Blackburn Institute

Blackburn welcomes John Land as Part-time Coordinator

November 24, 2010

This fall, the Blackburn Institute hired John Land as its newest part-time coordinator. Back in his hometown of Tuscaloosa, Land is working before he goes to graduate school.

Already, he has been thrust into Blackburn’s activities.

“I came in at a really busy point in time,” Land says. “But, I’m glad to be busy. It’s been great.”

A graduate of Rice University, Land took part in the year-long Japan Exchange and Teaching program. The program aims at improving Japanese relations internationally with a focus on foreign language education in Japanese high schools. Land taught English as a second language.

“It centers on mutual cultural exchange and being a cultural ambassador,” Land says. “It combined education and this cultural interest that I had. It’s really the perfect sort of thing for me.”
Currently, Land is applying to graduate school for next fall. He hopes to attend either Bowling Green State University or Indiana University Bloomington for a higher education administration degree. His interest in education stems from his family.
“I come from a long line of educators,” Land says. “All of my family has either gone here, worked here, or works here currently at the University.”

Land says he feels very fortunate to be working with the Blackburn Institute.

“This sort of leadership development is something that I really want to do,” Land says. “I’ve been blown away with the caliber of students Blackburn recruits.”
For next semester, Land says, “I look forward to seeing the next group come in and working with the current ones.”

-Wesley Vaughn, Blackburn Class of 2010

Community Member Spotlight:  Mr. Lee Garrison

October 14, 2010

Blackburn Fellow from the class of 1996-1997, Lee Garrison embodies Blackburn’s principle of a call to action. Before graduating from the University of Alabama, he was elected to the Tuscaloosa City council at an impressive age of 22. A Tuscaloosa native, Lee had always been involved in leadership roles and was instrumental in returning the Student Government Association to the University. “In the spring of my final year, I knew that I was going to take a job here and I saw the District 4 election as an opportunity for me to move the city forward with my energy and ideas.”

Garrison says Dr. Blackburn influenced his decision to run for election by strongly encouraging his vision for improving Tuscaloosa. Certainly, Dr. Blackburn saw the call to action which was reflected in Lee’s intensive efforts to register university students to vote in Tuscaloosa by encouraging them to become more engaged in the city politics. “I explained to students that the neighborhoods that they lived in just off-campus were also the neighborhoods of many year-round residents and that their concerns were tied together.” As a councilman, Garrison continues to actively support strong relationships between students and their fellow Tuscaloosans.

Self-described as a “left-brained” idea generator, during his time serving on the City Council, Garrison has contributed his energy and commitment to developing and implementing a vision for downtown Tuscaloosa. He has found that the best way to encourage a call to action is by building teams around positive projects and working with stakeholders to identify all of the challenges which must be overcome. Councilman Garrison is particularly excited by the nearing completion of the downtown amphitheater and the approved riverfront shopping facility.

Although the Blackburn Institute was “still in stages of determining what the organization was going to be” when he was a fellow, as an advisory board member he has seen the Institute grow leaps and bounds in encouraging the efforts of student leaders. “When I was elected, it made state news that I was only 22 and a recent graduate of the University. Then in the next election term Mayor Maddox was elected. I think it is so important for young people to realize that they can immediately get engaged in public service to improve the state as Dr. Blackburn professed.“

-Daniel Marbury, Blackburn Class of 2010

Community Member Spotlight:  Dr. Cheree Causey

October 14, 2010

Dr. Cheree Causey has proudly been a lifelong resident of Tuscaloosa. Prior to working at The University of Alabama, she owned a fitness and health exercise company in Tuscaloosa. Upon joining the University community in 1988, she began working at the Student Recreation Center. Later, she went to work in the Dean of Students office and then in the Student Affairs office as the Assistant Vice President, where she began her experience with the Blackburn Institute. 

As Director of the Blackburn Institute from 1999 to 2008, Dr. Causey played a critical role in connecting the Blackburn Fellows to Dr. John L. Blackburn so that his vision for the future of the Institute could take shape. Meeting frequently with Dr. Blackburn, Dr. Causey would talk with him about the fellows and discuss events occurring within the Institute. In turn, Dr. Blackburn offered advice and insight to direct the Institute towards its ultimate goal of shaping ethical leaders.

Dr. Causey has watched the Institute grow from four years of fellows—the number of classes in the Institute when she became involved—to fifteen years of fellows currently. As new fellows continue to join the Blackburn community, many of them will not have known Dr. Blackburn, so advisors, directors, and older fellows must keep Dr. Blackburn’s vision alive by relating it to new fellows, as Dr. Blackburn intended. Dr. Causey firmly believes that the way to keep his vision alive is through two of Dr. Blackburn’s overarching values: networking through the generations and a lifetime commitment to the Institute’s mission.

Dr. Causey sees the timelessness and remarkable wisdom of Dr. Blackburn’s vision in the networking that continues to take place. Because the number of fellows has grown, networking has expanded across the country and even across the world. Dr. Causey said that it is wonderful to see Blackburn fellows call on each other for advice or to look for a job and for them to find such warmth and willingness in other fellows to connect them to different opportunities. Fellows that had the remarkable opportunity to know Dr. Blackburn must recognize the need to network with new generations of fellows to emphasize every fellow’s responsibility to be a change agent for their community, whether Tuscaloosa, another community in Alabama, or a community across the globe.

