Connor Higgins
As an upperclassman at Northridge High School in Tuscaloosa, Abby Morthland didn’t initially consider The University of Alabama as an option for college.
She was interested in out-of-state schools. Abby lived in Maine for eight years before returning to her hometown of Tuscaloosa, and “the quality” of her education was paramount, she said.
“I knew that other schools in the Northeast had higher rankings, but they were more expensive,” she said. “I’d debated the value of that investment.”
But in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, the thought of being isolated and away from home prompted Abby to explore opportunities at The University of Alabama, where a door to the nation’s first interdisciplinary undergraduate research program would seal her decision to attend the Capstone.
“I applied early to Randall Research Scholars, and when I got into that, I thought I could make UA feel like a different experience within that community,” she said. “I saw what the research students were doing in Randall, and I saw the attitude, the academic rigor that everyone had, and it really affirmed in me that [UA] can have the same level of scholarship and dedication.”
Abby will graduate in May 2024 with bachelor’s degrees in Spanish and philosophy, capping an awards-filled undergraduate career that includes the 2024 Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award – one of UA’s Premier Awards – and the 2023 UA Junior of the Year Award. She also excelled in campuswide team competitions, capturing the Edward K. Aldag Business Pitch Competition Social Entrepreneurship Award and finishing first in the BIG Ideas Pilot Content Technology category.
Foundational to Abby’s academic successes at UA have been the opportunities and challenges she’s experienced through the Randall Research Scholars Program, which have been supported by several endowed scholarships and the program’s namesake, Dr. Catherine J. Randall. Abby received an endowed scholarship through the program, along with the Jackie Constance Robbins Scholarship, the Sara Finley Family Global Scholarship to study abroad in Madrid and the Dr. Charles L. Seebeck Endowed Scholarship.
RRSP helped Abby grow her career interests in law and human rights advocacy through research. Abby collaborated with classmate Lewis Fischer and UA law professor Dr. John Acevedo to analyze how alcohol legislation, zoning ordinances and trend data conflict with First Amendment rights.
“And so now I’m kind of looking at other avenues to continue to help human rights advocacy, whether that be through immigration work or administration,” Abby said.
Abby said she “attributes most of my self-actualization and achievement in college” to RRSP, though, initially, her transition was difficult. Abby said she struggled with feeling deserving of her place in the program because of the brilliance and determination of her fellow Randall Scholars. But her mentor, Randall Research Scholars Program Director Dr. Jeff Gray, was a constant, steadying presence.
“A lot of the time, Dr. Gray gave me the confidence to reach for things I didn’t even think were in my realm,” she said. “Dr. Gray would empower and uplift me. Doors would open just by being around him.”
Scholarships, fellowships and other programs enable students like Abby to engage in leadership and experience excellence at The University of Alabama. The Rising Tide 2.0Capital Campaign aims to increase student support and, to date, has created more than 1,000 new endowed scholarships and fellowships.
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