2023-2024 BSC Catalog Updated_UG ONLY_FINAL[82]

42 ACADEMIC PROGRAMS
EXPERIENTIAL AND ENGAGED PROGRAMS
Krulak Institute for Leadership, Experiential Learning, and Civic
Engagement
Kent Andersen, Director of Leadership Programs
Kristin Harper, Director of Exploration Term, Study Travel, and Study Abroad
Alan Litsey, Director of Community Engagement
Katy Smith, Director of Student Leadership Development & Civic Engagement
The Krulak Institute supports and promotes experiential and engaged learning at
Birmingham-Southern College. Experiential learning prompts students to join
knowledge and action through internships, community service-learning, study abroad,
and undergraduate research. Innovative Exploration Term projects and individualized
study opportunities engage students in learning outside traditional classroom contexts and
topics. Students involved in experiential and engaged learning gain insight into who they
are and who they want to be as future professionals, lifelong learners and scholars, and
responsible citizens.
Programs in the Krulak Institute are supported by generous donations from alumni and
friends, including the Bunting, Hess, and Sklenar families.
Experiential Learning
All students are required to complete at least one Experiential Learning (EL) requirement
as part of Explorations General Education. Coupling experience with critical reflection
develops creative problem solving and critical thinking skills essential for lifelong
learning and professional preparation. EL-designated courses or projects have been
reviewed by a faculty committee to ensure fulfillment of the following experiential
learning criteria and learning outcomes:
(1) opportunity for students to exercise judgment, make decisions, and learn from
mistakes in an experience that is
• authentic (not contrived or an assignment that mimics but does not engage the
real world)
• immersive (not a one-time event but ongoing and requiring significant thought,
energy, and time)
• accountable or responsive to an external person, group, or community (e.g.,
relationships with research mentors, responsibilities to an employer providing an
internship, obligations to students in a class when serving as a teaching fellow,
or cultural accountability associated with living and studying abroad).
(2) learning objectives tied to academic content and/or students’ personal and
professional aspirations
Birmingham-Southern College Catalog 2023-2024