Birmingham-Southern completes $126.5M sale to U.S. Coast Guard

It’s official—Birmingham-Southern College has closed on the sale of its campus to the United States Coast Guard. The two entities closed the deal on Thursday, April 30.

Birmingham-Southern College sells campus to U.S. Coast Guard

In May of 2024, Birmingham-Southern College closed its doors for good after years of financial instability. At the time of its closing, Birmingham-Southern was a private, 168-year-old, nationally ranked liberal arts college with an estimated $92.3 million annual economic impact on Alabama.

Following the College’s closure, Birmingham-Southern’s Board of Trustees began an effort to sell the campus. Located in the Bush Hills neighborhood of Birmingham, Birmingham-Southern’s 192-acre campus features 1.3 million square feet of buildings, plus athletic fields and expansive green spaces.

Although two Alabama colleges—Alabama A&M and Miles College—expressed interest in purchasing Birmingham-Southern’s campus, the entities were unable to come to an agreement, and the deals ultimately fell through. Then, in March 2026, the College found an unlikely buyer—the United States Coast Guard.

“While getting to this point has been a long, sad, and challenging journey for everyone who loved Birmingham-Southern, we are confident this is the right decision.

We are deeply grateful to President Daniel B. Coleman for his remarkable leadership, as well as to Mayor Randall Woodfin and the Birmingham City Council for their steadfast support. We have also been most fortunate to have Rep. Robert Aderholt – who is a BSC graduate – as well as Sen. Katie Britt, Sen. Tommy Tuberville and Rep. Terri Sewell – in whose district the campus sits – working to ensure that the purchase remained a top priority in Washington.

This outcome is truly a remarkable win for our city and state.”

Rev. Keith D. Thompson. chair of the BSC Board of Trustees and a 1983 graduate

Here’s what’s next for the former Birmingham-Southern campus

According to a press release, the new owners will refit the 192-acre campus as the U.S. Coast Guard Training Center Birmingham-Southern, a nod to the college’s 168-year legacy of education and service.

Throughout the year, the Birmingham-Southern facility will train several thousand active-duty enlisted personnel rotating through courses ranging from two to 12 weeks that focus on technical skills and professional development. An estimated 300 Coast Guard staff and another 100 civilian contractors will operate Training Center Birmingham-Southern, living either on or off campus.

Net proceeds from the sale will be used to replenish the BSC endowment, which had eroded during the College’s long struggle to stay open.

Under Alabama’s Uniform Prudent Investment of Institutional Funds Act, BSC is required to create a long-term plan for the endowment, secure approval of the plan from the Alabama Attorney General and then obtain approval in the Alabama circuit court. That work is expected to take at least a year.

“We are committed to delivering a plan that meets the statutory requirements and honors the generosity of those who have supported us through endowment gifts throughout BSC’s 168 years. As we turn our focus to creating that plan, we continue to ask the BSC community for patience with what is certain to be a lengthy process. We will communicate with them once the plan is fully approved.”

Rev. Keith D. Thompson. chair of the BSC Board of Trustees and a 1983 graduate

Do you miss the former BSC campus? Share with us your favorite memory and tell us what you think about it becoming a Coast Guard training facility by leaving a comment on social media at @bhamnow!