Before Camille Spratling ’98 (MPPM ’07) joined Railroad Park as the foundation’s executive director, she was a Birmingham resident who shared the dream for an urban green space – one that could bridge the north and south sides of the city.

Spratling saw the idea for a park move from this dream to a 19-acre landmark, and she grew with the process. First serving as her neighborhood association’s president, she soon became a Railroad Park Foundation board member before stepping in as director a few months after the park opened in September 2010.

“There was a long history of people dreaming about the park, and so many different people in the community made this dream a reality. The hope was that it would be a place where all of Birmingham could come together – a tangible sign that Birmingham was on the move,” Spratling says.

Her job entails a wide array of industries, from fundraising to event planning to landscaping, and Spratling credits her BSC education for her ability to juggle these roles.

“There’s no one track of study that could have prepared me for this role, but the liberal arts education did. I was constantly pushed to see things in a new way or to look at a problem from many different perspectives,” she says. “BSC also helped me see how important service in the community is.”

As a student, Spratling was involved in service learning locally through her sorority and honor societies and abroad in Zimbabwe on an E-Term trip. She remembers experiencing what good service looks like as volunteers let go of themselves and focused on the heart of the project. Now a director of a nonprofit, Spratling frequently must do the same, and she encourages her volunteers to hold that mindset.

Prior to her current position, Spratling worked at Children’s of Alabama and in the president’s office at BSC. Spratling moved out of the city for a bit after graduation, but she recognized Birmingham’s potential and saw the way the city was digging into problems, working on issues, and growing rapidly.

Spratling herself had a part in Birmingham’s revitalization through Railroad Park. Its opening marked a surge of energy in the city’s downtown. The green area, located between the financial and health districts, introduced a new vitality through a diverse range of activities and events, from summer concerts to the holiday magic of a winter ice skating rink.

“The park was a splash in the city. People were stunned by how top-notch it was,” she says, remembering the early days. “It caught hold in a viral way. I knew we were going to look back and see this shift in Birmingham.”

This story was published in the Fall/Winter 2019 issue of ’Southern, BSC’s alumni magazine.

If you have ideas for our next issue of ’Southern, please email [email protected]. We always welcome stories about outstanding people from the BSC community.