Wise says. 

Once the project is complete, Hazelhoff also hopes to see more 

events held at Turkey Creek, a hidden gem of biodiversity and 

beautiful trails, water, and scenery. 

Learn more about Turkey Creek at turkeycreeknp.com. 

CAMPUS UPDATES 

Dr. Linda C. Young and President Daniel B. Coleman 

In 2020, Birmingham-Southern made a wide variety of campus 

improvements while most of our students, faculty, and staff were 

off campus. 

Panther Perk, the new coffee and dessert shop inside Norton 

Campus Center was named by a poll from the student body. 

Located next to the “caf,” the shop offers coffee, milkshakes, 

sundaes, pastries, and hot breakfast sandwiches, salads, and wraps. 

In May, SGA and the Hilltop Parent and Family Fund provided 

new tables, chairs, and umbrellas around the Alumni Fountain as a 

gift in honor of the Class of 2020. There are also new tables along 

the walkway between Norton and the Academic Quad. 

Repairs and installations across campus include the roof on 

the Sports Center, the air conditioning unit in the theatre, and 

the chiller in Norton. LED lighting was installed in Norton Campus 

Center, BSC Library, Elton B. Stephens Science Center, Larry D. 

Striplin, Jr. Physical Fitness & Recreation Center, and all outdoor 

lighting on campus. 

“The new LED light installations on campus will reduce energy usage, 

improve the quality of the light, and enhance safety with improved 

outdoor lighting,” says Lane Estes, Vice President for Administration 

and Interim Chief Financial Officer. 

In early October, renovations were completed on Hanson Hall, 

adding 80 single rooms. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the rooms are 

reserved specifically for students who need to be isolated or quarantined. 

(Read more about BSC’s response to the pandemic on page 16.) 

Barnes & Noble College is now managing the BSC Bookstore, providing 

students and faculty with an extensive offering of academic solutions and a 

vast assortment of affordable learning materials, as well as revamped retail 

to show off our Panther pride. Find more online at bsc.bncollege.com. 

(l to r) Queenie Hawkins and 

Allison Brooks 


FALL/WINTER 2020 / 7

campus life 

WOODROW 

WILSON 

FELLOWSHIP 

In April, Assistant Professor of Political Science Dr. Desireé Melonas was 

named a 2020 Career Enhancement Fellow by the Woodrow Wilson National 

Fellowship Foundation. 

The Career Enhancement Fellowship seeks to increase the presence 

of underrepresented junior and other faculty members in the arts and 

humanities by creating career development opportunities for selected Fellows 

with promising research projects. 

Melonas is one of ten junior faculty 

members from across the country to 

receive a 12-month fellowship and 

sabbatical stipend. 

“I plan to use this fellowship to 

help prepare my book manuscript, 

A Political Theory of Place, for 

publication,” Melonas said. “This 

fellowship provides the time and 

intellectual space to get really 

intimate with my work. I think it’s 

an intimacy with and excitement for 

our scholarship that enables us to 

be better, more inspired teachers; we 

bring that energy – that enthusiasm 

for discovery and learning – with us 

and inject it into the classroom.” 

The 2020 Career Enhancement 

Fellows represent top institutions from across the country and work in such 

disciplines as African American and diaspora studies, English, LGBTQ studies, 

political science, sociology, and musicology. 

“The fellowship is an excellent opportunity for Desireé and we’re proud of 

her achievement,” said BSC Provost Dr. Brad Caskey. “Prestigious awards such 

as this provide our faculty the chance to spend time on scholarly work and that 

ultimately benefits our students in the classroom.” 

Since joining the faculty in 2017, Melonas has become an active and beloved 

member of the BSC community. She is involved with the Black Women’s Union, 

the Mortar Board, Students Demand Action, and the Diversity Committee. 

She also received the 2018 Bob Whetstone Faculty Development Award, given 

annually to a non-tenured faculty member to recognize their excellence in 

teaching, and created a political theory focus in the political science department. 

Melonas has most notably established the Distinction in Black Studies program. 

Amy Cottrill OUTSTANDING EDUCATOR 

At our 2020 Commencement ceremonies held in early August, 

Dr. Amy Cottrill, Denson N. Franklin Associate Professor of Religion, 

was named the 2020 Outstanding Educator of the Year. Cottrill has 

taught at the College since 2007 and, with this honor, will serve as the 

2021 Commencement speaker. 

“It was a great teaching year for me, despite the challenges of the 

pandemic in the spring,” she says. 

Over the 2019-2020 academic year, Cottrill taught first-year students 

and upper-class religion majors in a range of courses. These include 

her Explorations Seminar class, “Serpents, Siblings, and Sacrifice: The 

Book of Genesis,” as well as courses on the Hebrew Bible, Abrahamic 

religions, and Christian scriptures in literature, art, and film. 

She also travelled to the University of Rostock in Rostock, 

Germany, to present a paper in January. The conference, titled 

“Between Endurance and Wholeness: Resilience Narratives in the Old 

Testament,” brought together an international group of Hebrew Bible 

scholars to discuss the text through the lens of trauma and resilience. 

Cottrill’s paper, “Reading the Psalms Through the Lens of Creative 

Resilience,” examines how language of pain pairs closely with 

language of hope throughout the Psalms. 

“In many ways, the biblical narrative is a story of resilience. The 

biblical authors are putting words to profound suffering, naming 

it, framing it, and also providing a way for their audience to 

connect the past to a vision of the future,” she explains. “Trauma 

and resilience theory helps us understand the ways that encounters 

with violence and disruption of other kinds disorients people and 

communities, undermines their sense of stability, and creates a crisis 

of interpretation.” 

Cottrill says she was honored to be a part of the conversation on 

effects of trauma on individuals and communities with European 

biblical scholars, who have been particularly interested in trauma 

theory. She also brought this conversation to the BSC community this 

summer in her mini-lecture on the Psalms and resilience, which can 

be viewed on the BSC Facebook page. 

In the midst of an unpredictable spring term, Cottrill was 

impressed by her students throughout the transition to online 

learning, including her senior students who missed out on a normal 

end to their time on the Hilltop. 

“I think students realized in a new way how important the 

interaction in the class is to their experience, but even when that was 

hard to maintain, they dug in and made class happen in spite of the 

chaos of a global pandemic. I thought that was admirable and it made 

me proud of our students,” she says. 

During the fall 2020 term, Cottrill was on sabbatical working on 

her writing projects and research to bring back to the classroom. 

“I will be ready to go in the spring term with new ideas to discuss 

with students.” 

SGA RESULTS 

2020-2021 SGA OFFICERS 

Elections for 2020-21 Student Government 

Association executive officers took place 

Tuesday, Sept. 8. The executive board, led 

by SGA President Sutton Smith, is the first 

all-female team since 2012. 

Smith is a senior history and religion double 

major from Auburn, Ala. She is involved in 

Quest II, Religious Life, Greek Life, and SGA, 

with two years’ experience as a freshman and 

sophomore representative. 

Through different leadership roles and 

involvement, Smith has made BSC her 

home and has been vocal about the strong 

community she has built on the Hilltop. 

In March, she wrote an essay about the 

experience of leaving BSC to finish the 

spring term remotely and her gratefulness 

for friends and faculty. 

During her junior year, Smith served as a 

ministry intern at Bluff Park United Methodist 

Church and as an intern on Doug Jones’ 

Senate campaign. She was also named a 

finalist for the Harry S. Truman Foundation’s 

scholarship for public service and leadership 

development. 

In her campaign for SGA president, Smith 

emphasized her hope to establish a strong 

connection between SGA and Counseling 

Services, make SGA more transparent through 

Zoom office hours and idea forms for 

students, and dedicate more funds to diversity 

and inclusion initiatives on campus. 

The other elected executives are: 

Vice President Carol Johnson, a junior 

biology major with a pre-med track from 

Tuscaloosa, Ala. She is on the women’s soccer 

team and has been involved in the Panther 

Partnerships Mentoring Program. 

Secretary Madison Blair, a sophomore 

English major from Hoover, Ala. She is 

involved in Quest II, Greek Life, and the 

Orientation Team. She also serves as a tutor in 

the writing center. 

Treasurer Laura Alice Hillhouse, a senior 

business administration major from Florence, 

Ala. She is involved in Greek Life and the 

Panther Partnerships Mentoring Program. 



campus life 

Duke Data 

Internship 

In summer 2020, Birmingham-Southern College 

began a new partnership with Duke University 

– one that provides important interdisciplinary 

research opportunities for students and faculty. 

Andrew Scofield, a junior applied computer 

science major, and Dr. Jessica Hines, assistant 

professor of English, collaborated with students 

and faculty from Duke and Haverford College on 

a Duke Data+ research project. The Data+ program 

runs under the Rhodes Information Initiative 

at Duke, and it provides research experiences 

for undergraduates interested in approaching 

interdisciplinary topics and challenges through a 

focus on data. 

Hines, who received her Ph.D. from Duke, 

previously worked with Data+ with Dr. Astrid 

Giugni. For this summer’s project, Hines and 

Giugni served as project leads with five student 

researchers, including Scofield. 

“Giugni and I are in the process of developing 

a long-term project examining the changing 

language of consumer culture across the medieval 

and early modern periods,” Hines says. “Data+ 

gave us a starting point to launch that research.” 

Scofield first learned about the project from his 

advisor, Assistant Professor of Applied Computer 

Science Dr. Amber Wagner, and he was excited to 

get research experience. He, Hines, and their team 

worked on one of 29 Data+ projects and focused 

on the question proposed by Hines and Giugni: 

what types of consumerism existed in the Late 

Middle Ages and Early Modern Period? 

“Our team pulled 25,000 texts from a 

database and tried to, in some way, quantify 

and dimensionalize relationships between 

consumerism and various concepts, genders, 

and/or peoples,” Scofield says. “We used modern 

natural language processing techniques like word 

embedding and topic modeling to analyze the 

700,000,000 words at our disposal.” 

The medieval and modern periods, roughly 

from 1475-1700, contained powerful cultural 

change. When analyzing these changes through 

large amounts of text, the team looked at how 

the Protestant Reformation and the rise of the 

market economy might have impacted language 

regarding consumption. 

“What was really innovative about our 

team’s work is that, while word embedding 

models have been used to study later texts, 

it hasn’t been really applied to earlier texts,” 

Hines says. “Our team did great work at 

coming up with creative ways to get around 

the particular challenges that have previously 

made pre-1700 texts difficult to analyze.” 

With the interdisciplinary focus of the 

program, and their project’s specific focus on 

digital humanities, Scofield saw his computer 

science education at BSC make a real impact. 

“Oftentimes, it is hard to see the big picture 

of how what I have been learning is useful 

because I have no workplace experience to 

relate it to,” Scofield says. “Now that I have 

experienced how programming languages and 

humanities knowledge are used in data science 

research, I feel a lot more confident about 

myself and what I have learned at BSC up to 

this point.” 

Following the team’s completed research, 

BSC has begun a fruitful partnership with 

Duke and the Data+ program. This summer, 

the Provost’s Office sponsored Scofield and the 

Krulak Institute supported Hines. The partners 

at BSC and at Duke are excited to see joint 

research between the two institutions. 

“I think basing the opportunity in 

a partnership really strengthened the 

project itself, allowing us to do work that 

was truly interdisciplinary – merging 

humanistic research with data science – 

because of the range of backgrounds and 

interests the participants brought to the 

table,” Hines says. 

Hines is looking forward to seeing more 

students get involved in collaborative, 

intercollegiate research projects. Not 

only do opportunities like Duke Data+ 

allow students to deepen studies within 

their academic major and focus, but 

interdisciplinary research also challenges 

students to explore new ideas and develop 

skills they haven’t been exposed to before. 

“I did not know anything about 

programming languages, the basics of 

computer operation, or anything besides a 

few keyboard shortcuts that I thought were 

cool,” Scofield says. “But I was able to be a 

part of this amazing research project and 

feel confident in what I was able to bring 

to the table.” 

You can read more about the team’s 

research findings and view their 

presentation, “For love of greed: tracing 

the early history of consumer culture,” at 

bigdata.duke.edu/projects/ 

love-greed-tracing-early-historyconsumer-culture. 

Project Leads: 

Astrid Giugni, Jessica Hines 

Project Manager: Chris Huebner 

Project Team: Donald Pepka, Andrew 

Scofield, Albert Sun, Daisy Zhan 

PANTHER 

PARTNERSHIPS 

In November, Birmingham-Southern College announced the 68 students – selected 

through a competitive process – and Birmingham-area professionals who make 

up the 2020-2021 class of the Panther Partnerships Mentoring Program. Through 

this intensive, structured program, volunteer mentors help students achieve 

individualized goals in pursuit of their educational and career ambitions. 

