Hello, my name is Carolyn Veale, and I'm with the University Honors Program.
Hello, my name is Sarah Beth May, and I'm with the University Scholars Program, and
today we're going to spend some time talking to you about both programs.
Both the University Honors and University Scholars Programs seek to enrich the educational
experience of high-achieving students, providing them with a platform for achieving their unique
potential.
In other words, we allow students to gain ownership of their undergraduate education
and do something special while they're at NC State University.
So I'm going to spend a little time talking to you about the University Honors Program.
The University Honors Program is a program of creativity, inquiry and discovery that
involves students in the research and scholarship mission of NC State and its pursuit of new
knowledge.
In other words, we like to say that we nurture students in becoming knowledge creators in
their field.
We were established back in the year 2000.
We have an incoming class of about 175 students, and we're located on the second floor of Clark
Hall on east campus.
In terms of the Honors Program, the honors seminars are the heart of our programs.
They are lower-enrollment, thought intensive courses.
They provide an interdisciplinary foundation for inquiry.
They're reading and writing intensive, and all of our three credit hour HON seminars
meet the general educational requirements.
Some samples of some seminars that we are currently offering, that we have offered in
the past and that we'll be offering in the future are: time travel, the creative process
in science, popular songs and communication, writing the self, a global history of American
food, race membership and eugenics and the power of horror.
Again, these seminars are the heart of our program, and they are taught by enthusiastic
faculty who love to teach students that are in our programs.
The second requirement of the Honors Program is the honors capstone.
The honors capstone is a two-semester or six credit hour independent research project that's
conducted under the guidance of NC State faculty mentor.
Sometimes they're also conducted by faculty at other institutions as well as research
professionals in the area.
Just to put a face with our program and its success, I'd like to introduce you to a few
students.
The first student is Corwin Kerr.
Corwin graduated with a degree in chemical engineering in May of 2019.
While he was at NC State, he conducted research for two years in the Alfahasani lab and was
the author in four publications.
He was either the first or second author in those four publications.
While at NC State University, Corwin was an honors village fellow, and right now Corwin
is at the University of Michigan in Alberta pursuing a PhD in chemical engineering.
Next, I would like to introduce you to John Fallon.
John Fallon graduated back in the fall of 2017.
He was an English major with a creative writing concentration.
He also received a minor in business administration.
His capstone involved him creating a book on veterans returning from war and mental
health issues.Right now, John is at the UNC Chapel Hill law school, and he has continued
his passion in terms of working with veterans as he is the outreach and speaker coordinator
for the Veterans Advocacy Legal Organization or VALOR which is a UNC School of Law student
organization dedicated to serving veterans.
And finally, I would like to introduce you to Jada Hester.
Jada Hester will be graduating in May of 2020.
She is a double major in business administration and international studies.
She was a 2019 20 Women NC Scholar.
Her research is focused on racialized wage gap among women in Durham, North Carolina,
and she presented this research at the United Nations in New York City.
Jada is a Park Scholar.
She is an Alexander Hamilton Scholar.
She was a proposition and vision counselor which was an undergraduate recruitment program.
She is a TRIO/Upward Bound volunteer.
She is a University Ambassador.
She serves on the University Ambassador Leadership Team, and she's also a Chancellor's aide.
This past summer Jada was an intern for CNN Van Jones and The Axe Files, and she has studied
abroad in both China and Spain.
So just to recap the University Honors Program, students in our program are required to take
12 credit hours of HON seminars.
They're also required to take one semester Scholars forum that you'll hear more about
from my colleague Sarah Beth.
They also have to the six credit hour, two semester capstone project as well as maintain
a 3.25 or higher GPA.
Hi, so next we'd like to share a little bit more information about the University Scholars
Program.
The University Scholars Program is a program that really seeks to inspire students to become
active, informed and engaged citizens of the world.
We do this through a multitude of ways.
We try to encourage students to consider issues drawn from both the sciences and politics,
introducing them to the visual art and performing arts and really asking them to explore the
world through a variety of ways, both through international and outdoor education programs
and that includes on campus as well as off campus experiences.
And we really try to help students excel both academically and really trying to connect
their passions to what they're learning both in and outside of the classroom.
We've been in existence since 1979, and we look forward to welcoming our new class in
the fall of about 325 students.
We're also located on east campus in Clark Hall on the same floor as the University Honors
Program.
So are our main programmatic component is the Scholars forum.
This is a zero credit class that students take for three semesters, and within the Scholars
forum, this is an opportunity where we bring in outside presenters, performers, a wide
range of experiences for students to really delve into new topics and experiences beyond
their traditional classroom setting.
