ACADEMIC DIVISIONS

H. Irvin Penfield, Provost

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Behavioral and Social Sciences

Terry Goodrick, Chair

The Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences includes the disciplines of political science, psychology, and sociology. These disciplines employ scientific methods to develop understanding of human behavior in all of its manifestations. Courses in these disciplines encourage critical and objective thinking about behavioral phenomena. A major in any of the three disciplines can prepare students for graduate and professional school as well as for a variety of occupations that benefit from these perspectives. Interdisciplinary majors and minors are clearly defined programs of study that can also be suitable preparation for either employment or further study.

Business and Graduate Programs

Sue Blanshan, Director of Programs

In the Division of Business and Graduate Programs, liberal arts education is integrated into each field of study. The goal of integrating the liberal arts is accomplished through the pursuit of academic inquiry and the examination of the practical side of business and other organizations. In addition, the faculty is committed to teaching and advising. Enrichment of and continuous improvement in teaching and advising are sought through professional development and scholarship. The learning environment is designed to meet the needs of undergraduate and graduate students to enable them to become broadly educated professionals who are equipped to excel as leaders in academia, private enterprise, public service or civic endeavors.

All of the programs offered by the Division have the following mission linked goals in common:

Teamwork-to work productively with others.

Decision making-to analyze and synthesize the elements of a situation, generate alternatives, and recommend a course of action.

Critical thinking-to gather, analyze, and synthesize information and to identify misinformation, prejudice, one sidedness.

Communication skills-to make convincing arguments in both written and oral forms.

Global and cultural awareness-to think outside one's own local contexts.

Professional responsibility-to demonstrate appropriate professional demeanor and ethics.

Independent learning-to organize one's own research and learning.

Interdisciplinary thinking-to integrate the breadth of one's learning.

Disciplinary depth-to gain competence in business administration, accounting, or economics.

Technology-to gain experience in the use of relevant technology.

The Division's programs are accredited by the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP). The College is a member of both AACSB International and ACBSP.

Education

The Division of Education offers majors in K-6 elementary/collaborative education, eleven areas of secondary education 6-12, and P-12 programs (art, dance, and music). In addition, an educational services major is offered for students who wish to pursue careers that do not require a teaching certificate. Of general interest to non majors are 200 level courses in education, human development, and special education.

Fine and Performing Arts

Lester Seigel, Chair

The arts are a vital part of the education of students at Birmingham Southern College, contributing knowledge and experiences considered to be essential for the liberally educated person. The Division of Fine and Performing Arts includes the disciplines of art, dance, music, speech, and theatre arts. The curricula are designed not only to meet the needs of students with professional ambitions but also to offer meaningful educational experiences to the general student.

Courses and activities in the arts focus on two related goals. First, faculty strive to encourage individual creativity, increased literacy in one of the arts disciplines, and careful examination of the nature of artistic communication. Studio art courses and both performance and composition courses in theatre arts, dance, and music are the natural settings for addressing these goals. Second, faculty focus on aesthetic value. Students are encouraged to examine their own ideas about quality in the arts and are guided in developing criteria used in judging artistic merit. Ultimately, students learn to cultivate a sensitivity to the arts by engaging carefully formulated critical faculties.

For all students, no matter what their level of involvement, their professional aspirations, or their career ambitions, the arts require mastery of intellectual content and specific mental and physical capabilities. This mastery leads to literacy in the discipline which can, in turn, lead to a lifetime of self motivated inquiry in the arts. Students thus find their study of fine and performing arts a rigorous part of their undergraduate curriculum and an enriching experience which will continue to grow long after graduation from the College.

The College also maintains the Conservatory of Fine and Performing Arts, which serves those members of the community who wish to study in the areas of dance, theatre, or music but who are not matriculated students at the College. Conservatory students range in age from pre school through adult.

Humanities

John D. Tatter, Chair

The study of the humanities is at the heart of a liberal arts education for two important reasons. First, it looks backward to our varied cultural heritage and forward to our future, giving us a sense of community. Second, it hones our critical thinking and communication skills, giving us the foundation necessary for leadership and service within that community. The humanities teach us to know ourselves-our ethical values and religious heritage, our cultural background, the poems, plays, and stories of our lives. The humanities also teach us to learn from those we think of as different-to explore other viewpoints and value systems, to experience other people's ceremonies and traditions, and to listen to their stories. In celebrating our differences, we discover what humanity has in common.

The Division of Humanities includes the disciplines of classics, English, history, modern foreign languages, philosophy, and religion. A major or minor concentration in any of these areas trains a student to read critically, to think analytically, to develop a sensitivity to other points of view, and to communicate ideas clearly and effectively. Such skills are a prerequisite for graduate and professional study as well as a foundation for success in any career.