THE 2020-2021 PANTHER PARTNERS ARE: 

• Luis Anguiano, a junior architectural studies 

major, mentored by Ria Neill, Architect, 

and Mack Braden, Architect and Studio 

Coordinator, at Christopher Architects and 

Interiors 

• Clarence Barr, a senior business 

administration major, mentored by Kenneth 

Crenshaw ’95, Senior Vice President 

and Community Lending Manager at 

IBERIABANK 

• Emma Boissel, a sophomore psychology 

major, mentored by April Jackson- 

MacLennan ’09, Attorney at the State of 

Alabama Court of Civil Appeals 

• Maddie Brook, a junior collaborative 

education major, mentored by Rebecca 

Posey ’05, Preschool Director at Ascension 

Episcopal Kindergarten 

• Rachael Brooks, a junior biology major, 

mentored by Walker Blackston, Ph.D. ’15, 

Researcher at Louisiana State University 

• Ryan Brown-Ezell, a junior biology major, 

mentored by Heather Fecteau ’06, Genetic 

Counseling Manager at NxGen MDx 

• Bethany Bryant, a senior business 

administration major, mentored by Onna 

Cunningham ’08, CEO and Founder of Luna 

• Victor Cardenas Perez, a senior accounting 

major, mentored by Scott Berte ’94, 

Managing Partner at DHG 

• Alexandra Coberly, a senior history major, 

mentored by Connie Hill ’92, CEO of Girls, 

Inc. of Central Alabama 

• Lance Cook, a senior political science major, 

mentored by Aalok Sharma ’07, Attorney at 

Stinson LLP 

• Halley Cooper, a junior psychology major, 

mentored by Rob Bare, Ph.D., Director of 

Outpatient Forensics with JBS Mental Health 

Authority 

• Jonah Dennis, a sophomore biology major, 

mentored by Holly McCaleb M.D., Assistant 

Professor and Assistant Director of Rural 

Programs at University of Alabama College of 

Community Health Sciences 

• Maya Donaldson, a sophomore interested 

in biology/health sciences and psychology, 

mentored by Chelsea Brown, Certified Child 

Life Specialist at Children’s of Alabama 

• Keyamber Ford, a junior business 

administration major, mentored by Julie 

Terrell ’96, Interior Designer at Julie Terrell 

Interior Design 

• Bailey Gardner, a senior political science 

major, mentored by Jeanie Sleadd ’09, 

Attorney at Heninger Garrison Davis 

• Kaitlyn Hearn, a junior psychology major, 

mentored by David Kilmer ’74, Therapist at 

Pitts & Associates 

• Lorin Helfenstein, a senior business 

administration major, mentored by Will 

Foster ’10, Director of Brand Marketing at 

Royal Cup, Inc 

• Trey Hines, a sophomore business 

administration major, mentored by Caleb 

Schmidt, Vice President of Corporate 

Partnerships at Knight Eady 

• Kalis Jones, a senior psychology major, 

mentored by Lyndsay Clark, University 

Counselor and Wellness Coordinator at 

Samford University 

• Saydee Keith, a senior applied computer 

science major, mentored by Daniel Haden, 

Prosthetist and Orthotist at BioTech Limb and 

Brace 

• Jackie Lamars, a senior race and gender 

studies major, mentored by JW Carpenter, 

Executive Director at Birmingham Education 

Foundation 

• Sabel Mattingly, a junior biology major, 

mentored by Meg Cherry ’04, Dermatologist 

and Business Owner at Renew Dermatology 

• Warda Merchant, a junior biology major, 

mentored by Lindsay Sheets, M.D. ’15, 

Resident Physician at the Johns Hopkins 

Hospital 

• Sanky Ndhlobu, a sophomore economics 

major, mentored by Margaret Ann Pyburn 

’84, Executive Vice President at Cobbs Allen 

• Alex Oswalt, a junior accounting major, 

mentored by Will Thistle ’02, Partner at 

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP 

• J.T. Peifer, a junior business administration 

major, mentored by Danielle Smith, 

Women’s Initiative Manager at Baker Donelson 

• Jamie Persall, a junior business 

administration major, mentored by Jennifer 

Hatchett ’95, Executive Director at YouthServe 

• Kiera Poole, a sophomore art history major, 

mentored by Katie Paul, The Virginia and 

William M. Spencer III Curator or Asian Art at 

the Birmingham Museum of Art 

• Molly Grace Quinn, a sophomore 

psychology major, mentored by Robert 

M. Pitts Jr, Psy. D. ’81, Psychologist and 

President, Pitts & Associates 

• Riley Roberts, a senior business 

administration major, mentored by Audrey 

Pannell, Vice President of Public Relations at 

STYLE Advertising 

• Julia Scarinci, a sophomore architectural 

studies and global comparative studies major, 

mentored by Emily McClellan, Architect at 

KPS Group 

• John Carter Simmons, a senior history 

major, mentored by Brian Barsanti, Executive 

Director at the Southern Museum of Flight 

• Sutton Smith, a senior history and religion 

major, mentored by Susan Crow ’92, 

Executive Director at Workshops, Inc 

• Viktoria Solfronk, a junior health sciences 

major, mentored by Cassandra Winston- 

Griffin, DNP, Adult Nurse Practitioner 

• Mary Katherine Stewart, a junior biology 

major, mentored by Rupa Kitchens, M.D., 

Urologist at Urology Centers of Alabama 

• Kazia Taylor, a senior business 

administration major, mentored by Nisha 

Kashyap ’15, Creative Director at Sociallyin 

• Johana Villavicencio, a sophomore business 

administration major, mentored by Rayna 

Dyck, M.D., Dermatologist at Skin Wellness 

Dermatology 

• Anjali Vira, a senior biology major, mentored 

by Weily Soong, M.D. ’95, Managing Partner 

at Alabama Allergy & Asthma Center 

• Courtney Wild, a sophomore business 

administration major, mentored by Lacey 

Woodroof, Owner and Founder of Basic 



Dr. Lamia Benyoussef 

Roots and new beginnings - a room with a view 

When Dr. Lamia Benyoussef came to Birmingham-Southern five 

years ago, she knew the College felt like home once she saw the 

magnolia tree outside her office window. 

“I have tried many times to plant one in my own garden, but 

the tree died every time,” she says. “For me, trees are symbolic of 

roots and new beginnings, and they are a beautiful symbol of the 

American South. Imagine my happiness when I was assigned an 

office which had a lovely magnolia tree.” 

Benyoussef, associate professor of Arabic, sees her office space as 

a reflection of her identity as an Arabic instructor and a Tunisian- 

American who has established roots in Alabama. In the same way 

she notices her voice become a hybrid of French and Southern 

accents, her office too blends these parts of her life. 

To the right of her window is her framed “Doors of Tunis,” 

photos of traditional doors throughout Tunisia, with varying colors 

and architectural styles from the Middle Ages to the nineteenth 

century. To Benyoussef, the doors represent the layering of cultural 

influences throughout Tunisia. 

To the left is her painting of Buraq, the winged, mythical shehorse 

who brought Mohammed from Mecca to Jerusalem in Islamic 

tradition. Around Buraq, near her desk, Benyoussef keeps photos 

office hours 

of her two sons and photos with her advisor and colleagues from 

graduate school at Michigan State. 

Her bookshelves are separated into different sections for teaching 

material, student work, and other documents. She has North African 

literature in French and Arabic, readings on ecological feminism and 

post-colonial theory, and rare documents she’s collected over the years. 

Though she has incorporated many parts of her Tunisian 

background into her office, Benyoussef also has gifts and souvenirs 

from students and colleagues over the years that represent the greater 

Arab world, from Iraqi paintings and prints to the flag of Lebanon. 

Her office shows her research and scholarship, her home in 

Tunisia, and her home in Birmingham, where she’s lived since 2001 

(besides her two-year home residency at the University of Carthage 

and Sousse from 2002 to 2004.) While her office is filled with old 

student papers and her current class curriculum, it’s also stocked 

with literature and theory she hopes to teach one day. Benyoussef is 

always eager to introduce Middle Eastern and North African texts in 

a region where they are not as familiar. 

“The space reflects my personal life, my educational background, my 

time in Alabama. It really is who I am, and my room of one’s own.” 

off hours 

Dr. Katie McIntyre 

Dr. Katie McIntyre’s Ashtanga yoga practice, comprised of a fixed 

series of postures and synchronized breathing, results in a strong 

body and a calm, centered mind – two things she recognized as 

essential right now, especially for those teaching, studying, and 

working at BSC. 

During the 2020 fall term, McIntyre, assistant professor of 

sociology, brought her off-hours expertise to the Hilltop – offering 

virtual and outdoor yoga classes to faculty, staff, and students. 

“Yoga is what you need it to be,” she says. “You just have to find 

what aspect works for you.” 

After receiving her teaching certification in 2019, McIntyre was 

encouraged by colleagues to start a class for faculty and staff, which led 

to a weekly virtual series of 30-minute sessions throughout September. 

She started the sessions with breathing exercises and positions 

to do in a desk chair, bringing attention to a straight posture to 

awaken the spine and shoulders. Later into the month, McIntyre 

taught sun salutations, seated positions, and sematic poses, which 

focus on slow movement and neutral positions. 

McIntyre has also held multiple Ashtanga classes on the quad for 

students. Just like the faculty and staff sessions, she approaches the 

student classes with the same goal to devote time for yourself. 

When she was a graduate student, taking her first yoga classes, 

the practice is what pulled her out of an emotionally and mentally 

stressful time in her life. McIntyre attended her first yoga class in 

2016 at Birmingham Yoga in Forest Park, where she completed her 

training last year. 

“I kept going and didn’t stop,” she says. “I used to have a really hard 

time with things I had no control over, and yoga really helped me.” 

McIntyre ended up working at Birmingham Yoga during the 

week, all while taking as many classes as she could. The job paid 

for most of her classes and pushed her further into the community 

of students and teachers who walked in and out of the studio each 

night. Eventually, the owners asked her when she was going to start 

teaching and encouraged her to begin the process. 

McIntyre began teaching the Monday community class – the 

same class she went to as a beginner – in late summer 2019. As 

a teacher, she became an even more active member of the yoga 

community and dove deeper into the philosophy of yoga, which 

she describes as simply showing up for yourself. 

“We have this idea that yoga is a tiny woman who can fold herself 

into a pretzel and has muscles everywhere but doesn’t look like she 

does,” McIntyre says. “But the community is made up of people 

from every background who needed something, and they found it 

in yoga. Maybe they ended up in a bad mental health space, or they 

just wanted to find more exercise, but it is way more obtainable 

than what we are currently sold.” 



panther pride 

2020 has thrown all of us more than a few 

curveballs. We’re proud to say that our studentathletes, 

coaches, and staff have handled this 

season with generosity, understanding, and unity. 

Our Panthers are resilient and ready to be back 

in action. 

We’ve spent the fall term preparing for every 

scenario, and have safely participated in small group 

practices and team scrimmages. We have high hopes 

that our student-athletes, who have missed competing, 

will soon return to the field, pool, court, and track. 

Thanks to the effort of our coaches, studentathletes, 

alumni, and parents, we set a record in 

fall fundraising. This accomplishment allows new 

opportunities and supports our need for flexibility 

while implementing new safety protocols during an 

unconventional spring term. 

Our coaches and staff have selflessly given their 

time to support our greater Birmingham-Southern 

community. They have delivered meals to students 

in quarantine, assisted with regular COVID-19 testing, and planned quarantine-related 

activities, which they designed to benefit the emotional and physical well-being of our 

students. This act of kindness should not go unrecognized, as it has undoubtedly shaped 

the experience of many students during this time. We are always proud of our coaches 

and staff, but have been especially grateful for their commitment to BSC and their 

willingness to serve this fall term. 

We’re honestly in awe of the way our student-athletes have positively responded under 

such adversity. None of us could have predicted that our students’ college experience 

would be altered so dramatically. They have handled every bump in the road with 

maturity and with others in mind. For this, we are so proud of them. 

In the true spirit of teamwork, our student-athletes committed to following numerous 

new rules and guidelines without any hesitation. Multiple campus leaders have stepped 

up for their fellow students over the last few months. Carol Johnson, class of 2022, 

of women’s soccer, created and coordinated a wellness week on campus. And one of 

our alumnae, Markia Robinson ’16, led online fitness classes for students, allowing 

them to focus on wellness from their residence halls. Too many individuals to name 

have encouraged their peers to keep moving and stay positive, and together have 

demonstrated what being a BSC Panther is about. 

Looking forward, we anticipate the ability to participate in athletic competition in the 

coming term; due in large part to the very hard work of our student-athletes, coaches, 

athletic trainers, and the leadership and determination of President Daniel B. Coleman. 

We will have a testing regimen for all student-athletes and coaches, as well as robust 

contact tracing. With an ever-changing environment, there are still many protocols to 

be determined, including whether or not we will be able to participate in competition 

with fans in the stands. Your support for our student-athletes, whether from near or far, is 

always appreciated. We are grateful for the determination of our administration and the 

hope that we have to return to the athletic arena. 

In all times, but especially now, Forward, Ever! 

Kyndall Waters ’05 

Athletic Director 


President Daniel B. Coleman honors 

BSC tradition and jumps into the pool 

with student-athletes to celebrate victory. 

MEN 

WOMEN 

NATIONAL 

RUNNERS-UP 

1 

SPORTS NEWS 

Despite the athletic year being cut 

short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 

BSC athletics had already raked in a 

multitude of awards during the 2019-20 

season. Nationally, rising senior Robert 

Shufford was the NCAA Division III 

statistical champion in football for 

both all-purpose yards and rush yards 

per game. The running back was also 

named a finalist for the Gagliardi 

Trophy, which is presented to the most 

outstanding football player in Division 

III. Rebecca Erwin ’20 was one of the 

160 chosen from a pool of over 600 

nominees submitted to advance in the 

NCAA Woman of the Year award process. 

Erwin, who competed in volleyball and 

swimming, was also named Scholar- 

Athlete of the Year by the Alabama Sports 

Hall of Fame. 

Panthers earned eight All-America 

honors led by Shufford who was a 

ALL-AME RICA 

HONO RS 

NATIONAL 

QUALIFIERS 

SAA TEAM 

CHAMPIONSHIPS 

unanimous First-Team All-American 

as voted on by the American Football 

Coaches Association and the Associated 

Press. Erwin joined Anna Jordan Luth, 

Mary Beth Ronne, and Mary Katherine 

Stewart as women’s swimming All- 

Americans. Emma Phillips was named 

an All-American by the Women’s Golf 

Coaches Association. And Jordan Jones 

earned All-America honors from the 

U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country 

Coaches Association. 

Shufford was also named D3football. 

com regional athlete of the year, as well as, 

first-team all-south region. Austin Lewter 

’20 and Mike Benning also earned allregion 

honors in football. Marjorie Head 

’20 earned all-region honors from her 

performance at the regional cross country 

championships. And Emilee Olsen ’20 of 

women’s basketball was named all-region 

by D3hoops.com. 

SAA ATHLETES 

OF THE YEAR 

SWIMMING & DIVING 

“A powerful group or family that maintains its position for a 

considerable time.” 

That’s how Merriam-Webster defines a dynasty. And at 

four consecutive years of sweeping both the men’s and 

women’s Southern Athletic Association championship titles, 

Birmingham-Southern swimming and diving is well on its way. 

This past year, the Panthers capped off the programs’ 

collective 11th conference title since beginning just eight 

years ago. BSC has flourished under head coach Toby Wilcox. 

Panthers have made the trip to the NCAA Division III 

Swimming and Diving Championships every year since 2014 

and own the conference record in all but three of the league’s 

20 events. 

BIRMINGHAM-SOUTHERN SWIMMING AND DIVING BY THE NUMBERS 

SAA EVENT 

CHAMPIONSHIPS 

SAA 

ALL-CONFERENCE 

SCHOLAR 

ALL-AMERICANS 

17 22 6 17 83 87 7 

19 23 5 9 45 76 9 

BSC racked up over 60 Southern 

Athletic Association athlete of the 

week awards, seven D3sports.com 

weekly honors, and two national 

athlete of the week awards. But the 

Panthers success extended beyond 

competition and into the classroom. 

