Birmingham Southern College - Southern Accent Yearbook (Birmingham, AL)

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Dr. Baiiey makes frequent stops on his daily waJks to chat with passing students. Dr. Bailey ' s office door is aJways open to aid the stray theater ma- jor who ended up in biology with pre-meds. A classic. This picture appeared in Dr. Baily ' s retirement program and typifies his keen sense of humor. Dr. Bailey— 23

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Dr. Bailey Retires In a Genius Class by Himself. By John E. Norris If there is one person on the Hilltop who may truly be called an institution it is Professor Paul C. Bailey. Professor Bailey has taught biology at ' Southern for the past eighteen years, seven of which he spent as Dean of the College. As the professor of general biology for the past several years, Dr. Bailey has become almost a legend among bi- ology majors and non-majors alike. Students are amused by his country ac- cent and his relaxed classroom slouch during complex lectures he delivers from memory in a tone of voice which suggests that all children must learn this easy stuff right after the ABC ' s; stu- dents are not so amused with his fam- ous multiple-multiple choice finals, tests which cause many freshmen to pitch their first all-nighter in college. As the year ends, however. Dr. Bai- ley will retire and then return in the fall as Professor Emeritus, teaching a non-major biology course every semes- ter for at least the next few semesters. Although we are glad that he will at least be around for a while, it is with great sadness that we witness the end of his full-time teaching career. Dr. Bailey ' s first interest in biology emerged during his early years as he grew up on a farm in Northern Alabama. Being a farm-boy, I think it was sort of natural that I should be in- terested in biology, he says. After re- ceiving his bachelor of science in biolo- gy from Jacksonville State University, Dr. Bailey applied and was accepted to what is now the Emory University Dental School. Due to unusual circumstances brought on by World War II, however, his enrollment was delayed for one year. During that year. Dr. Bailey discovered his love for teaching as a graduate student at Vanderbilt. Instead of going on to dental school as he had planned, Dr. Bailey ended up earning both his master ' s and doctorate in bio- logy at Vanderbilt. Afterwards, he taught for a short time in a public school, then he moved on to Montevallo, where he taught for fifteen years before his arrival at BSC. Although Dr. Bailey has displayed great interest and talent in teaching, he has also made great accomplishments in another area — genetic research. Over several summers at genetics labo- ratories. Dr. Bailey bred a strain of while mice which are extremely useful in tumor research. Dr. Bailey reminisces, I started off with a single pair of white mice I bought in a pet store in Birmingham. After 50 genera- tions of inbreeding every animal in that colony — and it never failed — every one developed cancer of the lymph nodes. Now called PBA ' s (Paul Bailey Albinos), these little boogers are used in cancer research throughout the world. Despite these lofty accomplishments. Dr. Bailey remains one of the most personable and down-to-earth professors at the college, his gentle country mannerisms parodied affec- tionately at student-sponsored campus events. His students and colleagues alike will sorely miss his daily presence at the College, but they will be glad to see him return for a few days each week. In the meantime. Dr. Bailey will be content to tend to his farm in his hometown of Baileyton. 22 — Academics Dr. Bailey spends registration day aiding bioiogy ma;ors with their choice of classes.

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Hello Olin. Academic c Olinland By Phillip Bohannon In case you ' ve missed it, the Olin Com- puter Science and Mathematics Fa- cihty is the large thing on your left on the way to the dorms. When it opened in fall of this year, it brought the use of computers to the attention of the col- lege community as it had never been before. At the same time, the computer power easily accessable by students in- creased drastically. The Olin Building was paid for by a grant from the Olin Foundation of New York, an organization which habitually funds new buildings on college campuses. The Olin Foundation is very selective; that Birmingham-Southern was chosen as both an honor for the college and a testament to the tenacity and skill with which President Neal Berte courted the selection committee. On the exterior, the building ' s archi- tecture blends well with the Yeilding Chapel, the Planetarium, and the Rush Learning Center. Inside, it departs from the campus norm with a full length skylight, decorative columns, lots of pastels — folks, this is a very pretty building. This text is just a caption for the picture; you can see what it looks like, but there ' s more to it than that. Will the education provided by the college be as affected as the society around us by the move to computers? Besides a few hours saved typing a paper, and a place to model Miami Vice style clothes, will this building and its resources mean anything to the average student? May- be. O.K., probably. The computer will continue to ap- pear in more aspects of the college curriculum, until all but the most deter- mined student will be a moderately skilled user of the computer ' s services. But, just as any school can teach one to read, the local technical college will happily turn you into a consumer. With a nod to the liberal arts credo, perhaps the ' Southern graduate can be a critical computer user. As computers are re- sponsible for more and more of the country ' s information, the degree to which this information is trusted and the uses to which it is put must be watched carefully, and watched by people who understand what ' s going on. Who knows, some day a bad program may be as dangerous as a bad idea. Anyway, it is a pretty building. [ anice Winters utiiizes (he ease of P.C. Writer to type her way through B-SC. 24 — Academics