Spring Wellness Days provide students, instructors and instructional support staff some opportunity to refresh and rejuvenate. The March 16 Wellness Day was still an instructional and regular workday with the aim of reducing high-stakes exams and assignments. April 14 is scheduled as a day off for the academic campus.
“The April 14 Wellness Day will provide our students, faculty and campus staff with the opportunity to refresh and rejuvenate,” said Pam Benoit, Ph.D., Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs and Provost. “Everyone has worked hard to keep our campus safe and we want our community to enjoy wellness activities or get out and enjoy our city; whatever brings a sense of rest and contentment.”
Here are some low- and no-cost outings to consider:
Have a mindful outdoor experience
Spending time in nature is the new 10,000 steps. Join two-time UAB graduate Ashley Clarke of Earthkeeper Yoga for an mindful outdoor experience and reap the health benefits of reconnecting with the natural world around you — even in the middle of an urban environment. Noon on Explore UAB's Instagram page.
Explore UAB’s outdoor sculpture trails
Walk one or more of the three trails to see more than 35 sculptures or statues, many from renowned artists — all from an outdoor, safe distance. Use this specialized Google Map created by the UAB Reporter.
See UAB artists’ perspective in ‘Work from Home’ exhibit
All of the work in the exhibition was created during the COVID-19 pandemic by faculty and staff from the College of Arts and Sciences Department of Art and Art History. Featured are masks, works on paper, fabricated interaction contraptions, photographs, posters, digital prints and video. The works are installed in UAB Sustainability’s Solar House, at the corner of 11th Avenue South and 17th Street. Anyone interested in seeing the exhibit or the Solar House can book an individual tour.
Check out 12 larger-than-life murals around town
Find the perfect colorful distraction along downtown’s historic Morris Avenue, hidden on campus and in the bustling northeast Birmingham neighborhood of Avondale. Birmingham artists provide plenty of colors, patterns, structures and figures to inspect, both in-person or online.
Get to know one of Birmingham’s most historic neighborhoods
See vintage photos and learn the history of five of Five Points South’s oldest buildings — and what they’re home to today. For more than 100 years, the neighborhood has provided a space for cultural and commercial growth in-between downtown and the base of Red Mountain, Vulcan’s home.
See what put the magic in the city on the Red Mountain history tour
Take a trip to Red Mountain Park and download TravelStorys, an app that turns your cell phone into a tour guide, to help you explore 1,500-plus acres of dense urban green space that once spawned Birmingham’s 19th century industrial boom. Listen to sample stories or preview the tour online before you go. Red Mountain Park (a community partner of the UAB Benevolent Fund and one of its designated nonprofits) is open 7 a.m.-7p.m. daily.
Take in the landmarks along Birmingham Civil Rights Heritage Trail
Birmingham is home to landmarks of the American civil rights movement and was the headquarters for a civil rights campaign in the spring of 1963; events that occurred here produced political pressure that helped to ensure passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In 2017, President Barack Obama issued a declaration protecting this area as the Birmingham Civil Rights National Monument. A self-guided tour includes signs marking actual civil rights events that occurred on the very streets that are a part of this trail. Begin at Kelly Ingram Park, on the corner of Sixth Avenue North and 16th Street, and follow the maps on the signs.
Want something different? Use your UAB PERKS and Ticket Office discounts for Birmingham Zoo, AMC and Regal movie theaters, attractions and theme parks, and check out more events on the campus calendar.
In all you do, UAB encourages employees to continue masking in public and maintain safe social distances to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Masks are required indoor and outside on the UAB campus.