As you drive down 15th Street, passing the seemingly endless outcropping of newly constructed buildings, it is easy to miss Central High School. 15th is probably jammed with traffic and you are probably going to be late for your 9 a.m., so you give the brown brick buildings nothing more than a cursory glance. Many students at the University may not know that Central, nestled in the shadows of Bryant-Denny, was declared a failing school in 2016 by the Alabama Department of Education. The school is constantly dealing with the repercussions of zoning, which has produced de facto segregation within Tuscaloosa high schools.
Last spring semester, I had the privilege of working as an ACT tutor at Central. There, I met bright and motivated students, as well as tirelessly compassionate administrators and teachers. Working at Central opened my eyes to not only the systematic issues of racism and the lack of quality education still facing Tuscaloosa, but also a new generation of bright young minds in West Alabama. Getting outside of the UA bubble and engaging with the community was one of the most fulfilling experiences I have had as an undergraduate, and this year, I am imploring other UA students to do the same.
My involvement is just one small example of student engagement outside of the University, and education is just one realm of possibilities for this involvement. Tuscaloosa is a complex, dynamic city with both shortcomings and and successes. To paint the city as nothing more than a myriad of issues would be both problematic and inaccurate. However, there are many problems within the area that can and should be addressed: rising diabetes rates, functional illiteracy around 25 percent, pollution in water sources like the Black Warrior River, among many others. So many problems facing the community may seem daunting. We, as UA students, can choose to ignore the issues. We can choose to put our heads down, study hard and get out of Tuscaloosa in four years. But to do so would be depriving West Alabama of one of the greatest resources for change that it possesses. On campus, we have 37,000 young, energetic minds who can not only begin to think of solutions, but also join alongside community members in the solutions they already know they need.
Of course, one of the most important parts of successful community engagement is the proper mindset. Yes, we may have the youthful energy of college students that can help spark change, but we are also most likely inexperienced within the community and our respective fields. Service and involvement means nothing if it is not meeting the expressed needs of the community and the people within it. So before you jump in, make sure to listen, learn and immerse yourself in all that Tuscaloosa has to offer. Involvement does not have to be tedious and difficult. If you follow your passions, it is very unlikely that it would be. But community engagement does not have to mean working in a school or starting a new student organization. It can be as simple as always taking your recycling to the local plant, or getting your taco fix at La Carniceria y Tienda Mexicana, a local family-run restaurant, instead of Taco Bell. You will probably find that the more you learn about Tuscaloosa, the more your desire for involvement grows. Yes, Tuscaloosa is a college town, and the University is an integral part of the social and economic landscape of the area. But when we think of Tuscaloosa as nothing more than a college town, we are leaving out so many people and so many issues that we, as students, can solve.
Marissa Cornelius is a junior majoring in secondary education. Her column runs biweekly.
