Southern Fall/Winter 2022

Courtney French ‘95, Randall Kennedy, the Hon. Elisabeth French,
and BSC President Daniel Coleman
Inaugural Honors Convocation
designed with a range of needs in mind. There is no proving
one’s need or self-identifying as food insecure. Through this
model, we are addressing hunger on our campus without
assigning unwanted stigma to our resource.
Ethical, sustainable, and empathetic food access is a
lifelong passion of mine. It has never been in my job title,
but I keep finding ways to incorporate it in my work. I’m
grateful for another opportunity to bring exceptional
foods in abundance to anyone who wants or needs it.”
– Hattie O’Hara ’17, assistant director, Service Learning and
Community Partnerships, The Krulak Institute
In October 2022, the Harrison Honors Program held its inaugural fall
convocation featuring speaker Randall Kennedy, Michael R. Klein Professor
of Law at Harvard Law School. Kennedy’s talk on the legacy of the civil rights
movement was titled “Shall We Overcome?”
A prominent legal scholar and public intellectual, Kennedy has published
seven books and numerous essays and reviews. Kennedy served as a law clerk for
Judge J. Skelly Wright of the U.S. Court of Appeals and for Justice Thurgood
Marshall of the U.S. Supreme Court. A member of the American Law Institute,
the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Philosophical
Association, Kennedy is also a Trustee emeritus of Princeton University.
While in Birmingham, Kennedy conducted research on Walker v. the City
of Birmingham for his upcoming book, “From Protest to War, Triumphs and
Defeats in Struggles for Racial Justice, 1950 to 1970” and spoke with WBHM
about the lasting implications of the case involving Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
His time on campus was spent meeting with Honors students and visiting
with BSC alumni working in law. The Honors Program is generously supported
by Dr. Donald C. Harrison ’54.
WHERE ALL ARE WELCOME: BSC RELIGIOUS LIFE
Founded through a merger of two Methodist institutions, Birmingham-
Southern College’s religious roots run deep. Still affiliated with the United
Methodist Church, BSC remains steeped in that denomination’s tradition
of demonstrating faith through service, and provides a place where
students who feel called to ministry can discern that call and determine
the path forward.
BSC also remains committed to being a place where students of
various religions — and those of no religion at all — wrestle with questions
of purpose in a climate that is open, welcoming, and diverse.
The Rev. Julie Blackwelder Holly ’01, an ordained United Methodist
minister, serves as Chaplain, overseeing the Office of Religious Life and
its calendar of programs and services. “We work with small groups for
six different Christian denominations, the Muslim Student Association,
and the Hillel Jewish Student Association to create programming that
encourages students from all walks of life to learn from each other and
make meaningful connections through conversation and community
service,” Holly says.
The staff holds a weekly worship gathering in Yeilding Chapel, reaches
out to athletics teams, organizes and supports service activities, brings in
interdenominational and interfaith speakers, and welcomes visits by campus
ministry teams from a range of faith traditions. In September, the office held
its annual dinner for admission representatives from graduate seminaries
and divinity schools.
The office also holds social gatherings that are open to all students, and
which almost always include food — including a now-legendary treat known
as Smooshie Pie, a combination of chocolate chip cookie dough and fun-size
Milky Way bars. Wednesdays in the office at Norton Campus Center often
feature visits from the staff’s dogs.
“We try to provide opportunities for students to recognize the
commonalities that they share with people of different faiths and
denominations,” Holly explains. “We see so much division in the world, and
people focusing on the divisions and the differences among us, that we think
it’s very important for us to see how we can cooperate and collaborate. We
want to help students find their purpose in doing good in the world.”
FALL/WINTER 2022 / 7