Library and Information Services

Billy Pennington, Director

The Charles Andrew Rush Learning Center/N.E. Miles Library seeks to meet the information and research needs of students and faculty through an outstanding collection of carefully selected, well organized, accessible, and varied materials and convenient access to resources outside the campus; through a modern, spacious, and well designed facility that is conducive to study, research and learning; and through a variety of services provided by committed, proactive librarians and dedicated support staff.

The facility houses a collection of more than 257,000 items selected to support instruction and research at Birmingham Southern College. In addition to books and periodicals, the collections include government documents, microfilm and microfiche, audio and video recordings and other audiovisual materials, and electronic databases and resources, such as e books and e journals. Special collections house the College archives, Methodist archives, and rare books. The Learning Center/Library is a partial government documents depository. Electronic information is available to students and faculty locally and via online access. Through College computer facilities, the Learning Center/Library's collections and databases may be accessed from anywhere on campus. In addition, computer equipment is provided throughout the building for the use of library patrons. Facilities for viewing and listening to audiovisual materials are also available. Study areas are located throughout the building, and copying and printing services are available as well.

The attractive, spacious Learning Center/Library provides a variety of teaching and learning environments. Conference rooms, seminar rooms, an auditorium with video and computer projection facilities, an electronic classroom, research carrels, and a media center with listening and viewing areas are among the facilities for individual and group study, research, and instruction. The electronic classroom, added in the summer of 1997, offers instruction using technology and the Internet. The Learning Technology Center was established and furnished in the fall of 1998, and provides an exciting facility for students and faculty to create electronic presentations using a variety of specialized software and equipment. The College's language laboratory is also housed in the Learning Center/Library. Its interactive language learning system permits students and instructors to communicate individually or in groups, using audio, video, and computer in the teaching/learning process.

Professional librarians provide a variety of reference and information access services. They assist students in learning to locate, retrieve, and use information-whether in print, nonprint, or electronic form-and direct them in conducting online bibliographic searches and locating information, both in the in house collections and online. Library orientation and bibliographic instruction classes are taught by the librarians to assist students in developing sound research methodologies and information retrieval skills, from standard reference tools to the latest computerized databases and texts. Support staff oversee the maintenance and circulation of the collection and ensure the smooth operation of the facility.

The Learning Center/Library provides access to its holdings and resources across the campus via the College Local Area Network. In addition to the 28 public workstations in the building, students and faculty can utilize the library catalog and the numerous databases from anywhere on campus to conduct their research, including dorms, computer labs, and faculty offices.

The Learning Center/Library is a member of a number of state, regional, and national library cooperatives and networks, including the Southeastern Library network (SOLINET), the Network of Alabama Academic Libraries (NAAL), and the Associated Colleges of the South (ACS). Excellent interlibrary loan service is available to students and faculty. Through an inter institutional borrowing agreement, students and faculty of the College may use the libraries at other academic institutions in the Birmingham area.

Science and Mathematics

Clyde T. Stanton, Chair

As we enter the 21st century and a world in which science and technology will permeate virtually every facet of life, the disciplines of the Division of Science and Mathematics will be central to a modern, high quality liberal arts education. The Division of Science and Mathematics includes the disciplines of mathematics, with its abstract beauty and its practical applications; the natural sciences of physics, chemistry, and biology, which strive to understand the natural world; and computer science, which is opening up vast new ways of knowing.

The Division of Science and Mathematics strives to promote scientific, mathematical, and computer literacy emphasizing the process, content, and interdisciplinary nature of these disciplines; to develop critical thinking skills; to enhance verbal and written communication abilities; to encourage reasoned debate on scientific and technological issues; and to instill civic responsibility. The Division pursues these goals in a vital, collaborative learning community of students, faculty, and staff centered on student-active, investigative curricula in the classroom, field, and laboratory. In this active, collaborative learning environment, students have the opportunity to develop their skills and abilities through intensive study, hands-on work, undergraduate research, one-on-one interactions with faculty, group interactions with other students, and outreach activities to local institutions. Graduates in mathematics, the natural sciences, and computer science will have the foundations necessary to be competitive in the 21st century, whether in the work force, or in quality graduate and professional programs, including those in the health care fields. Both majors and nonmajors will have the skills to make informed decisions on increasingly complex scientific and technological issues affecting their communities.

Disciplinary majors and minors are offered in biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, and physics. Interdisciplinary majors are offered in biology-psychology and computer science-mathematics. An interdisciplinary minor in environmental studies is also offered.