2023-2024 BSC Catalog Updated_UG ONLY_FINAL[82]

ACADEMIC PROGRAMS
47
weekly to participate in activities and simulations with other first-year students.
Participants are nominated by faculty and staff during the fall term.
Community Partnerships
A wide variety of opportunities are available through partnerships with area agencies.
Students may volunteer, engage in community-based research, or intern with our
partners. Recent partnerships have included First Light Women’s Shelter, Oak Knoll
Health and Rehabilitation Center, NorthStar Soccer Ministries, Birmingham Education
Foundation, Desert Island Supply Company, Greater Birmingham Ministries, McCoy
Adult Day Care, STAIR, Urban Ministry, and Bush Hills STEAM Academy.
Hess Fellows Advocacy and Poverty Internships
The Hess Fellows Program matches students with non-profit advocacy and anti-poverty
organizations for intensive summer internships. Students involved in these internships
learn about advocacy, poverty alleviation, community engagement, and non-profit
management. They participate as full members of the agencies, building organizational
capacity by conducting research, facilitating coalitions among constituencies, leading
community outreach programs, organizing lobbying efforts, or conducting program
evaluations. Anti-poverty internships are facilitated by the Shepherd Higher Education
Consortium on Poverty, a coalition of more than twenty colleges and universities offering
such internships to their students. Students in the Hess Fellows program participate in
workshops before and after their internships and complete written reflections on their
experiences during the internship. Applications for internships are due in November each
year and participants are selected through a competitive process.
Panther Partnerships Mentoring Program
The Panther Partnership Mentoring Program is a selective program that pairs students
with a professional in their field of interest for an eight-month, structured mentoring
experience. Students participate in monthly meetings with their mentors, clarifying
personal interests and professional aspirations while achieving individualized goals.
Students benefit from professional development seminars covering topics such as
networking, résumé building, and interview skills. Students are selected through an
application and interview process in April and are introduced to their mentors in
September.
The Compass Student Publication
Compass publishes academic papers submitted by students, faculty, and alumni that
address issues of leadership, service, or experiential learning. The Compass is a studentrun
publication issued each academic year. Submissions are welcome from all academic
areas.
Birmingham-Southern College Catalog 2023-2024