Between the fall and the spring 

semesters, Panthers earned over 360 

Dean’s List honors, the department 

boasted at 3.25 cumulative GPA for 

the spring, and 236 student-athletes 

earned SAA Academic Honor Roll. 

Erwin was named an Academic 

All-American by the College Sports 

Information Directors of America, 

while Lewter and Abby Kay Choate 

of women’s soccer earned all-district 

honors. 

BSC AWARDS 

The Birmingham-Southern athletics department 

announced the winners of its annual awards on social 

media via a series of videos featuring athletic administration 

staff and select head coaches. Austin Lewter ’20 of football 

and Rebecca Erwin ’20 of volleyball and swimming were 

named BSC Man and Woman of the Year, respectively. 

Robert Shufford of football earned male athlete of the 

year, while Erwin claimed female athlete of the year. The 

Ben Sinclair Teammates of the Year were Ivan Villageois 

’20 of football and Rachel Fahad of women’s lacrosse. 

Bailey Murphy ’20 of softball and Rachael Motamed ’20 

of women’s soccer were named the Johnny Johnson Most 

Inspirational Seniors. And swimming and diving swept the 

newcomer of the year awards with Chase Bolding on the 

men’s side, and Mary Miller Goldberg on the women’s. 

Sigma Alpha Alpha honors graduating seniors who have 

achieved above a 3.5 GPA over the course of their time at 

BSC and have represented their programs on either the first 

or second all-conference teams. This year BSC had seven 

new inductees: Emilee Olsen ’20 (women’s basketball), 

Julia Denby (volleyball), Ryan Emili (swimming and 

diving), Rebecca Erwin ’20, Austin Lewter ’20, Marjorie 

Head ’20 (cross country), and Bailey Murphy ’20. Watch 

the award presentations on the Birmingham-Southern 

Athletics YouTube channel. 

FALL/WINTER 2019 / 15

the next chapter 

Mom’s Basement 

a day in the life 

Willie Williams, Jr. ’18 

For Willie Williams, Jr., the dream to open his own art gallery wasn’t 

something that waited until after graduation. The idea took form in 2015 

and became a tangible gallery space by summer 2016, when he held 

a 10-artist opening show. At that point, Williams was only a junior at 

Birmingham-Southern, dedicating his summers to art shows and other 

programs as the owner of Studio 2500. 

Located at 2500 26th Ave. North, Studio 2500 is housed in an old car 

garage that Williams and his father own in North Birmingham. Williams 

first opened the space to showcase his own work and the work of fellow 

artists and high school friends, and he’s now seen the gallery develop 

into a center for young and diverse creatives and a home for discussions 

across generations and backgrounds. 

“The studio has grown into an art and cultural venue,” Williams 

says. “It’s infused with visual art, music, poetry and spoken word, 

and dialogues.” 

Williams found his passion for art early – at four years old, he was 

drawing in church bulletins every Sunday. His father taught him different 

techniques as he explored drawing and watercolor, eventually leading 

him to enter the Alabama School of Fine Arts in eighth grade. During his 

senior year of high school and years at BSC, he focused on sculpture. 

“I can go from very complex to sleek and contemporary,” Williams 

says. “I work with sculptural silhouettes, headpieces, and stylized faces on 

a smaller scale, but I also do organic large-scale sculpture with a modern 

architecture feel.” 

While managing the gallery space and events, Williams still makes 

time to focus on his own work, and 2020 has been a big year for him. 

His carbon steel sculpture “Trinity” was one of 20 pieces selected for 

Chicago Sculpture International’s Sculpture in the Parks exhibition, 

which rotates pieces throughout the Chicago Park District over the 

course of one year. 

Williams has also planned his own travelling installation, “The 

Arc of Justice,” that will carry into 2021. The installation is made up 

of multiple different outdoor metal sculptures that will be placed 

across the globe, together representing an international focus on the 

principles of justice and equality. 

“This installation will bring unity and justice and humanity into global 

awareness, especially with the social unrest brought to the forefront right 

now,” Williams says. “This is something people can look at for years to 

come but is also representative of our point in time right now.” 

While national recognition has allowed him to travel with his art, 

Williams remains focused on how his art and gallery can benefit 

Birmingham. The gallery plays an important role in its North 

Birmingham neighborhood, and Williams hopes to bring more 

beauty and light to the community – even as he expands his reach 

around the world. 

Are you a graduate of the last decade? Tell us what you’re doing next! Email 

[email protected]. 

Launching a new restaurant in the middle of a pandemic was not 

on the 2020 bingo card for Mom’s Basement. But for the owners 

of the Avondale bar – Payne Baker ’04, Rae Forrest Baker ’04, 

Wes Frazer ’02, and Patrick Nelson – the idea helped them support 

their employees throughout COVID-19 restrictions. 

“Initially, we had to close for the state order,” says Rae Baker. 

“Then, we started offering curbside service and had the opportunity 

to play around with serving pizza to-go, trying to make sure 

everybody could continue to make a living.” 

Pizza was something they’d had in the works – Mom’s was 

planning to open a pizza spot in a restaurant space across the street 

later in spring 2020. The pandemic gave them the opportunity to 

launch the pizza-making early while the bar was closed. 

Now that they’ve reopened, Mom’s has put the restaurant on 

hold (for a return in the near future) to create a safe and fun 

environment for the bar. Their new outdoor patio and live music 

events with Cahaba Brewing Co. have helped them get back to what 

they love most about Mom’s – throwing parties. 

“My vision for it was my favorite bar to hang out in,” Frazer says. 

“Our walls are all wood panel, and our furniture came from thrift 

stores, estate sales, and family members, like you’re really in your 

parents’ basement.” 

Like the coolest basements on the block, the dive bar also has 

arcade games and pool tables. The walls are covered with framed 

photos of customers’ own moms. 

“We all have our own full-time jobs and came together to make 

this work,” Rae Baker says. “Now, we’re working through what 

opening back up looks like.” 

Mom’s Basement’s first live concert — a record release 

show for Lady Legs — was held May 22, 2018. 

Photo by Wes Frazer. 

14 / ’southern FALL/WINTER 2020 / 17

cover story 

Campus Life 

The 

in a 

Time of 

COVID-19 

In late March 2020, BSC students received a postcard in the mail with an image of a 

chalkboard and the words “1st Day of BSC Online.” Students took selfies with the “signs” 

– some on their front porches as if they were on their way somewhere, others in their 

bedrooms next to their laptops – and shared them on Instagram. It was the first day in a 

long series of days that have often been referred to as “unprecedented.” 

postcard offered an encouraging 

message that BSC would continue to 

provide the things at its foundation: the 

exchange of ideas, the sharing of wisdom, 

the support and understanding of faculty 

and staff, and the challenges and rewards 

of learning. 

Rising to the Challenge 

When students were sent home on March 

16, the transition to online coursework 

began immediately. Dr. Kate Hayden, 

assistant professor of chemistry, and Dr. 

Amber Wagner, assistant professor of creative 

and applied computing, collaborated with 

BSC’s IT department to provide training and 

resources for faculty. Hayden and Wagner 

led a series of workshops on March 18 – 

nearly 50 faculty members attended them in 

groups of ten or fewer, while others viewed 

a recorded presentation from home. They 

learned how tools like Moodle, Microsoft 

Teams, and Screencast-O-Matic would be 

vital going forward. 

Other campus departments worked 

swiftly to move their services online, 

including the Library, Counseling Services, 

the Academic Resource Center, and the 

Writing Center. 

As everyone prepared to return virtually 

after spring break, Hayden said, “Our 

mantra has been ‘While we are working 

remotely, none of us is working alone.’ I 

hope that is a message that resonates with 

our students as well.” 

A Pandemic Plan 

Like other professors, BSC President 

Daniel B. Coleman spent significant 

time filming his spring term lectures and 

meeting with students online. As president, 

he and senior leadership focused on the 

immediate administrative needs of the 

College, including rebating a portion of 

room, board, and fees of spring term. 

He and members of the leadership team 

secured funding under the CARES Act and 

the Small Business Administration loan 

program as well as the U.S. Department of 

Education grants. 

The next step: Exploring what campus 

life might look like in the fall. Could 

students, faculty, and staff safely return to 

the Hilltop? 

Six working groups were created to 

examine every aspect of Birmingham- 

Southern life: Health Guidelines, Student 

Life, Academic Affairs, Human Resources, 

Athletics, and Finance and Operations. 

Each working group created new processes 

and protocols to mitigate risk in their 

focused field as well as for the greater BSC 

community. These protocols were shared 

with seven medical experts around the 

country – five of whom are BSC graduates 

– with expertise in epidemiology, oncology, 

clinical pathology, infectious diseases, 

public health, and primary care services. The 

protocols formed the backbone of the Return 

to the Hilltop plan, shared with students, 

families, faculty, and staff in a series of online 

town hall events over the summer. 

Fall term on the Hilltop would move 

forward with 258 (64%) courses offered inperson, 

25 courses offered online only, and 

64 hybrid courses. 


FALL/WINTER 2019 2020 / 19

Preparing for the Return 

Before returning to campus in August, 

students were tested twice, viewed training 

videos, began participating in a daily 

symptom check, and signed the Panther 

Pledge, a commitment much like the Honor 

Code to follow the rules and make every 

effort to keep campus safe and healthy 

during this unusual time. 

BSC partnered with Cahaba Medical 

Care, which now has an on-campus 

clinic that provides on-demand testing 

and COVID-19 care. Throughout the fall 

term, Cahaba Medical randomly tested 

students each week, while UAB’s GuideSafe 

program also provided weekly sentinel 

testing for faculty, staff, and students. The 

weekly positivity rate – tracked with an 

online dashboard – was used to determine 

guidelines for gatherings and visitors. 

Stocking up on school supplies had a 

whole new meaning in 2020. Tim Wilding, 

manager of purchasing, says preparing 

for students, faculty, and staff to return to 

campus was challenging, to say the least. 

“Supply chains were in shambles this 

summer, and price gouging and black 

market-like conditions were the norm,” he 

said. “When I started hunting for reliable, 

restockable, items to put on campus, it was 

like the Wild West of procurement. I’ve 

never seen anything like it. Lysol spray is 

still almost nonexistent.” 

But Wilding says BSC lucked out: “We got 

what we ordered within six weeks.” 

The Realities of Quarantine 

“The last protocol we focused on was 

quarantining,” Coleman says. “While we knew 

this protocol is critical to preventing the virus 

from spreading, we, like many others, believed 

that after a few days, a negative test would 

allow one to leave quarantine.” 

Unfortunately, a conversation with the 

Jefferson County Department of Health 

made clear that exposure to the virus meant 

14 days of quarantine with no exceptions. 

“As soon as we made this our protocol, 

we knew that we would have two problems,” 

Coleman says. “There was no way we would 

not have to quarantine a lot of students, and 

this would mean we might run out of space.” 

THE COVID-19 JOURNAL PROJECT 

During a time of social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, 

members of our community have shared their stories to be recorded and 

preserved in Birmingham-Southern history. 

The BSC Archives has collected journals since April to document the dayto-day 

“normal” of the pandemic. The journals document the emotions and 

moments that individuals experience so those details are not lost. 

“This is the social distancing way to collect an oral history. As a college, this 

is how we can document what happened,” says G.K. Armstrong ’92, assistant 

professor of the Library, digital initiatives librarian, and BSC archivist. 

Students, faculty, staff, and alumni contributed journal entries of 

all forms, including short thoughts, longer essays, poems, and photos. 

Each entry will be preserved for future digital collections, research, and 

exhibitions. Armstrong asked the Krulak Institute to serve as a partner 

to encourage and guide students through the journaling process. 

Writers were encouraged to focus on noting honest thoughts, feelings, 

reflections, and day-to-day details rather than creating formal or polished 

writing. The journal submissions record small moments of joy, painful 

experiences, accounts of daily routines, or favorite binge-worthy shows. 


“I feel a lot of mixed emotions 

because things are different, 

but ultimately so grateful 

that we are here and able to 

experience this year together.” 

Students who were isolated still needed 

access to classes, meaning faculty had to 

teach students in person and in quarantine 

at the same time. BSC faculty tackled this 

challenge with swift determination. One 

professor put a laptop with a webcam in the 

front row, treating the quarantined student as 

another student in the class. Many recorded 

their classes, making it easier for quarantined 

students to catch up. 

But with isolation and quarantine numbers 

in the first few weeks exceeding spare bed 

capacity, fast action was needed. With a grant 

from the state of Alabama, BSC’s operations 

team – led by director Randy Johnson – 

renovated 31 rooms in Hanson Hall in 

“This is how seniors can tell their stories of their last term,” Armstrong 

says. “This is the way those who’ve had trauma during their time at BSC 

can talk about that. Faculty have had a monumental challenge – this is 

an opportunity to process that.” 

They’ve collected work from Professor Pam Venz’s upper-level 

photography students, first-person narratives of experiences during 

the pandemic – including from a graduate on the Diamond Princess 

cruise ship quarantined in Japan in February – and songs written and 

performed for one of Professor Melinda Thompson’s courses. 

Armstrong has kept the project open as experiences during the 

pandemic continue, creating a digital archive with journals and other 

submissions that will soon be open to the public. They’re encouraging 

people from all parts of the BSC community to participate in order to 

record a full history of the experience. 

“When an archive, through inaction or specific action, doesn’t 

collect someone’s story, that results in an erasure. If we don’t have 

the full picture of what’s happening, we’re missing out on a huge part,” 

Armstrong says. 

seven days, thanks to round-the-clock tag teams 

of painters, carpenters, flooring installers, and 

plumbers. The full renovation of 80 rooms was 

completed over the following three weeks. 

Campus Life 

As protocols were enacted and having a cotton 

swab swirled up one’s nose became all too 

familiar, departments across campus worked to 

keep the BSC experience alive and well. 

Hand sanitizer stands and signs to direct traffic 

flow and social distancing popped up across 

campus. To improve and control air quality, air 

ionization technology was added in classroom 

buildings, the library, Norton Student Center, 

Striplin Fitness and Recreation Center, Bill Battle 

Coliseum, and the Student Services building. 

“Research indicated that coronavirus might float 

in tiny aerosols for long periods of time in the air,” 

says Lane Estes, Vice President for Administration 

and Interim Chief Financial Officer. “While there 

was no firm data at the time, we decided it was 

worth it to add the air purification technology 

and possibly minimize the risk of this virus and 

others spreading through the air. The air is cleaner 

and more pleasant to breath.” 

