Honors Wednesday Memo
Opportunities and Information for Honors Students
edited by Brad Rentz
Volume 3, Issue 15
December 4, 2019
Message from Dean Jeff Vahlbusch
Dear Honors College and departmental Honors students,
Honors education, done right, is transformational education. Often this means one-of-a-kind opportunities for you and your faculty members to transform yourselves, individually and collectively and, increasingly, to participate in transformative work across the globe.
Here is such an opportunity: Dr. Greg McClure of the Reich College of Education is teaching an Honors course (HON 2515) entitled Education as the Practice of Freedom, and, over spring break, leading an accompanying Honors trip to a Mayan community in the Guatemalan highlands. Both course and trip will focus on sustainability, human rights, and the transformative power of education and collaboration.
Please consider joining this course and trip; I highly recommend both. For more information, please get in touch with Dr. Greg McClure (mccluregs@appstate.edu) right away!
Sending best wishes for Reading Day and final exams!
Yours,
Jeff
Photo above from Thanksgiving lunch with Angela and 7 international students from 4 different countries (China, Japan, Russia and Thailand). In the front row (left to right) Yui Takada, Dr. Angela Mead, and Serafima Orlova. In the back row (left to right) Alexander Gorodeyko, Benchawan Klihfung, Chayanee Charoenhngthong, Yuriko Seino, Keisuke Itadani.
Upcoming Opportunities:
Graduate fellowships at Florida State University
Graduate fellowships are available for Fall 2020 in the Materials Science and Engineering Ph.D. program at Florida State University. This interdisciplinary STEM program includes faculty members from departments in the College of Engineering and the College of Arts and Sciences
The deadline for applying for fellowships is December 15, 2019, to apply or learn more, visit our website.
Travel to Cuba in 2020!
Want to earn six hours of Honors credit abroad? Consider HON 2515: Cuba Libre: Perspectives on the Cuban Revolution and HON 3515: El Plato Cubano: Cuba Through the Prism of Food. To learn more, contact Dr. Joseph Gonzalez or click here.
Gallery Exhibition Application
Provided by the Watauga County Arts Council, this exhibition is open to applications. All visual art forms are welcome and artists may even sell their work during the exhibition. All exhibits are one month in length. For more information and how to apply, visit our website.
Tech4Teach Fair 2020
The Tech4Teach Fair will be held on Wednesday, February 26 from 11:45 – 5:30 p.m. The Tech4Teach Fair provides instructors and students with the opportunity to learn about teaching and learning with technology. To learn more, click here.
ART + Design Expo 2020
In the Smith Gallery, from February 3 through February 20 the Annual Juried Student Exhibition will return to the Smith Gallery. Applications are due by December 15! Apply online by visiting our website.
Upcoming Thesis Defenses:
Jeff says, “Support your fellow Honors College students and faculty by attending Honors thesis defenses! You'll marvel, learn, and grow. And each defense you attend, you'll make your own easier”
Kellie Doran: November 6, 11 a.m., 163 Appalachian Hall, an art history major, will present Identity in Cultural Appropriation: Native American Representations in Outsider Art.
Stay in the Know…
Balanced Brains Creative Show
Come join first year Honors students on Friday, December 6 from 6 to 8 p.m.at the 3rd Place in downtown Boone during the December Art Crawl, where they will showcase their work from this semester's HON 1515: Balanced Brains seminar. These fabulous creatives have been balancing their brains in amazing ways throughout the semester and would love to share it with you. For more information, click here.
No Exception-On teaching Zionism, Palestine and Israel
Today, Wednesday, December 4, in Belk Library Room 114, Prof. Barry Trachtenberg, director of Wake Forest University’s Jewish Studies Program, will share from his experience of teaching the history of Zionism in this politically charged moment and will make the case that an ethical stance on Zionism requires one to be deeply sympathetic. For more information, visit our website.
The 21st Annual MLK Challenge
If you are interested in service and giving back to the Boone community, then you should sign up for the 21st Annual MLK Challenge! This event focuses on the legacy of MLK, and encourages local service inspired by the values he stands for. Early registration is open now, click here!
In the Honors Spotlight
Honors in Vienna
The photo above was taken at a train station in Melk, Austria. The students and faculty are (front row, left to right) Brad Rentz, Dr. Jim Toub, Stephany Garcia-Henao, Mary Alice Faunce, Cathy Kramer, Elaine Mansure, Michelle Jaluvka, Savannah Duncan, Chloe Pasour, (back row, left to right) Dr. Alexandra Hellenbrand, Matthew Hellenbrand, Toria Davenport, Charlotte Godfrey, Seamus Aparicio, and Atticus Stockdale.
The Honors College study abroad requirement is designed to expand Honors students’ views and knowledge of the world. Last summer, a group of Honors students ventured to Vienna, Austria, for 3 weeks that created a lifetime of memories. Twelve Honors students and three professors spent twenty-one exciting days exploring museums, experiencing concerts, and performances, and traveling to cities near Vienna.
For the full story of the Honors’ Vienna Trip, click here.
Honors in CAS Corps “Sharing Gratitude”
The CAS Corps are the college student ambassadors, a dedicated and highly motivated group of students that represent the College of Arts and Sciences at events through interaction among peers (current and prospective students), parents, donors and alumni.
To read more about the CAS Corps, click here.
To Stay in the Know and Learn About All Opportunities in Honors, please visit https://honors.appstate.edu/announcements
Appalachian State Honors College on Social Media!
Check us out on Instagram also! Find us by searching “Appalachian Honors College”
Don’t forget to “like” us on Facebook at Appalachian Honors: https://www.facebook.com/Appalachian-Honors-482157301971520/
Have news to share? Submissions to the Honors Wednesday Memo can be made by emailing honors@appstate.edu. Any content received by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday will be considered for the following week’s issue.