For example, there are several events shared on this slide here with you.
So a World Without Work Looking at the Impact of AI, NASA in the 21st Century.
We actually had NASA astronaut Christina Koch who is a University Scholars program graduate
as well as a two time NC State graduate come back and talk about her path to becoming an
astronaut with NASA.
We've also had students who have come and learned about the curious case of the disappearing
bee.
So Dr. Elizabeth Long came and spoke about the impact of new *word* toys on the honeybee
population and how that impacts our society.
We also offer opportunities for students to go to events such as Fiddler on the Roof or
Hairspray or other events performed by University Theater here on campus.
So in addition to our main forum which takes place during the traditional week we also
have optional events that students are able to participate in that take place both on
and off campus, and these fulfill that same requirement of going to part of Scholars forum
but we have smaller group settings.
So for example, a film series we actually have different topics picked out for every
semester that students are able to explore or they're able to come together and watch
a film and then have a chance to talk and discuss that film at the end.
We have different book club series every semester.
So each semester several books are selected where students are able to come together and
they have several weeks to read a book and they come together for dinner and discussion
and they actually get to keep that book for their personal library at the conclusion of
the event.
We also have discussion series where students come together.
No student in the room is an expert.
It's just an opportunity for them to come together and talk about what are those things
happening around the world where they can come together and talk about what they're
learning in their class and how that impacts what's happening in society and vice versa.
Just really a time for them to come together and have those interdisciplinary conversations
about what's happening around them.
We also have wonderful conversations with faculty and alumni who come back and share
about what are they doing in their research, what are they doing in the industry.
Alumni come back and share about their paths to be going into law school or becoming an
engineer or teacher, what was important to them during their undergraduate experience,
and what has that path been like for them.
We also take students on a variety of field trips to museums, research centers, going
to local parks, all the different arts programs here on campus and in the surrounding area.
So these are those opportunities for students to really explore going to some things that
are in their comfort zone and some things that are totally outside of that zone.
During a semester, students go to a certain number of events.
We offer several hundred in a given semester so there's a lot of flexibility built in to
allow a student to really explore those things that are going to help them grow and develop
as students.
The next category of requirements for students are approved coursework hours.
So students are required to have 12 hours of approved coursework by the time they graduate.
They can do that through a multitude of ways.
As shared on the slide, students might be able to participate in an HON seminar for
USP students.
So as my colleague shared about the HON seminar experience, students in the USP program will
take an HON seminar during their first year in the program.
They then can receive nine hours through a variety of ways.
They might be taking part in another HON seminar.
They might take part in Honors courses.
You can also explore first year inquiry courses during your first semester at the university.
If you're interested in studying abroad, you can actually earn up to six of your 12 hours
through you study abroad experiences.
Many of our students will take graduate level courses by the time they graduate.
Again, it's not just your first year, it's by the time you graduate from the institution.
You can always take honors contract courses where you work directly with the faculty member
to turn a traditional course into an honors experience, going above and beyond what you
are asked on your traditional syllabus and creating an additional educational outcome
that you'll work with that professor to do throughout that semester.
There's also independent study courses, courses related to our villages on campus as well
as USP 200-level courses that are available to students.
A third requirement are our high impact activities.
And students are requested to participate and reflect on a minimum of three experiences
throughout their time at the university.
We have several different categories listed on this slide, so for example leadership,
so students might want to become involved in student government on campus or maybe they
want to be involved in their residence hall as a resident mentor or resident adviser.
There's opportunities to become involved in leadership roles within your organizations
on campus.
There's also service opportunities, so working extendedly with a certain service group whether
it's on campus or off campus to really be able to form that bond with them and understand
what they're doing within a community setting.
We have exploration programs that I'll speak more about both through our program as well
as through other offices around campus that you participate in.
Students can participate in non-course-based undergraduate research, internships or co-op
experiences.
So those are those aspects that are not necessarily listed on your transcript but really impact
you as a student again throughout your whole educational journey.
If you're involved in Arts NC State or there's other approved aspects that you might want
to talk to us about as a staff, so students would turn in a reflection or deliverable
from these different high impact experiences that they've taken part in throughout their
time at the university.
So overall, just want to kind of do a quick recap.
Students are required to take three semesters of the scholars forum experience, that is
that central component of the University Scholars Program, and that's typically during your
first three semesters as a student.
You will have 12 hours of approved coursework, the first being one HON seminar during your
first year, and then nine additional hours of approved coursework taken through a variety
of ways.
There's a lot of flexibility in that perspective.