The music department ordered speciallymade 

singing masks for the choir. Sororities and 

fraternities held virtual recruitment. Student 

Development offered opportunities to gather for 

outdoor activities: a fall festival with a petting zoo 

and a mechanical bull; an ice cream truck; the 

Heavenly Donut truck; a “scream it out” moment 

on the academic quad. On what would have been 

Homecoming weekend, a “Friday at the Fountain” 

cupcake party celebrated the 40th birthday of 

Rowdy the Panther. For Halloween, student 

organizations decorated car trunks for a drivethrough 

“trunk or treat.” 

The SGA sponsored free virtual fitness classes 

led by Markia Robinson ’16 on Instagram; 

kickboxing classes were offered over Zoom. Dr. 

Katie McIntyre offered yoga classes on the quad 

(read more about her on page 11). 

In October, NBC affiliate WVTM 13 visited 

campus to interview students about college life 

during a pandemic. Junior Laura Alice Hillhouse 

of Florence, Ala., says, “Every single week you 

don’t know what’s promised for the next. I feel 

a lot of mixed emotions because things are 

different, but ultimately so grateful that we are 

here and able to experience this year together.” 

Sophomore Sloan Miles of Memphis told 

WVTM 13, “The factor of enjoying school life 

hasn’t gone down. When we look back on it 

we’ll be able to prove to a lot of people that we 

were one of the few schools in the nation to 

actually pull this off.” 

For more information about BSC’s ongoing 

response to COVID-19, visit www.bsc.edu/covid19. 

PREP WORK 

Stocking up on school supplies had 

a whole new meaning in 2020. 

3,000 

CLOTH 

MASKS 

1,000 

Disposable 

MASKS 100+ 

HAND 

SANITIZER 

STATIONS 

5,820+ 

COVID-19 TESTS 

5,000+ 

BOTTLES OF 

DISINFECTANT 

AND DRY WIPES 

80+ 

WEBCAMS 

2,063 

1,200 

DIGITAL 

Thermometers 

50 

THERMAL 

SCANNERS 

“SIT HERE” 

STICKERS 

Ice Cream 

343 TREATS 

300 

DOUGHNUTS 

1 MECHANICAL BULL 


ALUMS on the Front Line 

Birmingham-Southern alumni with talents in costuming, 

embroidery, and sewing have shown up for their communities during 

the onset of COVID-19. When the needs for personal protective 

equipment were high in the spring, numerous graduates dedicated 

their time to making face masks for frontline healthcare workers. 

Once she hit 500 masks in May, Kelly Horton Kean ’87 stopped 

counting and continued to sew face coverings. Early on, she 

realized how great the need for masks would be – Kean herself is a 

retired dentist, her daughter is in medical school, and her husband 

is an oral surgeon. 

“My husband’s office was unable to find PPE, so I knew this was 

going to be a huge issue for the hospitals,” she says. “I just felt this 

overwhelming need to do something, and making masks was an 

opportunity to help.” 

Kean got involved in Birmingham, Mobile, and Montgomery mask 

collection groups, one of the largest being Birmingham Face Masks. 

She joined numerous other BSC alumni in the network of maskmakers, 

including Tamara Harper ’06, Anna Spruiell Kittinger ’04, 

Catherine Alaina Roberts ’17, Brenda Brazil ’90, Rachel Gosnell ’15, 

Lin Chen ’08, and Sherry Hamner Ammons ’98. 

Only weeks into the group’s formation at the end of March, 

Birmingham Face Masks distributed more than 10,000 masks. By July, 

the group had donated more than 120,000 masks to organizations in 

Birmingham and across the nation. 

Harper, embroiderer and owner of Smallwoods Studio, encouraged 

contributions through her business. While making many masks 

herself, Harper also shared tutorials, created patterns, and informed 

fellow mask-makers about the high-demand for washable masks. 

As PPE became more readily available, many mask-making groups 

have slowed down collections, and now, mask-makers have started 

focusing on more innovative and creative designs. 

Matthew Torbett ’20, a musical theatre graduate, began making 

masks in the spring of his senior year, alongside others in BSC’s 

theatre department including Costumer Patti Manning and Costume 

Supervisor Megan Pecot ’18. Though Matthew Torbett Design 

was once just a place for Torbett’s digital art, the Etsy shop is now 

dominated by face masks. 

“My philosophy has become ‘Why not have fun with it?’” Torbett 

says. “Masks are now becoming a fashion accessory, so why don’t we 

play around with fringe hanging off of our face?” 

Fringe, denim, and lace overlays have all found a place in his shop 

as he channels his passion for design and costuming into essential 

face coverings. The masks showcase Torbett’s experience in designing 

and making costumes, which he first studied at BSC for theatre 

productions and his own research projects. 

“Shifting from theatrical costuming, I miss being a part of 

something bigger and collaborating with others,” he says. “But 

this is for something even bigger – for public health, to help 

society get back to a new normal. I saw that the skill that I had 

could help my community.” 

We’re so grateful for those around Alabama and beyond who have 

dedicated their time, services, and talents to those critically affected 

by the pandemic. Let us know of other alumni who are helping their 

communities at [email protected]. 

“I never imagined I would see a pandemic of this magnitude in my lifetime, 

or directly experience its resulting pressures and responsibility. But as a 

researcher and public health expert, I am professionally and ethically bound 

to provide factual, scientific information and advise others on best practices, 

including elected officials, health system administrators, and universities. This 

has been one of the most challenging, exhausting, and isolating periods of my 

life – fighting an invisible enemy, presenting consistently discouraging data, 

struggling to protect the health of many who simply don’t want to be protected 

– but it has also been immensely rewarding to see my passion and purpose 

actualized and to make a difference however I am able.” 

Casey Daniel ’07, PhD, MPH 

Director of Epidemiology and Public Health 

Assistant Professor of Family Medicine, University of South Alabama College 

of Medicine 

University of South Alabama Mitchell Cancer Institute 

Chair, Alabama Comprehensive Cancer Coalition 

BSC Outstanding Young Alumni Award Recipient, 2020 

“As an active member of the global health community where the mission of 

our team is capacity-building for cancer diagnostics to reach every patient 

around the world, COVID-19 eliminated my ability to travel domestically and 

internationally. Rather than let this stop what we can do, our team refocused 

on the virtual tools of communication that we had already been using for many 

years with renewed approaches to providing training, securing equipment, and 

getting multiple sites online with our member volunteers. Working closely with 

the WHO, CDC, and our own member experts, we spent much of our time 

during the pandemic connecting the correct information about testing and 

testing strategies to laboratories domestically and around the world.” 

Dan Milner, Jr. ’95, MD, MSc(Epi) 

Chief Medical Officer, American Society of Clinical Pathology 

“COVID-19 has forced us to be flexible in thought and execution, and we have 

gotten very good at rapid cycle change as it relates to our regular business 

processes and activities. Improving communication with staff as well as our 

patients and families through the use of social media, Zoom, and telemedicine 

has been key. And improving and expanding our supply chain around personal 

protective equipment and other supplies has been crucial in allowing us to 

continue to safely provide needed patient care.” 

Sandra Barker Thurmond ’84, MSHA, FACHE, CMPE 

Vice President of Primary Care, Children’s of Alabama 

Member, BSC Board of Trustees 

BSC Distinguished Alumni Award Recipient, 2019 

“Having served Butler County, Ohio – population 380,000 – for 43 years as 

its Commissioner of Health and Medical Director, and having had experience 

with handling every pandemic since Swine Influenza in 1975, it was natural 

that I emerge from retirement. So I returned to work as consultant to 

the Butler County Health Department when news broke out that SARS- 

COVID-19 was declared culpable for causing what has turned out to be the 

worst pandemic since the Spanish Influenza of 1918. I have provided guidance 

on COVID-19 to them since February, as well as advising the Ohio House 

State representative for my district, our representative in Congress, and even 

Gov. Mike DeWine, who follows my daily blogs. But none of those important 

activities compares with the honor of serving BSC as part of an advisory 

scientific panel assembled by President Coleman, to assist on opening the 

College this fall, and keeping students, faculty, and staff safe.” 

Robert Lerer ’66, MD, FAAP 

Associate Clinical Professor, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine 

BSC Distinguished Alumni Award Recipient, 2016 

Sandra Barker Thurmond 

Casey Daniel 

Robert Lerer 

Dan Milner, Jr. 


(l to r) Brianne Kendall, Hannah Jackson, 

and Rose Simpson 

“Today my world is …” 

Broadway may be closed, theaters worldwide may 

be empty, but the stage lights came up in October for 

Birmingham-Southern College Theatre’s fall production, 

“Made in America.” 

“Made in America,” the BSC Theatre Department’s 

brainchild, is a work born out of passion, anger, fear, and 

vulnerability that provided students the opportunity to 

speak out. Under the guidelines of creating a five-minute 

monologue using the prompt “Today my world is ... ,” the 

students delivered. 

Bygone are the days of escapism entertainment – “Made 

in America” is a raw look into the lived experiences of 

today’s collegians. 

“My piece is titled ‘Like This Before.’ I titled it this 

because I have never seen a revolution happen right outside 

my window,” says first-year student Hannah Jackson. 

“I grew up reading stories about young people rising for 

the good of all, but I never thought that I would experience 

it. My whole reality, perspective, everything feels chaotic 

during this time.” 

Instead of walking around in another character’s shoes, 

this work provided an opportunity for students to walk 

around in their own for a bit and process the events of the 

past six months through a medium they love. 

“It’s easier to play a character I identify with,” senior 

Brianne Kendall says. “But now it’s just me.” 

Producing the live theatre performance was not easy. 

Within the careful parameters of health and safety, 

rehearsals were carried out via Zoom and in person 

interaction was limited to tech week. 

Despite the uniqueness of the times, BSC junior Rose 

Simpson reflects on her piece’s impact with hopefulness. 

I want to bring joy, positivity, and 

love to the audience. I want them 

to remember what it’s like to be 

human, and how we are all trying 

to make it in this world. 

“I want to bring joy, positivity, and love to the 

audience. I want them to remember what it’s like 

to be human, and how we are all trying to make it 

in this world. I want them to go out and love each 

other again, and I want to inspire acts of service in 

others. So that, maybe with a domino effect, we can 

spread love, and joy, while taking care of others in 

our world.” 

It is no secret that everyone has been affected by 

the last six months’ events. In honoring the student 

voice through a work like this, the audience is 

invited to acknowledge today’s climate as well as the 

inherent “worthiness” in continuing to fight for a 

better world, Kendall says. She calls for freedom and 

discourse, while acknowledging that the person she 

presents on stage is not the Brianne most people will come into contact with on a given day. 

The same rings true for all members of the ensemble. Each has held three online oneon-one 

rehearsals and a week of fine tuning, so very different from the many face-to-face 

hours usually spent on building, blocking, and memorizing. 

Instead of orchestration, sets, and costumes, the simplicity speaks to Hannah Jackson’s 

belief that this show is, “a way of showing that it is OK to feel the way we do. That 

through each piece the audience will feel a burden being lifted knowing that they are not 

the only ones struggling, but that we are all in this together.” 

It may not be a fairytale, but it is our story. 

– Written by Cosette Bolt, BSC Class of 2021 

Watch the Oct. 25 performance of “Made in America” online at bsc.edu/theatrechannel. 



G NKGOES 

IN BIRMINGHAM 

Fall at Birmingham-Southern is not complete without the ginkgo trees turning 

gold and dropping their leaves on the ground near Munger Hall and Stockham 

Building. It’s an iconic campus scene, yet some alumni have found a way to take that 

experience home. 

When Professor Emeritus Dr. Bob Whetstone ’55 retired in 2001, he decided to 

collect a few ginkgo seedlings as a retirement gift. From his time as a student to his 

service as an education professor and associate dean, Whetstone remembers passing 

around stories about the ginkgo and seeing faculty pin the fallen leaves to their 

lapels. 

“As a going-away present, I went ahead and picked up about eight of those very 

smelly seeds and took them home and planted them in pots,” Whetstone says. “I did 

that as a memorial of the College.” 

That winter, he left the seeds out to freeze on his back porch, and all of them 

sprouted. Whetstone kept some for himself and his wife, Jenelle Henley Whetstone 

’74, and gave one plant to each of his three children, LuAnn Whetstone Hodges 

’82, Mari Whetstone Newton ’89, and Robert Denton Whetstone ’91, all graduates 

of the College. 

After planting three trees in his yard in Hoover, Ala., and eventually having to 

dig up two, one ginkgo tree still stands at least 30 feet tall. He says not even the 

ginkgoes that line Hoover’s municipal drive are as tall as his 20-year-old offspring 

of the campus ginkgoes. Each of his three children also planted their trees, though 

only Newton still lives in the same home as her tree in Vestavia Hills. 

These trees symbolize the impact BSC has had on Whetstone and his family over 

the past 70 years. 

“They look ancient, but they’re actually the same age as me,” Greer Real Tirrill ’79 

said about the trees, which were planted the year she was born. 

The male and female ginkgo trees on campus were a gift from Mary Griffin Johns 

Doster ’52 in memory of Tirrill’s mother, Frances Sensabaugh Real ’55, who passed 

away in 1957 at the age of 23. The trees stand as a physical reminder of the family’s 

legacy – Tirrill says that, in the 1952 Southern Accent yearbook alone, you can see 

her grandfather, Dr. Leon F. Sensabaugh, as chair of the social sciences department, 

her grandmother, Mary Holmes Sensabaugh, as the dean of women, and both her 

mother and father, Dr. Jack D. Real ’53, as students. 

“The trees have become a symbol of legacy and a symbol of giving to a school that 

means so much to so many of us,” Tirrill said. 

Have you planted a seed from the BSC ginkgo trees, or know someone 

who has? We’d love to hear your story and find other ginkgo siblings around 

Birmingham. Email [email protected]. 



alum stories 

LEADING 

LIVES OF 

SIGNIFICANCE 

irmingham-Southern graduates shape their careers through dedicated leadership 

and service in their communities – especially during a time like no other. Even 

within a global pandemic, alumni announced new publications and groundbreaking 

organizations, raised millions for city-wide reform, and helped make public protests 

and events more inclusive spaces for everyone. Keep reading to get a glimpse at what members 

of the BSC family are doing all over the country. 

Surfing the WAVES 

Renée Brown ’83 met Harvey Harmon 

’82 on the Hilltop – though, as she 

says, they didn’t actually meet, because 

at BSC you just know everybody. The 

pre-med majors married after their 

first year in medical school, completed 

residencies together in Charleston, and 

then returned to Birmingham to open a 

family practice together. 

