The mission of the Honors College is to provide an enriching environment for students who are among the most academically motivated and talented at the University, an environment that enhances their college experiences through a curriculum that is intellectually challenging and engaging. The Honors College seeks to involve students, faculty members, and staff members from across the University in a community of scholars who together explore questions both within and beyond their various disciplines. The Honors College seeks to focus campus attention on excellence in undergraduate education while enhancing the University's reputation as an academic leader.

The Honors College endeavors to promote a climate which develops and fosters independent scholars and challenges them to achieve their potential. The Honors College integrates three primary objectives:

• to critically engage students and the faculty in a shared intellectual experience based on active learning, analyses of fundamental primary sources, and extra-curricular opportunities;

• to provide students with an exposure to and an understanding of a wide variety of disciplinary, cross-disciplinary, and interdisciplinary perspectives; and

• to promote University-wide undergraduate research opportunities of a substantive nature based on individual faculty mentoring in the discipline.

The Honors College embodies the belief that genuine excellence in college-level studies entails substantial understanding and informed appreciation of areas outside a major field of specialization as well as focused excellence within it. With an emphasis on learning which both broadens and deepens intellectual pursuits, the Honors College serves to expand students' perspectives by exploring areas of thought not closely related to their disciplines and to encourage them to work in their majors with greater intensity than would be possible within a conventional curricular pattern. Honors study begins with interdisciplinary breadth and concludes with an in-depth thesis project in the major.

Adopted for The Honors College by the Honors Council,
Spring 2002

Proposed Curriculum

4. Two Honors Experiences (at least one within or closely related to major)

Notes:

e) Honors Experiences include, but are not limited to

i) Honors courses offered by departments or colleges

ii) Graduate courses

iii) Honors by contract

iv) Independent work in Honors (HON396-398) or a second (but not third) tutorial

v) Study abroad

vi) Internships

vii) National Student Exchange

viii) Co-op experiences (non-required)

ix) Travel study courses/alternative Spring Break

x) Academically relevant volunteer experiences

xi) Appropriate work-merit experiences

xii) Other approved experiences

Honors Experiences will be approved by the Honors Secretaries of the students' Colleges and registered with the Honors College staff.

Adopted for The Honors College by the Honors Council,
Spring 2002