Blackburn Institute

Travel Summary: Burt Jones Travel Experience to Alexander City

January 30, 2007

by Meghan A. Stringer
2004-2005 Blackburn Fellow
A senior from Montgomery majoring in Political Science and minoring in English and Blount Undergraduate Initiative Liberal Arts

To see photos from the trip, please click here.

The 2007 Burt Jones Travel Experience took the 2006-2007 Blackburn Institute new fellows to Alexander City. The trip was intended to educate the Institute’s new fellows about the challenges facing rural communities in Alabama. Alexander City was selected because it is a location currently in the process of forging a new identity following the dwindling of its textile industry and downsizing of its major economic provider, Russell Mills. Our hosts in Alex City helped show us how new initiatives have brought new business to the area and that the community is now focusing on taking advantage of expansive growth occurring by the nearby Lake Martin. While we examined the growth occurring in Alex City, we also toured the area, including the dilapidated Camp Hill, and learned that there are still communities struggling to provide a high quality of life for their residents.

Photo from Alexander City Travel ExperienceOur group of over 30 student fellows, alumni fellows, advisory board members and University administrators began our experience at Haven Memorial United Methodist Church, where we listened to the Reverend Kanunu Busambwa’ s message concerning the role of the African American church in rural communities. After a wonderful lunch at the church, we listened to a panel on the same topic. We learned the importance that the church has as an educator, an economic entity, and also as a hub of social advocacy within Alabama’s rural African American communities.

That evening, city leaders met with us at the Willow Point Country Club for a panel discussion on Strategic planning and growth. Mayor Barbara Young informed us of the city’s efforts to aid the aging population and also discussed her plan for economic growth within the city. Our conversation with Don McClellan, the director of the Lake Martin Area Economic Development Alliance, showcased the area’s debate on the advantages of controlled versus unbridled growth. We next heard from a panel of young professionals who discussed the stagnant population growth of young people in Alex City. Their stories showed many problems that the city is facing—a lack of middle-income housing, sparse entertainment options, and few other young people. They also shared with us some of the positive aspects of life in Alex City, such as great schools, activities on Lake Martin, proximity to other Alabama cities, and the construction of new restaurants. We concluded Sunday with a discussion at the hotel focusing on what we learned and what we needed to examine the following day.

The next morning, we traveled to the Betty Carol Graham Technology Center at Central Alabama Community College. Our first panel discussed education in the area. We met with Representative Graham, Tallapoosa County Schools superintendent Ginger East, and Alexander City Schools superintendent Tommy Bice. Our conversation with these area leaders showed us the success that the area schools, though underfunded, have had and helped highlight many important lessons for education success that could be replicated in other Alabama communities.

Our next panel examined the history and future of Alex City’s major economic entities. Listening to representatives from Russell Lands, Russell Corporation, the Russell Medical Center and Robinson Iron, we are amazed to see the proliferation of industries with a national and international focus located here in this small community and all have some roots in the vision of the town’s most noted citizen, the late Benjamin Russell. Lunch on Monday was held at the Aliant Bank headquarters and sponsored by UA trustee, John Russell Thomas. Our final panel examined the administration of justice in non-metropolitan communities; in this panel, noted local trial attorney, Larry W. Morris, several local judges, and advisory board member Don Siegal spoke about the legal environment and challenges within the state’s rural communities.

As our experience came to an end, we evaluated what we had seen, learned, and discussed. We met with an array of community members and had studied multiple aspects of life in a rural town. Though Alex City’s changes have altered the face of the area, citizens and leaders are working together to ensure stability and progress in the future.

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