“Forward Ever” is the motto of Birmingham-Southern College, which for 168 years educated students and prepared them for a future beyond the Hilltop.

But the liberal arts college’s days are numbered with the recent announcement that BSC will close on May 31. That announcement has left students, faculty and staff feeling like they’ve experienced a death in their family.

“We are all grieving,” said Virginia Gilbert Loftin, the school’s vice president for advancement and communications.

Today is Forward Ever Day at BSC. Annually, this is the day alumni and friends of the college are urged to give in support of the school. But Forward Ever Day has a somber feel this year as friends of the college will give in an effort to make the final days of students, faculty and staff as good as they can be.

“Giving on Forward Ever Day is an opportunity to ensure that students, faculty and staff have the smoothest possible path to their next chapter,” Loftin said, “and to lift their spirits as their lives take an unexpected and unwelcome turn.”

The BSC vice president said Forward Ever Day gifts will help the college continue to operate through commencement on May 24.

“BSC will cease normal operations on May 31, but there is much work to do beyond that date to complete the hard and sad task of closure,” Loftin said. “Staff will depart in phases beginning May 25 and extending through the summer, with the date based on each employee’s role in the wind-down.”

Faculty contracts end in mid-August.

“With no future tuition revenue, gifts will be of enormous help in taking care of everyone in the BSC community, which is a large part of the cost of closure,” Loftin said.

The vice president wrote to alumni this week about Forward Ever Day.

“In true BSC spirit,” she wrote, “our students, faculty, and staff are rising to meet this moment, proving what they’re made of as they prepare for a change none of them wanted or welcomed.”

BSC seniors received their first commencement cords from the BSC Alumni Engagement Office at the Grad Expo this week. “Cords are a big deal for seniors,” she wrote.

First- through third-year students will meet with representatives from more than 50 colleges and universities on Friday at a transfer fair.

“Thanks to the hard work of our provost (Dr. Laura Stultz) and her team, agreements have been inked with most of those institutions to make transferring as easy as possible,” Loftin wrote. “Our student-athletes are exploring their options through the NCAA transfer portal.”

The vice president said area employers will be on campus next week for a job fair for faculty and staff.

“Those companies and organizations will find excellent hires among the BSC team,” she said.