PlanFirst, a new Honors College service-learning course being launched this fall, is currently recruiting students interested in applying their academic disciplines to the reconstruction of Tuscaloosa communities.

The brainchild of Wesley Vaughn, a senior majoring in public relations and political science, the PlanFirst program is a new partnership of the city of Tuscaloosa’s Office of Planning and Development Services and the University of Alabama.

“The idea of PlanFirst developed last semester while my sister, Madalyn, and I were in Moral Forum, a course run by the Center of Ethics and Social Responsibility,” Vaughn said. “The course was set up as a group competition for grant funding for projects that would help Tuscaloosa’s rebuilding process.”

When the competition came to a close, PlanFirst was one of three service projects chosen by Vice President of Student Affairs Mark Nelson to receive a University funded grant.

“My interest in the planning field guided our project to become a partnership between Tuscaloosa’s Office of Planning and Development Services and the University of Alabama,” Vaughn said. “We thought a service-learning course would be the best way to connect students to this office.”

Tuscaloosa’s Office of Planning and Development Services has been a major player in the rebuilding process since the April 27 tornado. The office has been involved in-depth in the administration of the Tuscaloosa Forward Plan, a strategic rebuilding plan for the city of Tuscaloosa, since the Tuscaloosa City Council unanimously adopted it in September of 2011.

The changes to zoning ordinances across the city are still ongoing, and students will be working closely with members of the Office of Planning and Development Services as the new zones are implemented.

The course is expected to run approximately 12 weeks and will be a three-hour Honors College course with the humanities designation. The first six weeks of the course will focus primarily on community planning, the history of Tuscaloosa, cooperative communication techniques and various other academic disciplines as they relate to the reconstruction effort.

This first phase will also include several guest lecturers and professors who will speak with the assembled students as the program moves forward. Students will spend the following six weeks of the program shadowing and assisting various members of the planning department. Which members of the Office of Planning and Development Services each student will assist will depend largely on their chosen field of study.

PlanFirst is currently recruiting students of all majors, and any interested students should contact Vaughn at [email protected].