Birmingham Southern alumni hope to become ambassadors to help keep school open
Birmingham Southern College alumni are considering ways to help save their school from closure. “The more I talk about it, the more it’s like settling down,” Damian Mitchell said. Mitchell, a proud 2018 graduate of Birmingham Southern College, is on a mission to prevent his alma mater from closing next year. ” It’s shocking. It hurts, frustrated. There’s a whole bunch of emotions because we don’t know,” Mitchell said. College President Daniel Coleman makes his rounds asking for money from several groups, including the Jefferson County Legislative Delegation. The school says some of its financial difficulties date back more than a decade, with renovations to some buildings on campus. The school is asking state lawmakers for $30 million. Representative Juandalynn Givan is in those meetings. “The other thing he mentioned was that this is it. If he’s given the $30 million, he’s not coming back for anything else. He was careful about it,” Givan said. While alumni and the community wait, Mitchell says now is the time to share her story to help engage more donors.. the past, but also looking to the future, yes, it may seem cloudy if there has anything about the South Birmingham motto,” Mitchell said. The college says it mounted a low-key campaign and to date has received $45.5 million in pledges from about 400 donors, including alumni, parents, foundations and corporate partners. .
Birmingham Southern College alumni are considering ways to help save their school from closure.
“The more I talk about it, the more it’s like settling down,” Damian Mitchell said.
Mitchell, a proud 2018 graduate of Birmingham Southern College, is on a mission to prevent his alma mater from closing next year.
” It’s shocking. It hurts, frustrated. There’s a whole bunch of emotions because we don’t know,” Mitchell said.
College President Daniel Coleman makes his rounds asking for money from several groups, including the Jefferson County Legislative Delegation. The school says some of its financial difficulties date back more than a decade, with renovations to some buildings on campus. The school is asking state lawmakers for $30 million. Representative Juandalynn Givan attends these meetings.
“The other thing he mentioned was that was it. If we give him the $30 million, he won’t come back for anything else. He was cautious about it,” Givan said.
While alumni and the community wait, Mitchell says now is the time to share her story to help engage more donors.
“I wish I could have done a lot more, I could have done in the past, but also looking to the future, yeah, it might look cloudy if there’s something about Birmingham in the south of the motto,” Mitchell said.
Jefferson County Commissioner Chairman Jimmie Stephens said President Coleman came to him directly asking for $2.5 million to help the college. Stephens says a formal meeting will need to be held among the members to consider this request, and that has yet to happen.
The college says it mounted a low-key campaign and to date has received $45.5 million in pledges from about 400 donors, including alumni, parents, foundations and corporate partners. .
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