Together: working, living, raising two 

daughters and a series of dogs, engaging 

in church life, taking adventurous family 

vacations, all on a detailed plan that 

allowed each to play an equal role at home 

and in the office. As their girls moved 

toward the teen years, Renée and Harvey 

began thinking about what might come 

next: Downsizing, yes; retiring at 65, yes; 

relocating, maybe; traveling, for sure. 

Life was smooth sailing with Renée and 

Harvey together at the helm. 

But in 2010, at age 50, Harvey was 

diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s 

Disease – a particularly cruel form of the 

group of disorders that cause dementia 

because it strikes in the prime of life. Only 

five to six percent of people diagnosed 

with Alzheimer’s show symptoms before 

age 65. And while some medications 

are thought to slow the progression of 

Alzheimer’s, no research has yet revealed 

enough of the why to develop a cure. 

Smooth sailing gave way to what 

Renée ultimately chose as the title of her 

book, “Surfing the Waves of Alzheimer’s: 

Principles of Caring That Kept Me Upright” 

(Many Hats Publishing, 2020). Anyone 

who has experience with Alzheimer’s or 

other forms of dementia will recognize the 

metaphor, for there are ups and downs for 

both patient and caregiver, and frequent 

waves rough enough to knock you down 

and pull you under. 

Renée describes her book as a “teaching 

memoir,” combining how-tos with how- 

I-did-its to produce a moving and highly 

personal account of the nine years between 

Harvey’s diagnosis and his death. 

Although she remembers telling her 

medical school interviewer that one of her 

three life goals was to write a book (the 

second was to fly a plane, and she can’t recall 

the third now), she didn’t think “Surfing” 

would be that book. 

“Since talking about emotions 

wasn’t Harvey’s thing, I had found it 

enormously helpful to use journals 

to capture what was happening and 

express what I was feeling, even cry out 

my sorrow and anger,” she says. “Then 

I was invited to give a 45-minute talk 

at a conference on Alzheimer’s, and as I 

began to organize my thoughts, I drew 

from those journals. And after a while 

I realized I had enough material for a 

book that could really help people.” 

Each chapter focuses on a principle of 

caregiving that emerged for Renée, Harvey, 

daughters Elena and Christina ’18, and their 

extended families, including Renée’s sister 

Andrea Brown Hubbert ‘88. A network of 

friends did for the Harmons what was needed, 

at the right time, often without being asked: 

food, of course, but also companionship, dogwalking, 

sitting with Harvey so Renée could 

play keyboards at church, giving her time away 

when she needed it most, even getting Harvey to 

Elena’s wedding despite his advanced decline. 

“I’m not very good at asking for help, 

especially specific help, but every time I 

expressed a concern, it was met by our friends, 

our family, and our church family,” she says. 

“That taught me to recognize moments of true 

grace, and to let those moments lift me when 

I needed it.” 

Each chapter ends with a set of practices 

for caregivers – the “teaching” part of this 

teaching memoir. The prompts can guide 

journaling and may help families talk about 

what is happening – which can be hard – and 

remember better times. 

“If I felt that I was sinking, swamped by my 

emotions and the never-ending list of things 

that needed to be done, I would metaphorically 

drag myself out of the ocean and lie down on 

my surfboard for a bit – taking a walk, playing 

the piano, reading a poem,” Renée writes in 

the introduction. “It is my hope that by reading 

these stories, you, too, can ride the waves of 

whatever ocean you find yourself in.” 

“Surfing the Waves of Alzheimer’s” is available 

on Amazon. Follow her blog at www. 

reneeharmon.com 




HOPE 

HAPPENS 

About three years ago, when Greg King ’96 was selected to lead 

the 2020 United Way of Central Alabama Campaign, he knew their 

fundraising strategy would look different during an election year. 

However, he had no idea that he and his team would drastically 

change their plans to persist throughout a global pandemic – and 

still support the Birmingham community. 

The 2020 annual campaign theme was “Because of You Hope 

Happens,” and King and his team worked hard to share how 

Birmingham area companies and organizations can help inspire hope 

throughout the community. The United Way of Central Alabama 

(UWCA) supports more than 80 agencies that provide services like 

quality healthcare, education, and financial development, and their 

campaign each year is crucial to funding these services. 

“I wanted to build a veteran team of folks who have a passion for the 

organization and who’ve held leadership roles in the past,” King says. 

“That strategy has served us well with the onset of the pandemic and as 

we do things dramatically different.” 

Before chairing the annual campaign, King has served the UWCA 

for years, first as a donor. He then served on the board of Pathways, 

a United Way agency for women and children experiencing 

homelessness in Birmingham, and joined the United Way board. 

He led the Pacesetter Campaign in 2013 and served on numerous 

committees, leading to his role as campaign chair in 2020. 

“The reach and the efficiency that the United Way has throughout 

our community maximizes impact through each of their 

organizations,” he says. “I saw this early on, and I always felt that 

through the dollars I was able to donate, I was able to touch a lot of 

need throughout the community.” 

By the end of March 2020, King and his team were preparing for 

visits to Birmingham workplaces, but they realized that the campaign 

would not operate under normal circumstances. Meetings with 

UWCA staff and volunteers that would have taken place over the 

summer and fall all went virtual. 

“We’ve had to completely rewrite the playbook,” King says. “But 

the community has been resilient. Birmingham, for a long time, 

has run a very robust United Way campaign, and people have really 

stepped up in 2020.” 

King, executive vice president and Alabama regional president 

at First Horizon Bank, has enjoyed has enjoyed collaborating with 

campaign leaders and volunteers on creative ways to share their 

message virtually. For the virtual kickoff, the team partnered with 

meteorologist James Spann and several community partners to create 

the Hope Happens Network, their imitation news channel that 

captured more than 450 social media participants. 

During the campaign, the needs of the Birmingham community 

increased due to high unemployment rates and food shortages. King’s 

team saw an incredible turnout in support in response. At the end of 

August, the United Way wrapped their pacesetter campaign and saw 

an increase of nearly $500,000 in funds raised from last year’s total. By 

November, the team surpassed their goal of $34.5 million. 

“Birmingham is such a generous community and always has been,” 

he says. “I’ve been so proud of the team and honored to be a part of 

it as the needs in the community have never been greater.” 

Advocating for Mental Health Care Reform 

Bill Smith ’96 is thinking about his mental health — 

and yours, too — as a matter of public policy. In May 

2020, he launched Inseparable, a coalition organization 

with a simple but ambitious agenda — increasing access 

to care, advocating for research, investing in prevention 

and early intervention, and driving a comprehensive 

plan. That policy jargon comes out of an essential idea 

that mental health care is health care. 

“The name Inseparable comes out of a two-fold 

idea,” Smith says. “One is that the health of our mind 

is inseparable from our body. Two is that if we come 

together and create a political force to create a movement 

for change, we’re inseparable.” 

Smith grew up in Eufaula, Ala., in a BSC legacy family. 

“My older brother Jack went to Birmingham-Southern 

and my father was a Methodist delegate to the board,” 

he says. His niece Sutton Smith is BSC’s 2020-21 Student 

Government Association president. 

If BSC has awarded a few hundred degrees in political 

science in the last 30 years, dozens of those former polisci 

majors became lawyers and judges, or zigzagged into 

careers unrelated to politics or science. Smith did none of 

those things. 

“I used to joke with Natalie Davis that I’m one of 

the few people with a political science major who 

actually does politics,” Smith says. “I went straight into 

campaigns and elections right after school.” 

His first job was on a multimillion-dollar Alabama 

Supreme Court campaign that he described as “a baptism 

by fire into politics.” Campaigns are, inevitably, partisan, 

but as his career advanced, Smith discovered that the 

work that meant the most to him centered on policy. 

“I figured out that I cared about issues a lot more 

than I cared about politicians,” he says. “Not that 

there aren’t some good politicians. I wouldn’t be 

working in the system if I didn’t believe there were. 

But it’s a lot more rewarding to work for causes than 

to work for candidates.” 

Smith started out working for Republicans, became 

an independent, and then ultimately a Democrat. 

In 2004, he became the political director of the Gill 

Foundation, a funding organization that works to 

secure full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and 

transgender people. 

“I spent years and years taking the skills I’d learned 

from the campaign and election world and applying 

them to the fight for marriage equality,” he says. 

The effort demanded a combination of philosophical 

commitment and practical action. Smith, who describes 

himself as “a social justice Methodist,” attributes a lot of 

his drive for such work to his time on the Hilltop. 

“The idea of service to causes bigger than yourself 

—that was fairly well planted in me at Birmingham- 

Southern,” he says. “We put together the hearts-andminds 

work that we needed to do to move the needle on 

marriage equality, but we also put together the political 

power that we needed to win a public policy battle.” 

Mental health is his second front, but his background as a strategist accounts for 

only part of his purpose. Two years ago, Smith’s brother Abb Jackson “Jack” Smith II 

‘93 died by suicide. 

“It was devastating for my entire family,” he says, “but the thing is, there are 

millions of families that are devastated by this.” 

In his grief he reflected on what it took to build a political movement. 

“When we were starting Inseparable, what we saw and wanted to tap into is that we 

really need a mental health care system that allows us to all take better care of each 

other,” he says. 

The hands-on tactics to create such a system expanded access through parity, 

integration, and workforce development. In other words, mental health care should 

be affordable, widely available in community and clinical settings, and provided by 

professionals who can reach under-served populations. 

At the helm of Inseparable, Smith is continuing work that his brother started. Jack 

was a journalist and blogger who wrote hundreds of stories about depression and 

mental health. 

“He was somebody who believed that you can make a difference in the world,” 

Smith says. “I’m confident that he would be very happy with me doing the work that 

I’m doing.” 

A GROWING COALITION 

In addition to Bill Smith, Inseparable’s leadership includes co-founder Zak Williams, 

son of the late actor and comedian Robin Williams, who died by suicide in 2014, 

and a broad and diverse advisory board — medical practitioners, recovering addicts, 

people with personal or family experience of mental illness. “As we built out the 

board, it was intentionally a diverse group of people who are grounded not just in the 

science and policy, but also in the reality that everyday people face around mental 

health,” Smith says. 

Learn more at inseparable.us. 


A Hilltop 

TRIBUTE 

In 2017, Abe Fawal donated more 

than 200 volumes to the BSC 

Library. These rare and highly 

specialized volumes have been 

invaluable for BSC students’ 

research, especially in the field of 

Arabic Studies. 

Natural teacher, lifelong learner, masterful storyteller, and loving father 

— BSC alum and retired professor Ibrahim “Abe” Salem Fawal ’54 fulfilled 

many roles in his 87 years. 

Born to Salem Mansour Fawal and Fareedeh Ankar Fawal on July 29, 1933, 

in Ramallah, Palestine, Fawal immigrated to the United States in 1951, where 

he graduated from BSC with a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre in 1954. After BSC, 

Fawal went on to earn his Master of Arts in Film at UCLA before working as 

first assistant director on the classic film “Lawrence of Arabia.” 

After marrying in Ramallah in 1961, Fawal and his wife, Rose Rahib, settled 

in Birmingham, where they raised four children: Salem, Gina ’86, Freeda ’89, 

and Rima ’90. 

“Dad was always teaching us — enriching our vocabulary, perfecting our 

grammar, explaining history and world affairs, encouraging us to think 

critically and creatively, introducing us to new ideas, and most importantly, 

teaching us by his own example the importance of diligence and resilience in 

pursuit of a goal,” says Freeda Fawal-Farah ’89. 

Back in Birmingham, Fawal continued his work in the film industry. After 

becoming a U.S. citizen in 1967, he spent the 1970s establishing the first 

Alabama-based film studio, Interlock Film Studio. Through Interlock, Fawal 

produced a variety of award-winning documentaries and eventually cofounded 

the Birmingham International Educational Film Festival, where he 

served as chair. 

Even while he was away, BSC remained a major influence for Fawal. 

“Dad was the first in our family to attend BSC, paving the way for nearly 

a dozen more family members. He valued the college’s academic rigor and 

liberal arts environment, and he took pride in having such a fine institution 

in Birmingham,” says Gina Fawal Jaber ’86. 

His youngest daughter, Rima Fawal Hartman ’90, adds, “Dad enjoyed 

remaining connected to BSC long after he graduated, not just by sending 

us there, but also by joining the faculty to teach literature, writing, and 

film, and by being a founder, chair, and 26-year advisory board member of 

BSC’s Writing Today Conference. Dad felt a strong bond of loyalty to BSC 

throughout his life.” 

Salem Fawal says, “Dad was intellectually curious and never stopped 

learning new things. He surrounded himself with books, many of which he 

later donated to the BSC library.” 

In 1998, after decades of dedication and toil, Fawal’s journey as a storyteller 

and advocate for the Palestinian people culminated in the publication of 

his first novel, “On the Hills of God,” a work of historical fiction set in 

1948 Palestine, as three lifelong friends (one Muslim, one Jewish, and one 

Christian) seek to defy religious labels and politics and stay bound to one 

another in friendship. Described by his children as “Dad’s loving tribute to 

his homeland and his proudest professional achievement,” “On the Hills of 

God” won the prestigious PEN Oakland Award for Excellence in Literature. Its 

sequel, “The Disinherited,” describes the experiences of the Palestinians after 

their diaspora. 

At the age of 63, Fawal enrolled at the University of Oxford, where he 

earned his doctorate examining Arab culture through the lens of the Egyptian 

filmmaker Youssef Chahine. He compiled his research into a book, “Youssef 

Chahine,” which was published by the British Film Institute in 2001. 

On August 11, 2020, Abe Fawal passed away in his home, surrounded by 

family. A member of St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, he is remembered as 

an intellectual leader and a charming and humorous man who added a spark 

of creativity to everything he touched. His legacy of pursuing peace and justice 

lives on in the hearts of his friends and family, and his influence on BSC and 

beyond has made him an everlasting pillar in the history of the College. 

Kenton Myers ’11 believes that the only way to achieve positive 

change is if everyone has the opportunity to learn and understand. 

After graduating from BSC, Myers became a full-time freelance 

Spanish interpreter. He soon found that he had trouble 

communicating with deaf consumers at a facility he frequently 

served. His frustration inspired him to volunteer at a center for 

deaf services, where he learned American Sign Language (ASL) and 

eventually became a certified ASL interpreter. 