Networking across community, professional, and cultural borders thrives because joining the Blackburn family requires fellows to commit to enacting positive change for a lifetime. As Dr. Causey stated, “Students must be intimately aware of their lifetime commitment.” The continuity among generations within Blackburn keeps Dr. Blackburn’s vitality and spirit alive within the Institute because older generations pass along guidance and direction until younger generations’ experiences allow them to pass their wisdom along to even younger ones. The heart of the Blackburn Institute lies not within any particular individual but within the vision that many individuals seek out through a collective effort over time.

Dr. Causey feels very passionately that students always remember their obligation to act as progressive agents of change in the community, regardless of which community they are in. She emphasized that fellows “hold the key” to the future of our state and nation. The Blackburn Institute effectively fuels positive change because it continues to be a living, breathing body comprised of Blackburn fellows that seek to keep it vibrant, healthy, and moving forward for years to come.

-Jillian Sparks, Blackburn Class of 2010

Introducing a New Year & New Fellows

October 14, 2010

The 2010 academic year is in full swing and the Blackburn Institute has had a wide-ranging variety of events and activities over the first few months. These events build on a very successful summer, where Advisory Board members, Blackburn Fellows, and students met around the state and in Washington D.C. for networking events. The momentum has carried over to campus, and Student Fellows have engaged in numerous events that have deepened their understanding of Alabama while facilitating meaningful relationships that will benefit the Institute and our state for years to come.

The revamped schedule of events has helped our new fellows better understand Alabama in a historical narrative that links the past with current issues. It is our hope that each event builds on previous events to create a coherent framework of the challenges and opportunities in Alabama. By emphasizing problem solving and thoughtful discussion, students will be able to analyze complex issues in a way that overcomes the increasingly partisan and polarized debates that permeate society. The new class of fellows has approached our events with an open mind and a willingness to learn.

After a very successful selections process in the spring, the 29 new fellows have proven to be outstanding. Though the students come from all areas of our state and region, as well as many different academic courses of study, they have come together with an energetic approach to learning about Alabama. Each new fellow brings a unique perspective that comes out in the intense discussions that follow every event. I am extremely excited to follow their growth over the coming year, and I cannot wait to see the positive impact that they continue to have on campus.

Overall, the year to date has been excellent, and I look forward to the slate of events in the coming months. Thank you for your role in facilitating the Blackburn Institute’s mission of creating a more ethical, progressive, and just Alabama.

-Marshall Houston, Blackburn Class of 2009

Blackburn students start year with AL 102

October 14, 2010

As a part of the new Blackburn first year curriculum, student fellows convened at Alabama 102 to hear speakers discuss various issues facing the state of Alabama.

Blackburn Institute Director Dr. Philip Westbrook said that Alabama 102 was designed for the purpose of preparing students for the upcoming year and exposing them to new perspectives on state issues.

“Alabama 102 will be an exciting opportunity to learn about the state and will provide a general understanding of issues that will be further discussed throughout the year,” said Marshall Houston, Student Chair of the Blackburn Institute and a senior double majoring in English and Economics.

The event, held in the Carmichael Hall Rotunda, featured three main speakers: Dr. Bill Stewart, Professor Emeritus of the Political Science Department and expert in Alabama Politics; Dr. Gary Hoover, Professor of Economics and Assistant Dean in the Business School; and Dr. Cheree Causey, former Director of the Blackburn Institute and current member of the Advisory Board.

Regarding the ongoing debate on constitutional reform, Stewart discussed many of the problems associated with Alabama’s 1901 State Constitution.

Stewart addressed issues ranging from the lack of home rule, and excessive earmarking of state funds to special interest groups, and political corruption.

After also discussing the upcoming gubernatorial election, Dr. Stewart illustrated ways in which the state’s political parties have changed over the course of the last 110 years.

After hearing Professor Stewart speak, CadeAnn Smith, a 2009 Blackburn Student and a senior majoring in Political Science said, “He is truly a wealth of knowledge on all things Alabama politics; good and bad. Having him speak to the Blackburn Institute is an opportunity for even native Alabamians to learn a little more about the way our state is working for us.”

Dr. Gary Hoover expanded on Dr. Stewart’s discussion of state issues by focusing on economic development and problems associated with Alabama’s tax structure. An expert in public finance and income distribution, Hoover spoke on tax regressivity and the negative effects that a poor tax structure can have on underprivileged families and economic growth.

Mark Foley, a 2010 Blackburn Student double majoring in Economics and Biology, said, “Dr. Stewart and Dr. Hoover provided concrete examples of issues that occur in Alabama and enumerated some of the underlying causes of these problems.”

Finally, Dr. Cheree Causey spoke to Blackburn students and addressed the art of professional and effective communication.

As a part of the 2010 Curriculum, the Institute will visit Greensboro, AL, this October and Oneonta, AL, during the Spring Semester. Causey stressed the need for Blackburn students to be respectful when visiting different communities and interacting with local leaders.

Causey said that our purpose in visiting local communities is to gain a better understanding of the issues they face. This starts with a willingness to analyze a community from perspectives other than our own, she said.

Looking forward from the day’s event, Foley said that, “With a framework for understanding Alabama issues, we can better assess state problems and collaborate with community leaders to develop long term solutions.”

Alabama 102 was a successful start to the 2010-2011 school year. Lisa Elizondo, a 2010 Blackburn Student majoring in American Studies, summed the day up by saying, “I really enjoyed Alabama 102 and thought it was very beneficial in laying the groundwork for our knowledge of the state of Alabama.”

-David Simpson, Blackburn Class of 2009