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Faces and Places: Dr. Carol Garrison, president of UAB

Posted on Nov 17, 2009 in News

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You may expect that a day in the life of a college president would be hectic and filled with responsibilities that affected the general well-being of the population.

For Dr. Carol Garrison, UAB’s president, her days are exactly that. Not only does she educate the citizens and future leaders of the state of Alabama, but she also chairs the board of the UAB Health System with making sure that the health care needs are provided for the citizens.

What does she enjoy doing outside of work? “I spend time with my family, read non work-related books, and enjoy doing anything outside” she states.

Dr. Garrison graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1974 where she earned her undergraduate and PhD in nursing. She later attended UAB for her master’s in epidemiology.

Dr. Garrison thoroughly enjoyed her undergraduate experience and has used that enjoyment to relate to students on UAB’s campus.

“I want students to get the highest quality educational experience that is both nurturing and challenging as well as able to stay connected to UAB for the rest of their lives” she adds.

Some of her favorite places to go on UAB’s campus include the campus green where she enjoys seeing students studying or enjoying a nice afternoon between classes, a theatre or music performance by students in the Alys Stephens Center, or a research of health care facilities to talk to faculty about the leading-edge work they do. “I pretty much enjoy going anywhere our students and faculty gather” Dr. Garrison states.

Recognizing that a lot of students at UAB commute to school, Dr. Garrison encourages them to find at least one activity outside of the classroom to be involved in. “I realize that students have many demands on their time, but choosing at least one thing to be involved in really enhances their college experience.”

Where is UAB headed in the next ten years? Dr. Garrison hopes the next decade will continue to recruit more students to a growing campus with increasing opportunities to participate in the life of the community and in exciting undergraduate and graduate programs as well as being at the forefront of research breakthroughs, advancing in patient care, and economic development. “I hope people will watch what we do next, because we have only just begun!”

Did she see herself becoming a college president when she was a child? “I had many different interests and still do, although my younger career focused on science and health care, I was always intrigued by the disciplines from the arts to engineering” she states. When talking to Dr. Garrison you find that she remains passionate about her job and sincerely enjoys the tasks set before her. She makes it a point to not dwell on the negative focusing her attention on the perks of being a president. “I love going to freshman move-in day and welcome the new students to UAB or recognize our outstanding faculty and staff for their accomplishments, as well as congratulating our new graduates at commencement” she adds.
 

Email: emilye@uab.edu

 




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