Now one of only four Black certified ASL interpreters in Alabama, 

Myers uses his skills to communicate with the deaf and hard-of-hearing 

community during local protests against racism and police brutality. 

“I am faced with racism in my everyday life and even within the 

interpreting community. I, personally, feel compelled to interpret 

these events,” Myers says. “I want the painful stories and testimonies 

to come off of black and brown hands.” 

As a seasoned Spanish and ASL interpreter used to one-onone 

communication, Myers must take a different approach when 

interpreting during protests. 

“Challenges for interpreting protests include large crowds with 

Signs of 

CHANGE 

highly emotional people and hypervigilant police officers already 

on the defense to ‘control’ the situation, potentially being harmed 

by white antagonists, vicarious trauma … the list goes on. When 

interpreting these protests in a time when everything is on social 

media, the world is watching.” 

In light of mask-wearing due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Myers’ 

role is more vital than ever. 

“Sign language is a visual language,” Myers says. “It uses face and 

body movements as part of its grammar. For example, as hearing 

people, we can hear tone and voice inflection and determine 

emotions or temperament. That is what facial expressions do 

for sign language. A mask takes away a high percentage of that 

communication.” 

While masks are a necessary safety precaution, they can lengthen 

the divide between hearing and deaf communities in a time when 

unity is essential to survival. Myers seeks to bridge this gap. 

“Though it is extremely challenging emotionally, I feel a 

responsibility to get up there every time and give it everything I have 

for the cause.” 




Virtual Book Clubs: A Deeper Understanding 

In June, the Office of Alumni Engagement launched BSC’s firstever 

Summer Virtual Book Clubs, inviting alumni, faculty, staff, and 

the larger community to connect online during social distancing and 

explore critical elements of American society, history, and culture. 

Earlier that month, President Daniel B. Coleman had released a 

statement regarding societal unrest and protests, and shortly afterward 

the virtual clubs were born. 

“As an institution of higher learning focused on the liberal arts, we 

believe in the power of education, and we encourage all to seek out 

knowledge of the issues that challenge our country and our society,” 

Coleman wrote. “There are many ways to do that, including listening 

to the voices speaking out during this time of unrest, reading the works 

of African American writers, seeking out works by African American 

visual and performing artists, and examining the history of our own 

institutions and hometowns.” 

Putting knowledge-seeking into action, the summer book clubs 

focused on inspiring a deeper understanding of race, racism, and equal 

justice through five books, each chosen for its Birmingham connection 

or context. BSC alumni and members of the Birmingham community 

served as facilitators and each club was limited to 12 participants. 

Sherry Brundidge ’92 participated in the book club for “Four 

Spirits” by Sena Jeter Naslund ’63. 

“I am always interested in reading and discussing books. When I first 

received correspondence about the book club, I saw that a member of 

my sorority Delta Sigma Theta would be a facilitator,” she says. “I had 

not spoken with her in a while, so I was happy about the opportunity to 

reconnect with her.” 

Brundidge also chose “Four Spirits” because the author attended BSC, 

and the novel takes place in Birmingham. The story follows Stella Silver, 

an idealistic white college student in Birmingham sent reeling off her 

measured path by events of 1963; African American Christine Taylor, a 

single parent, night school teacher, and political activist, discovering she 

must heal her own bruised heart to actualize meaningful social change; 

and child Edmund Powers, who embodies hope for future change. 

Brundidge says, “I was interested in sharing my remembrance of that 

time in our history. I know a lot of the places and people are fictional, 

but it’s interesting to see how they were portrayed by the author.” 

The summer book club was so successful that it was repeated in the 

fall – this time Brundidge, along with Mary Lucas Powell ’67, was a 

facilitator for the “Four Spirits” book club. The clubs were expanded to 

include five books on pandemics. BSC’s winter book club highlighted 

a feel-good family classic and one of our favorite Hilltop families – 

Betty Gunn ’60 and her daughter Dr. Amelia Gunn Spencer ’85, 

BSC associate professor of education, led a book club discussion of 

“Little Women.” 

“The Hilltop’s goal is to develop leaders who develop, learn, and 

engage in the wider world,” says Rachel Estes, a facilitator for the 

“Four Spirits” summer book club. “Our discussion could have gone 

on another two hours as we explored what has happened, what is 

happening, and what our role in creating change can and should be.” 

Special thanks to our 2020 book club facilitators: Melanie 

Bridgeforth, Sherry Brundidge ’92, Brooke Coleman, Dr. Amy Cottrill, 

Dr. Walter Dowdle, Lane Estes, Rachel Estes, Linda Flaherty-Goldsmith, 

Katie Glenn ’11, Sima Lal Gupta ’99, Renée Harmon ’83, Kristin 

Harper ’92, Elvin Hilyer ’69, Terrence Ingram ’09, Dr. Jessica 

Pincham King, Rachael Lee ’02, Virginia Gilbert Loftin, Beth Martin 

’92, Bernard Mays ’04, Andrea McCaskey, Evan Milligan ’03, Denzel 

Okinedo ’16, Mary Lucas Powell ’67, Hanna Schock ’83, Lenore 

Vickrey ’74, Jennifer H. Waters ’86, Mary Kate Waters-Wright ’15, 

and Dr. Kristie Williams. 

A Day of Community and Caring 

Forward Ever Day 2020 brought the entire Birmingham-Southern community together 

across the country and world, resulting in a record-breaking day of support for current 

students. 

During a time of uncertainty last spring, we recognized Forward Ever Day as a Day of 

Community on April 2, 2020. While we focused on the event’s impact on campus and 

student 

RECOMMENDED 

life, we also celebrated our broader BSC 

READING 

network of alumni and friends who were 

caring for their own communities during the onset of COVID-19. 

“Forward Ever Day is always about our community, but our 2020 celebration was 

“The Color of Law” by Richard Rothstein 

especially meaningful,” says Sarah-Kate Masters Roberts ’11, director of annual giving. 

“The End of October” by Lawrence Wright 

“We saw members of the BSC family give back in whatever way they could. Your support 

“Four Spirits” by Sena Jeter Naslund 

allowed us to be flexible when our students needed you most.” 

“Homegoing” by Yaa Gyasi 

The Forward Ever Day grand total was $325,433, making 2020 the first year to ever 

“How to Be an Antiracist” by Ibram X. Kendi 

pass $300,000 in total gifts. The majority of gifts funded student scholarships, but the 

“Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption” by Bryan Stevenson 

Forward Ever Fund also awarded $88,925 in additional support to students whose 

“Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How It Changed the World” by 

financial needs were affected by COVID-19. 

Laura Spinney 

Both in spring and fall 2020, Forward Ever Day gifts provided financial assistance for 

“The Pull of the Stars” by Emma Donoghue 

students, technology for online and hybrid classes, and equipment for maintaining a safe 

“Some of My Best Friends Are Black: The Strange Story of Integration in 

environment for in-person classes. This academic year, students are learning in science 

America” by Tanner Colby 

labs, studios, and outdoor rehearsal spaces on campus thanks to these gifts. 

“Station Eleven” by Emily St. John Mandel 

Forward Ever Day 2020 also marked a strong showing of support for our alumni. 

“Year of Wonders” by Geraldine Brooks 

Members of our community supported small businesses with BSC connections, took 

time to share old photos and call old college friends, and read stories about what fellow 

graduates are doing in their communities. 

Throughout the day, we featured alumni who cared for others in times of crisis. Corbin 

Burns ’14 worked hard to provide COVID-19 tests as the sole provider for Trussville 

Urgent Care, which was the first privately owned clinic to offer drive-thru testing in the 

greater Birmingham area. John Boone ’06 and Hunter Renfroe ’08, owners of Orchestra 

Partners, offered a comprehensive rent holiday to their small, local business tenants in 

Birmingham. More than 20 alumni like Kelly Horton Kean ’87 and Tamara Harper ’06 

made masks to donate to essential workers. (Read more about them in our cover story.) 

These alumni, among many others, demonstrated the commitment the BSC family has 

to the College and to their communities beyond the Hilltop. We’re grateful to those who 

gave in so many different ways to take part in our celebration. 

INTERESTED? 

Interested in participating in a future 

virtual book club? Contact us at 

[email protected]. 




“ 

“ 

THOSE BOYS FROM BIRMINGHAM 

LOOK LIKE A PACK OF PANTHERS. 

In the early days, the athletic teams that 

competed for Birmingham-Southern glory were 

known simply by their colors. But in 1916 in 

a game against Spring Hill, an anonymous 

spectator bestowed a nickname that would stick. 

“Those boys from Birmingham look like a pack 

of panthers.” The game ended in a shutout 

and a legend was born. 

This year, we’re celebrating 40 years of beloved panther and 

Birmingham-Southern mascot, Rowdy. Yes, the panther has been 

a part of the College for much longer, but it took a “Name the 

Panther” contest and a promising cash reward to finally identify our 

fearless feline. 

Flashback to 1980, during basketball season: David Rikard was 

in his second year at BSC and remembers walking through the 

student center, seeing a contest entry box for naming the mascot, 

and entering on a whim. 

“I was perpetually broke at that point, and I wasn’t going to pass up 

an opportunity to make a little money,” Rikard says. 

As he sorted through possible options to submit, he thought about 

college swimmer (and future Olympic gold medalist) Ambrose 

“Rowdy” Gaines, paired with a cheer he remembered from Vestavia 

Hills High School about “getting rowdy.” 

Not too long after he submitted his idea, a friend shouted at Rikard 

across the quad and told him he’d just won the “Name the Panther” 

contest, which was announced at that night’s basketball game. Rowdy 

was officially named, beginning a 40-year legacy at the College. 

Rikard transferred from BSC later that academic year, but he 

has always treasured the community and memories he made on 

the Hilltop. His three terms at the College were filled with great 

friendships, especially among his Sigma Alpha Epsilon brothers, as 

well as academic challenges. 

“I was the first person in my family to go to college, and everything 

was brand new and overwhelming,” Rikard says. “I remember a level 

of consideration, compassion, and empathy from my professors that 

went beyond the standard. I gained a confidence to trust myself.” 

He ended up graduating from the University of Alabama and, 

after moving away for years, eventually returned to Birmingham. 

When he moved back, he met up with fraternity brother Rev. Keith 

Thompson ’83, who at that time was the pastor of First United 

Methodist Church (he is currently the pastor at Canterbury United 

Methodist Church). 

Thompson encouraged Rikard to join the First United Methodist 

community, where he’s still an active member and has reconnected 

with quite a few BSC connections from his time on the Hilltop, 

forming a meaningful and lasting community. 

“None of that would have ever happened without those three 

terms at Birmingham-Southern,” he says. “At that time in my life, 

it was the family that I needed. It was a real privilege to make 

those connections.” 

And along with these friendships, Rikard never forgot about Rowdy. 

A few years ago, he did some research to see if BSC still used the 

Rowdy name and was delighted to see that it has stuck over the years. 

“It’s become something I’m proud of – that I left a little bit of a 

mark, he says. “And now, if I ever meet somebody who’s from BSC, I 

always let them know that I named the panther.” 

David Rikard

2020 

DISTINGUISHED 

ROWDY, REFRESHED 

Rowdy has a new lease on 

life, thanks to an updated 

mascot suit and a closet full 

of BSC gear, formal wear, 

and seasonal accessories. 

The new look was funded 

by a gift from AT&T, thanks 

to BSC Trustee Joelle James 

Phillips ’89, president of 

AT&T Tennessee, and Wayne 

Hutchens MPPM ’89, 

president of AT&T Alabama. 


DR. LAWRENCE 

DURHAM ’63 

While recalling his beginnings on the Hilltop, Dr. Lawrence Durham 

envisions a blue book signed by his freshman English professor with 

the following inscription: “Mr. Durham, you can write more and say less 

than any student I’ve ever had. F.” 

While Durham accompanies this story with a generous eye-roll, he 

must admit that the comment still impacts him today. 

“There’s no telling how many times he employed that same tactic 

over his career,” Durham says. “And, there’s no telling how many times 

I’ve remembered it over my career.” 

Not one to let his failures prevent future success or (thanks to 

his professor) waste words that are not backed by action, Durham 

occupied a variety of roles throughout his illustrious career. In 

explaining his career path, Durham reflects back to advice from 

broadcaster and author Art Linkletter at a Munger Auditorium 

convocation: “He advised us to change jobs whenever we ceased to 

enjoy them ... His advice often came to mind as varying professional 

opportunities arose.” 

After holding faculty and staff positions at BSC — as director of 

development — and the University of Alabama and two management 

positions in the nuclear power industry, Durham decided in 1997 

to branch out into business consulting as founder and president of 

Sterling Learning Services, Inc. Before his 2007 retirement, Durham 

served 60 organizations in 30 different countries. 

Holding postdoctoral degrees and certifications in multiple fields, 

Durham credits his time at BSC for fostering his lifelong love of 

learning and equipping him with tools to explore within the realm of 

his natural curiosities. He says that, while many of the courses he took 

at BSC taught him his limits, some, like Music Appreciation — which 

he says “enriched my life more than any other single course” — added 

new dimensions to his identity, both as a person and a professional. 

From teaching mathematics at the U.S. Nuclear Power School 

during the Vietnam Era to working as a Process Control Engineer for 

Monsanto, Durham points to the liberal arts mindset in preparing him 

to take on the task at hand. He says, “In each of those situations, other 

liberal arts courses came to bear: from English to French; psychology 

to philosophy; history to economics; physics to chemistry; sociology to 

political science. When I created my own consulting firm, I did so with 

confidence that I was ready. BSC had equipped this Eagle Scout well to 

live up to the Boy Scout Motto: ‘Be Prepared.’” Durham is married to 

Anne Stimson Durham ‘65. 

DR. TONDRA 

LODER-JACKSON ’89 

Although choosing BSC meant staying close to her Birmingham 

family, Dr. Tondra Loder-Jackson wanted to find a home on the 

Hilltop. Through the Black Student Union (BSU) and her sorority, 

Alpha Kappa Alpha, she was able to do just that. 

“One of my proudest moments was joining ranks with the BSU to 

advocate for racial diversity in the SGA,” Loder-Jackson says. “Our 

advocacy resulted in two BSU representatives being named to the 

SGA. Being part of the Panhellenic Council enlightened me to racial 

and cultural tensions in campus Greek life.” 

Advocating for on-campus equal representation was just the 

beginning. Loder-Jackson is now a professor in UAB’s Educational 

Foundations and African American Studies programs and the 

founder and former director of the UAB Center for Urban Education. 

