Jacyln Wells (center) and two of her students: Amy Roberts (left) and Jay Haywood (right). The city of Birmingham is an open book for students in one UAB English course. It serves as both subject and setting for their work, which hones their skills for writing about place for different public and academic audiences. And they quickly find that Birmingham’s story has plenty of blank pages for them to fill.

“Birmingham is a city that sparks a lot of opinions,” says Jaclyn Wells, the assistant professor of English who teaches the course, appropriately titled Writing in Birmingham. “I want to take advantage of that.” In their own words, students discover the hidden gems and little-known history of the Magic City they call home. They also get an opportunity to help shape Birmingham’s future by working with some of its youngest residents.