Honors Students Come to Campus Early to be Good Citizens

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — A record number of freshmen in The University of Alabama Honors College will come to campus a week early to take part in community service projects known as Alabama Action and Outdoor Action Aug. 13-17.

Some 100 freshmen in the UA Honors College, along with 20 student leaders and two student co-directors, will be part of community service projects at Buhl and Myrtlewood Elementary Schools in Tuscaloosa County through Alabama Action. The program is the seventh annual Alabama Action project organized and carried out by UA honors students to benefit the West Alabama community.

At Buhl Elementary, the students plan to renovate the entrance to the school, paint hallway murals and build a butterfly garden. At Myrtlewood Elementary, they will create a mosaic-and-paint replica of the school’s logo on the front of the building, paint hallway murals and stencil the 50 U.S. states around the outdoor walking track. The UA students will also conduct enrichment activities in fourth- and fifth-grade classes at both schools.

While the Alabama Action students are busy in the schools, another group of honors students will be spending the week doing an environmental service project at Perry Lakes Park (near Marion) as participants in the college’s Outdoor Action service-learning program.

Outdoor Action focuses on creating an awareness of environmental issues that affect the state and allowing students to make a contribution through an environmental service project at Perry Lakes Park, located in one of the poorest counties in the country. Forty freshman and eight student leaders will work at the park to construct a foot bridge over Cottonmouth Creek, mulch sections of the trail, install park benches, erect a barrier fence at the park entrance to limit all-terrain vehicle traffic, and clean up trash along the Cahaba River.

“UA’s Honors College students are happy to make a contribution to Perry Lakes Park. It serves at least two important functions — providing time with nature and recreation for park visitors, and serving as a home for hundreds of animal species, especially migratory neotropical birds,” said Dr. Fran Oneal, Outdoor Action director.

Biology faculty from UA will lead Outdoor Action’s field trips and provide hands-on experiences to demonstrate the process of measuring biodiversity and assessing the health of freshwater bodies. “Outdoor Action students in the past have been amazed to learn what’s right in their own backyard, so to speak. Salamanders, scorpions, or species of mussels are surprisingly easy to locate when the students are led by expert biologists,” Oneal added.

In Alabama Action, UA students will be at the two Tuscaloosa County schools to eat lunch with the students around 11:30 a.m. each day, followed by classroom activity time then work projects beginning around 1:30 p.m.

“This is an exciting time for Alabama Action. Because of the ambitious and hard work of our advisers and student leaders, we are in a position to have the largest impact on the Tuscaloosa community in our seven-year history,” said Trey Hayes, UA honors student and Alabama Action co-director.

The Alabama Action freshmen will also begin their college academic careers by earning one hour of honors class credit by attending a series of lectures, keeping journals and blogs, and engaging in group discussions. The coursework will focus on the importance of volunteering and understanding issues related to poverty and education.

NOTE TO MEDIA: Media are invited to see UA students at work on these days:

Outdoor Action media availability time will be on Wednesday, Aug. 15 from 1-5 p.m. in Perry Lakes Park (located near Marion in Perry County, a 45-minute drive from Tuscaloosa south on Hwy. 82 then west on Hwy. 5)

Alabama Action media availability time will be Thursday, Aug. 16 after 1 p.m. at Myrtlewood Elementary School (14701 Gainesville Road, Fosters, 205/342-2658. Take I-59S/I-20W to the Fosters exit, turn right at the top of the exit and follow this road/Holly Springs Lane until you come to Hwy. 11. Cross Hwy. 11, go left onto Gainesville Road. The school is on the right after you pass the Fosters Post Office.)