She has published extensively on Birmingham’s civil rights and 

education history, African American education, and urban education. 

Published in 2015, her most notable work, “Schoolhouse Activists: 

African American Education and the Long Birmingham Civil Rights 

Movement,” explores the power that educators in the 1960s and today 

have as activists in a system that grapples for educational justice. 

She credits professors such as Drs. Edward Lamonte, Jane Archer, 

Bill Nicholas, William Ramsey, and Charles Moore in shaping her 

academic and professional trajectory. One Honors Program course, 

“The Urban Experience,” further influenced her by showing her the 

interconnectedness of urban culture and politics. 

“We traveled to the New Orleans Jazz Festival and learned 

about the diversity of urban history, politics, and policy across the 

United States.” 

A strong believer in knowing one’s history, Loder-Jackson 

challenges the BSC community — alumni, faculty, and students 

alike — to learn more about the College’s role in the Civil Rights 

Movement. She calls BSC’s 2019 establishment of a Distinction in 

Black Studies program “a watershed moment in the history of BSC” 

that she hopes will evolve into a major and its own department of 

multicultural studies. 

“Every BSC student should know the pantheon of BSC civil 

rights trailblazers: former President Henry King Stanford, Marti 

Turnipseed, Skip Bennett, and, more recently, Bernard Mays, Jr. As 

students learn this history, they can determine where they fit within 

BSC’s trajectory of making a difference in Birmingham and beyond.” 


DR. MICHAEL 

CALLAHAN ’67 

Even before coming to BSC at just 16 years old, Dr. 

Michael Callahan was influenced by his father to pursue 

science and art. 

Callahan’s first exposure to his twin passions happened in 

his childhood living room, surrounded by his five siblings with 

the lights turned off and sheets covering the living room 

windows to block out the light. 

“Our father was a physician and exposed us to the 

medical field by showing movies of his operations at 

home on weekends,” he says. “On Sunday afternoons, 

these movies were often followed by photographic slide 

lectures series he obtained from museums, like ‘Great 

Masterpieces of the Louvre.’” 

Callahan’s passions then flourished on the Hilltop, where 

small classes and relationships with professors felt just like 

he was at home. 

“Small is better than big, especially for a 16-year-old 

freshman entering college,” Callahan says. “At BSC, 

I was able to grow as an in individual in many ways by 

participating in an inspiring community and having a deep 

and memorable relationship with professors who became 

my mentors.” 

Now Callahan is a professor of ophthalmology at the 

University of Alabama and president of the International 

Retinal Research Foundation, and has provided care to 

patients in underprivileged areas in the U.S. and around 

the world. He still points to his BSC professors — notably 

Drs. Ken Ford, Paul Bailey, and Dan Holliman — and the 

way they interacted with others on a personal level as a 

major influence on his own life. 

“Whatever success I have in this life, I owe to their 

confidence in me. In my role at a teaching hospital, as well 

as in the international missions I have participated in over 

my career, I try to teach and mentor in the same manner.” 

To honor both the sacrifice of their parents and the 

influence of BSC on their education, Callahan and his 

siblings — now physicians, businessmen, lawyers, and 

actors — have established the Eivor and Alston Callahan 

Scholarship, which benefits a BSC pre-med or performing 

arts student. Although, to many, this may seem like an 

odd combination, Dr. Callahan recognizes the benefit of 

BSC’s liberal arts mindset in allowing students to explore 

seemingly contrasting interests in finding their calling. 

“Personally, I developed a passion for ocular plastic 

surgery: a perfect melding of medicine and art,” he says. 

“This would not have happened without my exposure to the 

arts at BSC.” 


advice 

CASEY 

DANIEL ’07 

Hannah Byrne begins each workday at one 

of the most prestigious institutions for history, 

with coffee and a call with her advisor, the 

Smithsonian historian. 

Shortly after receiving her master’s in public 

history from American University, Byrne 

joined the Smithsonian Institution Archives as 

a program assistant. 

“One of the reasons I pursued a career in 

public history is for the variety of tasks I would 

get to do in my work,” she says. 

In her role, Byrne responds to reference 

requests, processes interviews for the oral 

history collection, and conducts original 

research on the history of the Smithsonian 

Institution. She also helps put together public 

exhibits and other specific research projects. 

Her work with the Smithsonian’s Open 

Access Initiative, which holds more than three 

million digital items from the collections, 

stands out as one of her favorite experiences 

so far. In February 2020, as part of the 

initiative, Byrne worked with students from 

Portland, Oregon, who were writing songs on 

early Smithsonian history alongside artists like 

The Decemberists’ Chris Funk. 

These students used material from the 

Open Access collection to create the songs, 

and Byrne provided them with a lesson on 

Smithsonian history to spark some inspiration 

for their songwriting. 

Prior to her current position, Byrne worked 

in archives and historical education at the 

White House Historical Association, the 

Historical Society of Washington, D.C., and 

the Birmingham Public Library. 

“I always knew that I loved history, and I 

loved museums and historic sites, but it wasn’t 

until my sophomore year at BSC that I could 

figure out how to connect those two and 

identify a career,” she says. 

Byrne recognizes how her history professors 

at BSC prepared her for graduate school and 

hands-on historical experience. As a student, 

she held three different internships, which 

helped her find her path in public history. 

“BSC showed me what a career with a 

history degree could mean outside of teaching 

or attending law school,” she says. “I see a 

direct through-line from my time at BSC to 

my current career.” 


BERNARD 

MAYS, JR. ’04 

In his senior year at BSC, Bernard Mays, Jr. made a decision that 

would leave a lasting legacy on the Hilltop: he ran for SGA President. 

Despite being active on campus as a successful accounting major, 

Mays was not the typical face of the SGA that BSC had come 

to expect. Unlike any SGA President in BSC’s history, Mays was 

African American. 

“It was and is one of the most humbling experiences of my life,” Mays 

says. “I was unsure about running at first. I was thinking, ‘Why would you 

do this?’ But I had enough cheerleaders saying, ‘Why not?’” 

Mays’ successful election made him BSC’s first Black SGA President, 

a victory that has impacted the trajectory of his life. After earning his 

master’s degree in accounting from the University of Virginia in 2005 

and becoming a CPA in 2006, Mays went on to become a community 

leader with an impressive career of administering executive financial 

operations across the natural gas, coal, and retail industries. He now 

works at UAB as assistant vice president and controller. 

Mays credits BSC’s liberal arts mindset with giving him an innovative 

edge in his field. 

“My liberal arts education challenged me to get comfortable with 

creative thinking as well as critical thinking. In general, accountants 

are linear thinkers,” he says. “Our goal is to get from point A to B as 

efficiently as possible. That analytical mindset has some advantages, but 

being able to analyze issues through a more creative lens is also helpful.” 

He points to the servant leadership emphasis cultivated at BSC as 

vital to his success as well. “It influences my communication style, how 

I manage teams, and how I prioritize tasks. Most of my ‘soft skills’ were 

sharpened because of my service learning experiences.” 

A bold dreamer whose wife, Stephanie Houston Mays ’04, says 

“wakes up every day with Oprah dreams,” Mays is encouraged by 

the strides BSC has made toward diversity and inclusion since his 

graduation, including expanding the Office of Multicultural Affairs and 

Office of Student Diversity and Inclusion and establishing a Diversity 

Enrichment Team. 

“From my perspective, I believe the College has demonstrated 

a willingness to have difficult conversations around diversity and 

inclusion,” he says. “I recently participated in a BSC Alumni virtual book 

club discussion about the book ‘Some of My Best Friends Are Black’ and 

was inspired, challenged, and encouraged by the engaging dialogue.” 

Mays is especially pleased to see student-led initiatives from 

organizations like the Black Student Union, Black Men’s and Women’s 

Unions, and Cross Cultural Committee. 

“My hope for this generation of minority students is that they will 

be bold in their ambition, confident in their worth, and tenacious in 

all things,” he says. Addressing current minority students at BSC, he 

adds, “My hope is that you have a legacy mindset. A legacy mindset 

will impact the stewardship of your gifts and talents, the consistency 

of your character, and the lasting mark of your contributions to 

your community.” 

RUSSELL 

LEVENSON ’84 

Rev. Dr. Russell Levenson Jr. has carried the lessons he 

learned at Birmingham-Southern, and specifically from BSC 

President Emeritus Dr. Neal Berte, into his work as the fourth 

rector at St. Martin’s, the largest Episcopal church in the 

United States. 2019 Distinguished Alumnus 

“Things I brought Rev. Dr. to the Russell table Levenson that I learned Jr. ’84 at BSC were the 

importance of relationships,” Levenson says. “When I graduated 

from Birmingham-Southern, Rev. Dr. Russell Dr. Levenson Berte awarded Jr. has me carried with the the lessons he learned at Birmingham-Southern, 

President’s Student and specifically Service Award, from BSC one of President my greatest Emeritus honors Dr. Neal Berte, into his work as the fourth 

to be quite honest. rector Dr. at St. Berte Martin’s, was an the incredible largest mentor Episcopal and Church in the United States. 

continues to be “Things to this day. I brought I’ve often to said the if table I didn’t that feel I learned called to at BSC were the importance of 

the ministry, relationships,” I’d still be working Levenson at Birmingham-Southern.” 

says. “When I graduated from Birmingham-Southern, Dr. Berte 

After graduating awarded cum me with laude the from President’s BSC, he earned Student a master Service Award, one of my greatest honors to be 

of divinity degree quite honest. from Virginia Dr. Berte Theological was an incredible Seminary mentor in and continues to be to this day. I’ve often 

1992, and a said doctor if I of didn’t ministry feel called degree to from the Beeson ministry, Divinity I’d still be working at Birmingham-Southern.” 

School in Birmingham After graduating 1997. Before cum laude arriving from at BSC, St. Martin’s, he earned a master of divinity degree from 

Levenson served Virginia parishes Theological in Alabama, Seminary Virginia, in 1992, Tennessee, and a doctor of ministry degree from Beeson 

Louisiana and Divinity Florida. School He is the in Birmingham author of four in devotional 1997. Before arriving at St. Martin’s, Levenson served 

books: “Bits parishes of Heaven,” in Alabama, “A Place of Virginia, Shelter,” Tennessee, “Preparing Louisiana and Florida. He is the author of four 

Room,” and devotional “A Path to Wholeness.” books: “Bits of Heaven,” “A Place of Shelter,” “Preparing Room,” and “A Path to 

Levenson Wholeness.” 

has served at St. Martin’s since 2007. He coofficiated 

and offered Levenson a homily has served at the state St. funeral Martin’s of since President 2007. He co-officiated and offered a homily 

George H. W. at Bush the state in Washington, funeral of D.C. President and in George Houston. H. W. Bush in Washington, D.C. and in Houston. 

Levenson also Levenson officiated also the officiated funeral First the funeral Lady Barbara of First Bush Lady Barbara Bush in Houston. Levenson 

in Houston. Levenson contributed contributed to “Pearls to of “Pearls Wisdom: of Wisdom: Little Pieces Little of Advice” by Barbara Bush, published in 

Pieces of Advice” March by 2020. Barbara Bush, published in March 2020. 

On October On 2, 2017, October Levenson 2, 2017, returned Russell to returned the Hilltop to to the Hilltop to deliver the homily at an interfaith 

deliver the homily ceremony at an held interfaith honor ceremony of the held 50th in honor anniversary of the rededication of Yeilding Chapel, where he 

50th anniversary met his rededication wife during of Yeilding a presentation Chapel. given As a student by Chaplain Rev. Stewart Jackson. 

at BSC, he met “If his it wife weren’t in Yeilding for Birmingham-Southern Chapel during a presentation College, I would not have met my wife, had 

given by Chaplain my children,” Rev. Stewart Rev. Dr. Jackson. Russell Levenson ’84 says. He and Laura Norton Levenson, who 

“If it weren’t attended for Birmingham-Southern BSC for two years before College, transferring I would to Auburn, have been married 5 years and 

not have met have my three wife, children had my children,” and two Levenson grandchildren. says. He 

and Laura Norton Chosen Levenson, in 2019 who as a attended Distinguished BSC for Alumnus, two Rev. Levenson wasn’t able to attend the 

years before celebratory transferring event to Auburn, on campus. have Unfortunately three children the and plan to honor him on campus along with 

two grandchildren. our 2020 recipients was canceled due to COVID-19. 

Chosen in 2019 as a Distinguished Alumnus, Levenson wasn’t 

able to attend the celebratory event on campus. Unfortunately 

the plan to honor him on campus along with our 2020 recipients 

was canceled due to COVID-19. We look forward to honoring 

him alongside the 2020 and 2021 honorees in fall 2021. 

42 / ’southern FALL/WINTER 2019 / 45

giving to BSC 

GENEROUS SUPPORT 

IN A TIME OF NEED 

While the course of COVID-19 has changed the 

needs of the College, we are lucky to have a strong 

and supportive community that has been there for 

our students. BSC has provided additional financial 

support and numerous resources to our current campus 

community as they adjust to a new normal. 

The COVID-19 Student Emergency Fund has focused 

support specifically on student needs as they arise. Gifts 

help students and families who have been hit hard by 

the pandemic due to layoffs, furloughs, and the loss of 

hourly jobs and off-campus internships. 

Gifts have also supported the Panther Pantry, 

a resource developed by the Office of Student 

Development in fall 2019 that became especially 

important during the pandemic. Located in Norton 

Campus Center, the Panther Pantry provides fresh 

groceries and dry goods at no cost to students facing 

food insecurity. 

When remote learning and work began, some 

students remained in campus residence halls, including 

international students. The Panther Pantry gave 57 

students access to groceries without leaving campus 

during the shutdown. 

A small group of students, who were unable to 

return home after the spring term, also stayed on 

campus over the summer. BSC received a Rapid 

Response Grant from the Community Foundation of 

Greater Birmingham, underwriting the cost of this 

emergency housing for students. 

To those who have supported the College throughout 

this time, thank you for investing in our current 

students. To learn more about making a gift to BSC, 

visit www.bsc.edu/advancement. 

Dr. Brandon Brown, associate dean of students, and other 

Student Development staff packed bags from the Panther 

Pantry for students who were still on campus in March. 

ROOM FOR REFLECTION 

In the fall, Birmingham-Southern received a $5,000 grant 

to establish a campus mindfulness program, made possible 

by a partnership with the Trust for the Meditation Process, a 

charitable foundation encouraging meditation, mindfulness, 

and contemplative prayer. 

