March 29, 2023

edited by Kistler Hunt

Volume 6, Issue 25

March 29, 2023

 

Dear Honors College and departmental Honors students,

Since registration time for the fall semester is nearly here with priority registration on April 5th for Honors College students, here's some advice. I wrote the first version of this text nearly 15 years ago, and revisit and revise it at least once a year.

How to Choose an Honors Course

1. Honors strives to “do undergraduate education as well as it can be done” (Sam Schuman).

2. Honors courses are the center (though not the circumference) of all Honors education. Choose well.

3. Course choices in Honors are opportunities to develop your knowledge, skills, and values, familiar and new, at high levels.

4. Choose HON seminars and other Honors courses that will challenge you to stretch and grow—intellectually, personally, professionally.

5. Like all good university courses, Honors courses are about the quality of your whole life.

6. Never take an Honors course just to meet requirements, or just to keep your Fridays free. Choose courses that will take you to new and challenging places, let you spend the semester with extraordinary faculty members and fellow students, and help you learn to see and understand yourself and the world in new ways and through new lenses.

7. Honors calls you to venture into areas you don’t know, and to explore subjects you think you dislike or think you're not ‘good’ at.  

8. “In learning,” the great literary critic Austin Warren (1899-1986) said, “only everything is enough.” Don’t settle for less.

Yours,

Jeff

 

Upcoming Opportunities:

Dean Jeff is happy to help you apply; send him an email at vahlbuschjb@appstate.edu 

y(OUR) Story Presentation

The Office of Wellness and Prevention Services will be hosting their presentation “y(OUR) Story” on March 29. y(OUR) Story is a production that features the work of actors, artists, dancers, etc. to highlight mental health journeys and bring awareness to mental health. The show will take place at 6:30 p.m. For more information, click here.

AHA! March Study Break

The Appalachian Honors Association (AHA!) will be hosting their March study break on March 30 at 6:00 p.m. During their study break, students will make masquerade masks for the Honors College formal to be held on April 29 (save the date!). All materials for the study break will be provided. For additional information and questions, contact Alisa Duong.

Career Development Center Upcoming Career Fairs

The Career Development Center will be hosting two career fairs this week. On March 30, a Health Sciences Professional and Graduate School Fair will be held from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. in the Plemmons Student Union. This fair will feature various medical schools, dental schools, pharmacy schools, etc., from across the country. On March 31, the Career Development Center will also host an Education Career Fair from 12:00 – 2:30 p.m. in the Holmes Convocation Center. This career fair will feature various school districts in and around North Carolina, as well as organizations that are seeking teaching candidates. For more about the Health Sciences Career Fair, click here. For more information about the Education Career Fair, click here.

University Forum Lecture Series Presentation

The University College is hosting their annual University Forum Lecture Series, which invites external speakers to the University to talk about their background and experiences. Their next presentation will be held on March 30 at 5:30 p.m. in the College of Education rotunda. This event will feature Marleny Rosales-Meda, Dr. María Susana Hermes, Rafael Coy Choocoj, and Dr. Anne Fanatico, who will present, “Bloom Where You Are: Climate Resilience in Our Communities.” The presentation will discuss various ways in which they are using education to help local communities create more just and sustainable futures in the face of climate change. For more information, click here.

Wellness and Prevention Twitch Streams

The Office of Wellness and Prevention Services hosts various livestreams throughout the month of April on the platform Twitch. In these streams, a current student discusses various topics related to wellbeing while playing a video game. These streams occur every Monday and Thursday from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. In addition, Wellness and Prevention Services also hosts topic-focused streams. The next streams will be held on April 10 and April 24. On April 10, the stream will feature a live cooking show with Blue Ridge Women in Agriculture, which will discuss healthy eating habits as a college student. On April 24, the stream will focus on study tips for neurodiverse students. For more information on all of Wellness and Prevention’s streams, click here.

 

Stay in the Know: 

Visiting Film Scholar Program Presentation

The Department of English’s Film Committee will feature a presentation by Dr. Chuck Tryon, professor in the Department of English at Fayetteville State University, on March 30 at 5:30 p.m. Dr. Tryon’s presentation will surround the work of Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy. The Before trilogy explores the evolution and relationship between autonomy, authenticity, and identity. For more information and questions, contact Craig Fischer.

CEL Blood Drive

The Office of Community-Engaged Leadership will be hosting a blood drive on March 30 from 9:00 – 7:00 p.m. Through the American Red Cross, this blood drive will help distribute blood to communities and individuals who need it most. Registration is required. For more information and to register, click here. For any questions, contact the Blood Drive Committee.

Latin Dance Boone Dancing Lessons

Latin Dance Boone (LDB) will be hosting dancing lessons at the Blowing Rock Art & History Museum on April 1 from 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. Latin Dance Boone is a grassroots dance organization that seeks to cultivate a Latin dance community and celebrate diversity in the High Country and surrounding areas. LDB’s mission is to learn, practice and share styles of Latin social dance. LDB’s lessons will include an introduction to the basics of salsa and bachata, two common Latin Dance styles, as well as time for social dancing with others. For more information and to register for the event, click here.

Diversity Film Screening

Cold Mountain Review, a literary journal in the Department of English, and University Libraries will be hosting a film screening of the film Stories of Intersex and Faith on April 4 at 5:30 p.m. Stories of Intersex and Faith is a documentary focused on the experiences of intersex people and their experiences growing up in religious establishments. For more information, contact Katy Abrams.

Accelerating Climate Solutions through Storytelling Presentation

The Climate Stories Collaborative will host Matt Scott, director of storytelling and engagement at Project Drawdown, an organization that seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, on April 4 from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. Scott will present his work, which gathers creative solutions to demonstrate the climate change crisis, as well as mitigation strategies. In addition, there will be a showcase of creative work submitted by students. For more information, click here.

 

In the Honors Spotlight

Honors College senior awarded prestigious physics internship

 

Photo features Olivia Adams. Photo submitted.

 

Honors College senior Olivia Adams, an applied physics and English major from Raleigh, has been selected for the University of Michigan - CERN Summer Research Experience for Undergraduates Program (UM-CERN REU). Adams will spend nine weeks conducting research at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, in Geneva, Switzerland, from June through August 2023. Supported by funds from the National Science Foundation, UM-CERN REU provides undergraduate students from the United States the opportunity to conduct research with some of the world's leading physicists. The internship program has been highly successful in training future scientists, and many program participants have gone on to pursue graduate degrees at competitive universities and receive prestigious research honors.

To read more about Adams’ internship in a story by Beca DeVore and Lauren Andersen for the College of Arts and Sciences, click here.

 

Have announcements to share? Submissions can be made to honors@appstate.edu. Any content received by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday will be considered for the following week’s issue. 

Have a story to share? Share what you have done, what you are doing, or what you will be doing by submitting a story here

To stay in the know, learn about opportunities, and take part in the Honors community, find us below!