In March, Birmingham-Southern welcomed Hattie O’Hara ’17 back to the Hilltop as the new assistant director of service learning and community partnerships. Though O’Hara might be a new staff member, she isn’t new to the Krulak Institute for Leadership, Experiential Learning, and Civic Engagement.

O’Hara spent many hours in the Krulak offices when she was a BSC student – she contracted several E-Term courses, served as a Hess Fellow, and created her own major in human rights, made up of political science, sociology, and urban environmental studies courses. Those experiences offered by the Krulak Institute helped O’Hara prepare for a career in community engagement.

“I knew I wanted to work with nonprofit organizations and connect people with social issues they may never have heard about,” she says. “And I knew I could only learn so much in the classroom.”

She ended up completing eight internships across the city – one for every fall and spring at BSC. Through these off-campus experiences, Birmingham became her home and somewhere she wanted to see grow.

“I fell in love with the way nonprofits innovate and respond to issues,” O’Hara says. “I got to know so many nonprofit leaders – the people who are making things happen in Birmingham – and the diverse communities that make up the city.”

After she graduated in 2017, O’Hara worked on a program team with the Birmingham Education Foundation – one of the Krulak Institute’s community partners – and helped connect Birmingham City School students to helpful resources. She later moved to Atlanta and began working at Global Village Project, a middle school for refugee girls, and her role allowed her to work closely with volunteers.

Many academic departments, student organizations, and athletics teams dedicate time to service. Some courses include a service learning component or focus on specific service projects. Students also have the opportunity to serve on campus – pictured here are students helping maintain our on-campus EcoScape.

O’Hara is bringing what she learned about the volunteer experience to her position at BSC – she helps connect students with volunteer and service opportunities and works closely with the Hess Fellows and Bonner Leader Programs. She says she’s focused on sustainability and empathy – two crucial parts of community engagement that volunteering often lacks.

“In the Krulak Institute, we’re thinking through the ways we are involving students with Birmingham communities to make sure none of our service opportunities are made to benefit students or numbers alone, that we’re filling a real need for our partnering organizations.”

As she continues to support the Krulak Institute’s mission, O’Hara also hopes to see more service learning opportunities offered in the classroom and on campus. She realizes not all students have the time and resources to fill their schedules with off-campus service experiences.

“I really want to increase the opportunities on campus and build more service learning classes so we can expand our experiences to all students with all different kinds of availability,” O’Hara says. “I do strongly believe that – regardless of major – there is an opportunity to get involved in social issues and organizations across Birmingham.”