Culverhouse College of Business students rolled up their sleeves and participated in a Selma Ripple Trip, part of the Selma Resilience Initiative. The program is a community-driven service-learning initiative that brings UA students and Selma stakeholders together to create lasting change in the city by actively engaging in hands-on projects
Students partnered with the Selma-Dallas County Historic Preservation Society, a nonprofit founded in 1971 to preserve, protect, and restore historic places across Selma and Dallas County. The day began at Heritage Village, supporting site cleanup and helping the Society care for a collection of donated historic structures located beside Sturdivant Hall.
“From cleaning up the yard of the Selma-Dallas County Historic Preservation Society to exploring downtown Selma, it was a wonderful time spent with my peers,” said Lacey Fisher, a senior honors marketing student. “The people were lovely, including the president of SDCHPS, Cindy Yeager. Visiting Selma for the first time was an educational experience, and I am glad to be included in the partnership UA has, which helps a community with so much history grow.”
The group also assisted on the Society’s revolving-loan rehabilitation work at an historic home, contributing labor that helps accelerate restoration progress—demo support, removal of materials, thorough jobsite cleanup, and measurements to inform
next steps. This kind of “revolving fund” approach is widely used in preservation to protect endangered buildings and mo
ve them toward sustainable reuse,
with proceeds and resources cycling into the next property in need. By the end of the day, students had not only served in tangible ways but also gained a clea
rer view of how preservation work strengthens neighborhoods, safeguards community identity, and keeps Selma’s historic places active and cared for.
Another Selma Ripple Trip is scheduled for March 25.