The grant helped establish two programming components: 

the creation of a dedicated meditation space on campus, and 

mindfulness instruction and training held in the space. The 

Trust helps provide these programs to schools, churches, and 

other organizations and institutions. 

“The program is designed to bring a dedicated mindfulness 

space to campus and to provide formal instruction in 

mindfulness techniques from a licensed teacher,” says Dr. Joe 

Chandler ’03, associate professor of psychology and director 

of grants and special projects at BSC. “After that, we intend the 

space to be supported by a student-staff-faculty partnership, 

adapting to the contemplative needs of the BSC community.” 

Chandler and Assistant Professor of Religion Dr. Keely 

Sutton serve as the project’s principal investigators, and they 

are working with certified mindfulness meditation instructor 

Cathy Wright, mother of Elizabeth Hall ’19, who will lead the 

training programs. While BSC has seen students, faculty, and 

staff create short-term mindfulness studies and opportunities, 

this grant will centralize these efforts for long-lasting impact. 

“We hope that this grant marks the beginning of a 

mindfulness program that will be developed through the 

combined efforts of students, staff, alumni, and faculty,” 

Sutton says. “The first eight-week session in the spring will 

be virtual, and we are sure it will prove useful during this 

stressful time.” 

Mindfulness meditation comes with many benefits, but 

students often do not have access to the quality of programs 

that our partnership with the Trust will bring. Through 

incorporating this kind of instruction on campus, BSC can 

further exemplify our commitment to students’ well-being and 

education on the Hilltop. 

Director of Counseling Services Cara Blakes, Director of 

Student Diversity and Inclusion Dr. Kristie Williams, and 

SGA are also dedicated to the project and plan to contribute 

helpful resources and guidance as it grows. The meditation 

space will be open to the entire BSC community, not just 

residential students. 

“These last months have highlighted the need for resilience, 

and we believe this grant will help our campus community 

continue to adapt to the COVID crisis while building a longterm 

habit of collective mindfulness,” Chandler says. 



giving to BSC 

A DAY OF COMMUNITY AND CARING 

Forward Ever Day 2020 brought the entire Birmingham- 

Southern community together across the country and 

world, resulting in a record-breaking day of support for 

current students. 

During a time of uncertainty last spring, we recognized 

Forward Ever Day as a Day of Community on April 2, 2020. 

While we focused on the event’s impact on campus and student 

life, we also celebrated our broader BSC network of alumni and 

friends who were caring for their own communities during the 

onset of COVID-19. 

“Forward Ever Day is always about our community, but 

our 2020 celebration was especially meaningful,” says Sarah- 

Kate Masters Roberts ’11, director of annual giving. “We saw 

members of the BSC family give back in whatever way they 

could. Your support allowed us to be flexible when our students 

needed you most.” 

The Forward Ever Day grand total was $325,433, making 2020 

the first year to ever pass $300,000 in total gifts. The majority 

of gifts funded student scholarships, but the Forward Ever Fund 

also awarded $88,925 in additional support to students whose 

financial needs were affected by COVID-19. 

Both in spring and fall 2020, Forward Ever Day gifts provided 

financial assistance for students, technology for online 

and hybrid classes, and equipment for maintaining a safe 

environment for in-person classes. 

Forward Ever Day 2020 also marked a strong showing of 

support for our alumni. Members of our community supported 

small businesses with BSC connections, took time to share old 

photos and call college friends, and read stories about what 

fellow graduates are doing in their communities. 

Throughout the day, we featured alumni who cared for others 

in times of crisis. Corbin Burns ’14 worked hard to provide 

COVID-19 tests as the sole provider for Trussville Urgent Care, 

which was the first privately owned clinic to offer drive-thru 

testing in the greater Birmingham area. John Boone ’06 and 

Hunter Renfroe ’08, owners of Orchestra Partners, offered a 

comprehensive rent holiday to their small, local business tenants 

in Birmingham. More than 20 alumni like Kelly Horton Kean 

’87 and Tamara Harper ’06 made masks to donate to essential 

workers. (Read more about them in our cover story.) 

These alumni, among many others, demonstrated the 

commitment the BSC family has to the College and to their 

communities beyond the Hilltop. We’re grateful to those who 

gave in so many different ways to take part in our celebration. 

APRIL 

1 

This 

MARK YOUR CALENDAR 

Forward Ever Day – April 1, 2021 

– we’re keeping the spirit of care and 

community. Stay tuned to hear more 

details on how you can join us this year. 

DONOR-ADVISED FUNDS Make Giving Easy 

Emily Kyzer Browne ’00 graduated from 

Birmingham-Southern with a degree in biology 

and a desire to give back. 

Browne grew up in Birmingham with 

multiple family members who also graduated 

from BSC – including her mother, Kathy Evins 

Kyzer ’68; aunt, former Trustee Anne Evins 

Adams ’65; and grandfather, John Evins ’33. 

“I have been blessed with many 

opportunities from BSC in particular,” 

says Browne. “I grew up knowing it was 

such an important institution and gained a 

tremendous amount of knowledge from my 

time there.” 

Browne’s family instilled the concept of 

giving back early in her life. 

“It’s not a choice. It’s what we are and who 

we are and what we do,” says Browne. 

In the nearly 20 years since Browne left the 

Hilltop, she has attended graduate school at 

Vanderbilt, worked as a nurse practitioner at 

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital during 

her post-graduate fellowship, and is now the 

Director of the Transition Oncology Program 

at St. Jude. In 2011, Browne was recognized 

by BSC as an Outstanding Young Alumna. 

While living in Memphis, Tennessee, Emily 

met her husband Michael Browne. They 

both already had established careers and did 

not need the pots and pans that are typically 

found on a wedding registry, so in lieu of 

DRIVEN TO SUCCEED 

With a Birmingham-Southern car tag, you share your BSC pride 

on the road and support students on the Hilltop. 

The Driven to Succeed program provides scholarships for 

Alabama residents, funded by proceeds from sales and renewals 

of BSC specialty license plates. For the 2019-20 academic year, 

nearly $45,000 was awarded to five students through Driven to 

Succeed scholarships. 

Each car tag purchase contributes $48.75 to the College for the 

education of deserving students like Thornton Muncher, a junior 

English major from Sumiton, Ala., who received a Driven to 

Succeed scholarship last year. 

“Scholarships have completely changed my experience at 

Birmingham-Southern and opened countless doors,” says 

Muncher. “Without scholarships, I would have never been able 

to study abroad in Italy, travel to present research at a national 

academic conference, or live in a residence hall alongside the 

most incredible student body.” 

The BSC license plates – marked with a new ginkgo design 

– can be purchased at your county tag office. You also have the 

traditional gifts, they requested donations to 

a charitable foundation. 

They set up a Donor Advised Fund (DAF) 

through the Community Foundation of 

Greater Memphis, which greatly eased the 

process of giving. 

The funds that were donated as their 

wedding gifts, as well as their continued 

annual gifts, are all processed in one place. 

“It simplifies everything, and is a really 

nice way to limit the amount of paperwork 

required to make a gift,” says Browne. “It’s 

just click, click, click, and you’re done.” 

The ease of having digital access to the 

funds means that the balance, history of 

giving, and the ability to redirect the funds is 

available online. 

It also assists with long-term financial 

planning, as you can write a gift to the DAF 

in your will, and then can change charities 

through the DAF without going through the 

long legal process of changing your will. 

“Giving to BSC is something that has 

been a habit – an annual thing for me,” says 

Browne. “It is important to me that we make 

sure the institution is around for another 

100, 200 years, and that the opportunities I 

experienced still exist.” 

Switching her annual giving to a DAF, 

through a foundation such as the Community 

Foundation of Greater Memphis, still allows 

Browne flexibility in giving to the College, 

whether she wants to give to the annual fund, 

general operations, or endowed funds. 

To make a gift or learn more, call (205) 

226-4909 or email [email protected]. 

There are more than 750 Community 

Foundations across the U.S. that create DAFs, 

all with the goal of keeping a proportion of 

charitable funds in the community – although 

almost any charity or non-profit can be 

designated through the DAFs. 

Visit www.cof.org/community-foundationlocator 

to find your closest Community 

Foundation. The Community Foundation of 

Greater Birmingham serves Blount, Jefferson, 

St. Clair, Shelby, and Walker counties. 

BSC 2021 

chance to personalize the message on your tag, which we’ve seen 

from quite a few alumni, faculty, and staff. 

“Scholarships are the most direct way to impact BSC students, 

and buying your BSC car tag makes providing that life-changing 

scholarship support incredibly simple,” says Allison Hedge, director 

of development at BSC. “Every dollar given towards scholarships 

moves a student one step closer to achieving their goals.” 

Learn more about the Driven to Succeed program: 

www.bsc.edu/advancement. 



lifelong learner 

15-Minute Classroom 

With the nationwide shutdown of 

college campuses due to COVID-19, 

BSC faced the challenge of keeping its 

community engaged and actively learning. 

As history professor Dr. Randall 

Law explains, “Our faculty is full of 

extraordinary scholars who are leaders in 

their fields, but the thing that really sets our 

professors apart — and thus our curriculum 

and the College as a whole — is our 

enthusiasm for teaching, our skill at it, and 

the simple but amazing fact that all of our 

students, from first-years to seniors, get to work directly with those instructors.” 

With BSC’s focus on engaged learning in mind, an idea was born: 

15-Minute Classroom. 

The idea was simple — on Thursdays at 6 p.m., BSC professors would log 

onto Facebook Live and present a mini-lecture on a topic of their choice. 

The results were incredible — the summer presentations have since amassed 

thousands of views from students, alumni, and friends of the College alike, 

and the overwhelming demand resulted in an equally popular fall series. 

In response to this memorable year, many professors showed how historical 

people and events have current relevance. Dr. Mark Schantz, history professor 

and chair of the history department, addressed racial tensions in “W.E.B. 

DuBois: America’s Most Important Intellectual; Why We Need Him Now 

More Than Ever.” A long-time African American history scholar who proudly 

displays cardboard cutouts of DuBois and Frederick Douglass in his office, 

Schantz says, “A scholar of international repute, DuBois wrote with luminous 

brilliance about the experiences of people of color in our nation. Now, more 

than ever, we need to resurrect his commitment to historical truth as the basis 

for authentic racial reconciliation in the United States.” 

Dr. Jessica Hines, assistant professor of medieval literature and culture, 

brought her extensive knowledge of the bubonic plague in the Middle Ages 

into the 2020 world of COVID-19 in “The Black Death and Literature.” 

“This talk examines how literature was shaped by the Black Death, as well as 

the ways authors used literature to contend with grief and loss,” Hines says. 

Although initially worried that it might be “a little too on the nose and 

possibly upsetting” for viewers, she decided her topic could showcase the shaping 

of culture through chaos and the solace that can still be found in literature. 

In the same vein of thought, Dr. Lester Seigel ’79, Joseph Hugh Thomas 

Professor of Music, addressed how composers in times of disease outbreak 

and other forms of adversity brought the world beautiful music in spite of — 

and because of — the constraints of limited numbers in orchestras and choirs 

in his presentation, “The Economy of Means: Getting the most with the least. 

How has adversity and necessity influenced trends in music?” 

The theme of “getting the most with the least” also speaks to what BSC’s 

15-Minute Classroom Series has achieved, and its popularity among alumni 

illustrates the spirit of joyful lifelong learning that is instilled on the Hilltop. 

SUMMER 15-MINUTE CLASSROOMS 

June 11: Amy Cottrill, Denson N. Franklin 

Associate Professor of Religion: “Creative 

Resilience and Listening to the Voices of the Past” 

June 18: Joseph Chandler ’03, Associate Professor 

of Psychology: “The Free Magic Pill: How Good 

Sleep Changes Everything” 

June 25: Victoria Ott, James A. Wood Professor of 

History: “The Myth of the Southern Belle” 

July 9: Randall Law, Professor of History: “The Dog 

That Didn’t Bark” 

July 23: Meghan Mills, Associate Professor 

of Sociology: “Racism and Health: A Look at 

COVID-19” 

FALL 15-MINUTE CLASSROOMS 

September 10: Mark Lester, Michael Atchison 

Professor of History: “What is History? 

Why Study It?” 

September 17: Melinda Rainey Thompson, 

Assistant Lecturer in English: “Every Word 

Counts: Living, Teaching, and Publishing in the 

Midst of the Pandemic” 

September 24: Lester Seigel ’79, Joseph Hugh 

Thomas Professor of Music: “The Economy of 

Means: Getting the most with the least. How has 

adversity and necessity influenced trends 

in music?” 

October 1: Rick Lester, Associate Professor of 

Management: “How Do Wealthy People Think?” 

October 8: Mark Schantz, Professor of History 

and Chair of the History Department: “W.E.B. 

DuBois: America’s Most Important Intellectual; 

Why We Need Him Now More Than Ever” 

October 15: Richard Rector, Associate Professor 

of Psychology: “How to Effectively Communicate 

With Your Child(ren)” 

October 22: Jessica Hines, Assistant Professor of 

Medieval Literature and Culture: “The Black Death 

and Literature” 

October 29: Natalie Davis, Howell Heflin Professor 

Emerita of Political Science, Zoom presentation: 

“Finally, Election Day is Tuesday!” 

Interested in viewing these presentations? Our 

15-Minute Classrooms are still available on the 

Birmingham-Southern College Facebook page. 

Stay in 

TOUCH! 

It’s easier than ever to keep up with news 

from the Hilltop! 

THE BSC BLOG 

At blog.bsc.edu, you’ll find stories about 

alumni, athletics, student life, faculty 

achievements, and upcoming events. 

CLASS NOTES 

Monthly updates about BSC alumni and 

friends of the College are now online at 

blog.bsc.edu and shared each month in 

From the Hilltop, our e-newsletter. 

Submit your own news and updates at 

bsc.edu/alumni/update-info.html. 

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA! 

@birminghamsouthern 

@bscalums 

@birminghamsouthern 

@bsc_alumni 

@fromthehilltop 

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www.bsc.edu 

Even though life on campus looked a bit different this fall, 

the Office of Student Development continued to offer 

fun outdoor events. In October, Friday at the Fountain 

turned into a fall festival with a pick-your-own-pumpkin 

patch, petting zoo, and a mechanical bull. Students 

were also treated to free doughnuts from The Heavenly 

Donut Truck and frozen desserts from an ice cream 

truck. Read more about how the Hilltop coped with 

COVID while keeping the BSC spirit alive and well in our 

cover story on pg. 16.

Southern 2020

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