On Saturday, April 28, Birmingham-Southern College will introduce “100 Minutes on the Hilltop,” a series of short, TED-style talks by current students, faculty, and alumni. Each will focus on a topic designed to inspire action, spark conversation, and increase understanding of what it means to lead a life of significance, as laid out in BSC’s mission statement.

The event is part of the college’s year-long celebration of 100 Years on the Hilltop, commemorating the anniversary of the merger of BSC’s parent institutions, Southern University and Birmingham College, to create today’s campus on a hilltop west of the city. The 100 Minutes on the Hilltop event will begin at 1 p.m. in the Norton Theatre in the Norton Campus Center and will be followed at 3 p.m. by a Centennial Picnic featuring food from Jim ’N Nicks and the musical performances of HillFest, organized by BSC’s Association of Music Students. Register for the picnic here by April 25.

“We are so excited about launching this event – it’s such a great way to celebrate the century Birmingham-Southern has been here in Birmingham leading the exchange of ideas and inspiring action to improve our community,” said BSC President Linda Flaherty-Goldsmith. “And it’s a great way to showcase the incredible work our students, professors, and alumni are doing to make the world a better place.”

Some of the speakers and their topics include:

• BSC graduate Emily Kyzer Browne, director of professional development at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, on the concept of micro-courage;
• Dr. Joseph Chandler, BSC alumnus and assistant professor of psychology, on the practical application of mindfulness and digital detoxing in the modern age;
• BSC Associate Professor of Biology Dr. Jason Heaton, part of a research team analyzing one of the most complete pre-human fossils, on how scientific discoveries like his depend on small advances by many;
• BSC junior Desi Hall on her own experience as a black transgender woman and needing to create spaces for those identities;
• BSC senior Aditi Prasad on how interning and working in an advocacy program helped her find her passion and her purpose; and
• Joelle James Phillip, a BSC graduate and president of AT&T in Tennessee, on why and how to approach life as a student well into adulthood.

Also on Saturday, April 28, the college will host its Distinguished Alumni Awards, recognizing graduates who have achieved outstanding success in their chosen professions. This year’s recipients are Joelle James Phillips ’89, Ellen Woodward Potts ’88, and Frances Osborn Robb ’58; Outstanding Young Alumni Award honorees Paul Fancher ’97 and Jose Vega ’04, and Rising Star honoree Rachel Buchan ’15. The awards will be presented at 10:30 a.m. in Bruno Great Hall in the Norton Campus Center.

At 4 p.m., there will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Natalie Davis Seminar Room, a new digital classroom to enhance teaching and learning; it is located in room 302 of the Harbert Building on campus. Davis is BSC’s Howell T. Heflin Professor Emerita of Political Science who taught at the college for more than 40 years.