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ACADEMIC PROGRAMS
Birmingham-Southern College Catalog 2015-2016
Bunting Center for Engaged Study and Community Action
Kristin Harper, Director
The Bunting Center for Engaged Study and Community Action promotes
active civic engagement by encouraging participation in service-learning
projects with local, national, and international agencies or organizations.
Service-learning combines academic study, community work, and
intentional reflection. The essential question posed by Bunting Center
experiences is:
how do we develop the best combination of knowledge, skills, and
values that will make a positive difference in our communities?
The Bunting Center provides opportunities for the Birmingham-Southern
College community to
•
engage in the community beyond the gate
•
recognize and challenge assumptions
•
interact across cultures
•
reconsider ways of knowing and sources of knowledge
•
understand and practice civic involvement
•
channel personal and academic interests to address community-
identified needs
•
act to recognize and correct injustice
•
prepare for lives of active citizenship
Opportunities for service-learning include the following:
Community Partnerships
are student-initiated and facilitated activities
available throughout the school year. Students develop ongoing
relationships with area agencies as they engage in service work. Recent
partnerships have included First Light Women’s Shelter, Piper Place Day
Program, Urban Kids, Hispanic Interest Coalition of Alabama (HICA), Oak
Knoll Health and Rehabilitation Center, Desert Island Supply Company
(DISCO), NorthStar Youth Ministries, Blueprints, Habitat for Humanity,
and Bush Hills Academy.
Alternative Spring Break
offers an opportunity for students to develop their
understanding of themselves and of another culture or place while engaged
in service. Participants prepare as a team prior to travel. During recent
spring breaks, teams have worked in Puerto Rico; San Francisco; Boston;
Appalachia; the Mississippi Gulf Coast; Washington, D.C.; as well as in
Birmingham.