May 6, 2020

Honors Wednesday Memo

Opportunities and Information for Honors Students

edited by Brad Rentz

Volume 3, Issue 32

May 6, 2020


Message from Dean Jeff Vahlbusch

Dear Honors students, friends, colleagues,

Celebrating Honors Faculty.  During last week’s “Cookies with Jeff Zoom-session, Honors College students posed a key question:  how can we thank Honors College faculty for their great work in moving their Honors courses online in response to the pandemic? I said: “write me a proposal!”  Here is a call for student testimonies, written by Sarah Brown, Sophie Cole, Cape Dickerson, and Brendan Meckler:

In the words of Duke Ellington: “A problem is a chance for you to do your best.” In response to the unique circumstances of this spring semester, professors and students alike have adapted to new educational platforms and “distant socializing.” We believe that the solutions our Honors faculty created to move their Honors courses online are deserving of recognition, and we would like to provide an opportunity for students to acknowledge and celebrate these innovations. In the second week of March, while we students were given another week of vacation, our professors were busy adjusting curricula, assignments, and experiences that had been carefully cultivated for on-campus learning. Transitioning to online teaching and learning demanded and demonstrated excellence in education, and created inclusive, engaging learning environments. If you feel that an Honors College professor or staff member has gone above and beyond this semester, especially post-spring break, please email a comment or testimony to Dr. Vahlbusch (vahlbuschjb@appstate.edu), ideally by May 15th. He will make sure that your praise is heard!

I will, indeed!

I’m sending my best wishes for a safe, healthy, relaxing, productive summer. Please keep your eyes on your inbox over the next months. I will be in touch often with information, exhortations J, and opportunities to get involved and to help. Please reach out anytime.

Yours,

Jeff

  

Congratulations Honors College Graduates! Medals are in the mail and Chance dog is paws-itively thrilled to show them off!! Photo by Ms. Jessica Yandow. Do you have a pet that you would like to feature in the Memo? Send submissions to Honors@appstate.edu

 

Upcoming Opportunities:

Zoom Office Hours for New Honors Students

Incoming Fall 2020 Honors students, Dr. Angela Mead, director of advising and student services for the Honors College, is hosting Zoom office hours. Drop in to ask questions and get to know other current and incoming Honors College students! Zoom sessions are being held Monday, Wednesday, Friday, from 1 – 2:30 pm (EST) through May 29, 2020. For more information and how to join in, click here.

SRCH Conference

Save the date! The Southern Reginal Honors Council (SRCH) conference will be held in Charlotte from March 25 though 27 in 2021. Submissions to this conference are due by January 25, 2021. To learn more about this conference, visit our website.

Thesis Defenses

Join and support your fellow honors students who have scheduled their thesis defenses on our calendar!  This week, Amaka Imoh will defend Mental Health Needs Assessment in Rural Women on Thursday, May 7, at 11 am, Sarah Brody will defend L'année prochaine à Jérusalem: Zionism in a Post-Holocaust France on Friday, May 8 at 11 am, and Abbey Huber will defend We’re All Going to Die! Discourses of Planetary Crisis and the Formation of Collective Imaginaries on Friday, May 8 at 1pm. Also, check our Facebook page for honors students who have successfully defended their thesis remotely.

 

Stay in the Know:

 The Counseling Center is here for the Summer

The Counseling and Psychological Services Center has a variety of options for assisting and supporting students over the summer. Initial Consultation by phone, Counseling through TeleMental Health, Referral Assistance, and Quick Access Virtual Workshops are just a few of their current services. For a complete list of services, and how to access them, click here.

Wellness Trivia will continue

Wellness Trivia will continue through intercession and the summer. Join every Monday night at 8 pm on Zoom for fun trivia rounds with some wellness mixed in. Trivia categories change weekly, so be sure to check out next week’s topics! To access the Zoom meeting and see what next week’s topics are, visit our website.

Writing Center Closed May 7-26th

The University Writing Center will close for the semester at 3 pm on Thursday, May 7, and we will re-open at 9 am on Tuesday, May 26th, the day summer classes begin. Their summer hours are 9 am - 4 pm, Monday through Thursday. For more information on the Writing Center’s summer availability, click here.

 

In the Honors Spotlight

 

Honors alumnus Stephen Dubner ’84 and Honors graduating senior Olivia Gentry to speak at App State’s virtual Spring 2020 Commencement

 

Honors alumnus Stephen Dubner ’84 (left) in photo by Troy Tuttle and Honors graduating senior Olivia Gentry (right) in submitted photo.

Appalachian State University will be holding a virtual Spring 2020 commencement on Saturday, May 16, at 11 a.m. in celebration of the 3,600-plus Mountaineer graduates. The event’s guest speaker is Stephen J. Dubner ‘84, who was in the first class of graduating Chancellor's Scholars and a graduate of the then Honors Program at Appalachian. Dubner is an award-winning author, journalist and radio and TV personality who is best known as co-author of the “Freakonomics” book series. In addition, Honors senior Olivia Gentry, of Weaverville, will be speaking in the commencement ceremony. Gentry is graduating with a B.S. in public health and a minor in social work. 

Click here to learn more about App’s upcoming virtual commencement as well as our very own Honors College virtual graduation ceremony, which will be held on Thursday, May 7th, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. We look forward to recognizing the extraordinary achievements of all of all our Honors graduates!

 

Jessica Yandow wins honorable mention in NCHC 2020

  

Congratulations, Ms. Yandow! We in the Honors College know exactly how lucky we are to have Ms. Yandow on our staff, and we are glad to see that recognized.

In their 2020 Award for Administrative Excellence the National Collegiate Honors Council (NCHC) has given an Honorable Mention to Ms. Jessica Yandow, the Office Manager and Executive Assistant to the Honors College. This is a well-deserved honor. As Dean Vahlbusch wrote of Ms. Yandow, 

"… She makes our Honors College run."

To learn more about Ms. Yandow and this award, 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.