TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The University of Alabama’s Honors College continues as a transformative force in West Alabama through its Alabama Action, Outdoor Action, Black Belt Action and Health Action programs. The service projects in Tuscaloosa, Marion and elsewhere will run from Monday, Aug. 14, to Friday, Aug. 18, before the start of the fall 2017 semester.
Alabama Action
About 165 freshmen and 36 student leaders will work on beautification projects at Huntington Place Elementary School and Echols Middle School. Activities include painting restrooms and cafeterias, landscaping, updating a pavilion and painting murals. Contact: Richard LeComte, communications, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205-348-3782.
Outdoor Action
About 80 Outdoor Action participants, 18 student leaders and two faculty advisers will join with park rangers and the Army Corps of Engineers to preserve local natural resources. Projects range from removing invasive plants and trail preservation to picking up trash from rivers and improving swimming access. Groups will be at Lake Lurleen State Park from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Aug. 14. On Thursday, groups will be at Hurricane Creek from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Contact: Randy Mecredy, rmecredy@aalan.ua.edu, 205-348-2136
Black Belt Action
Forty Black Belt Action students and student leaders will work at two sites from 9 to 11:30 a.m. each day. Half of the group will work on small renovation, painting and decorative projects at Francis Marion School in Marion, including repainting the school’s auditorium. The school is at 101 Hubbard Drive.
The other part of the group will work at the historic Marion Female Seminary building. The building is home to the Perry County Historical Society museum, which includes exhibits on the original Marion Female Seminary, the old Perry County High School and many exhibits that document the city’s history. Those students will work alongside the historical society to catalog and inventory the thousands of artifacts and documents, update online databases and work on small clean-up projects around the building. The Marion Female Seminary is at 402 W. Monroe St. Contact: Davis Jackson, davis.jackson@ua.edu, 205-393-8553.
Health Action
Health Action is a service-learning program focused on addressing health disparities. The 35 freshman students and seven student leaders will work with Schoolyard Roots (formerly Druid City Garden Project) to prepare garden beds at schools for fall planting. The students will clean out garden beds, harvest sweet potatoes and add compost to the beds. In addition to the service projects, guest speakers will discuss the effects of poverty and health disparities as well as how students can maintain their health during college.
The students will be at Faucett Vestavia Elementary and Flatwoods Elementary Monday; Oak Hill Elementary (Stillman Heights campus) and Tuscaloosa Magnet School Tuesday; and Woodland Forrest Elementary and Central Elementary Wednesday. Contact: Susan Dendy, susan.dendy@ua.edu, 334-332-8422.
Contact
Richard LeComte, UA communications, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205-348-3782