And then completing three high impact experiences and reflecting on those while maintaining
a GPA of a 3.25 or higher.
So next I wanted to share a little bit more about opportunities that students have through
the programs.
We do cultural explorations.
These are those opportunities to really explore different cultural capitals around the world,
both in the states as well as internationally.
So every fall break we have taken students to New York City, and through this experience
students are really able to see the city from the top to the bottom.
From the Top of the Rock down to the subway system, and you really get to explore a variety
of places such as the MOMA, the Met, going to Staten Island, going to the Brooklyn Bridge,
going to Chinatown, exploring several Broadway shows, and really having that opportunity
to explore the city with students from all different levels of the university standing
from freshman to seniors.
And then in the spring students typically go to a trip to Washington, D.C., where they're
really able to explore together and learn more about the United States and the Washington
D.C experience.
Over spring break, we go to different international destinations and cultural capitals around
the world.
There's some different sample destinations that we've been to in the past such as Madrid
and Barcelona, London and Paris, Morocco, Turkey, Amsterdam, Hamburg and Berlin.
So there's a variety of ways and these are led by our staff in the office, and so we
try to keep these experiences as low cost as possible for students, and they're an excellent
way for them to explore with other students from the programs.
We also have outdoor exploration experiences where students can really get out into the
great outdoors whether that be within North Carolina or beyond.
Some of our different sample destinations have been the Hammocks Beach State Park.
Students have had the opportunity to go to bike and brunch with the day trip to the North
Carolina Museum of Art right down the street.
They've had the opportunity to do a scholars sampler in Asheville over fall break, and
during this experience for example students were able to camp and hike.
They were able to take part in a service experience going out into the community.
They've been able to go to the Biltmore Estates.
They've also been able to do different activities in the area such as bike riding or white water
rafting.
And then over the spring break experience, most recently the students have returned from
a trip to the Bahamas, but they also have been to other destinations as well.
And one of the really nice things about the outdoor explorations is that there's different
skill levels involved so students sometimes have never had that experience outdoors and
others have been going in the outdoors for a great amount of time, and so they're really
able to come together and explore together.
Additionally we have several study abroad programs that we run during the summer.
One of our study abroad programs is the Florence study abroad program.
It takes place traditionally in the first summer session, and it's a five-week experience
where students are staying and learning in the heart of Florence.
They're studying at Lorenzo de' Medici Institute, and during this experience they're able to
take part in several different course options as well as field trips to Siena, Pisa, it's
a wonderful experience for students to really get out and explore and to be within that
Florence space.
During the second summer session we have a study abroad program that takes place in Oxford,
England.
During this experience, students take two classes.
We have a Shakespeare course, a British history course as well as an HON seminar that are
offered, and so students will take two of those three.
We also have opportunities for students to take part in different field trips both within
Oxford as well as beyond.
So for example, going to Stonehenge, going to Bath, going to London.
Students might also be able to go and visit the Harry Potter studios and also going to
see a royal Shakespearean company performance in Stratford-upon-Avon.
So all of these experiences take place during the summer.
Their study abroad program experiences and so these are opportunities for students to
expand their horizons beyond the United States' borders.
So our last opportunity for students to really explore is the Honors and Scholars Village.
So as members of the University Honors and Scholars Programs students are welcome to
explore living in the village experience.
It's located in the quad, and that's Becton, Bagwell and Berry Halls, and one of the really
nice things is that it's on east campus right next to Clark Hall.
So our offices are literally a few steps away so that extra layer of support for our student
population is right there.
There's a lot of opportunities for small group opportunities led by professional staff as
well as our village fellows.
Our village fellows are wonderful resident mentors who really are able to connect with
our students both within the HON seminar sections as well as in their living environment.
We have different social, cultural and service activities that are offered for students and
really an opportunity to continue that educational experience beyond the traditional classroom
setting.
We have a Scholar in Residence, and there are opportunities for different exploration
programs for village participants as well.
So with that being said, we realize you might have questions about our programs or information
that you may want to explore further, and we would welcome for you to contact us.
Our contact information is listed here.
So for the University Honors Program you can reach out to Carolyn Veale or for the University
Scholars Program Sarah Beth May.
We also wanted to share Dr. Scott O'Leary's information.
He is the director of the Honors and Scholars Village.
So if you have any questions, we would also you encourage you to look at our website.
We have frequently asked question documents there about both of our programs and it's
really a wonderful way to explore things that are happening right now for our students so
that you can kind of picture yourself in their shoes.
For different exploration opportunities, different learning environments, information about the
seminars.
So we welcome you to reach back out if you have any questions, but we really thank you
for your time.