edited by Em Acuña
Volume 9, Issue 17
January 21, 2026
Dear Honors College students,
Honors learning doesn’t just happen in seminars—it also takes shape outside the classroom, driven by your choices about how and where to engage.
This week’s announcements highlight a range of ways to get involved: representing Honors, building professional connections, engaging with our surrounding community, and exploring ideas that matter locally and globally. These moments of participation—big and small—are often where students discover new interests, new confidence, and new ways of contributing.
I encourage you to browse, be curious, and take advantage of the opportunities that align with where you are and where you’re headed.
Best wishes,
Vicky
Upcoming Opportunities:
Dr. Klima is happy to help you apply; send her an email at klimavw@appstate.edu
Join the Honors College Vanguard
The Honors College invites students in their first through junior years to apply to join the Honors College Vanguard. Vanguard members work closely with staff and fellow students to represent the Honors College, share our mission, help recruit students and parents, and improve the college. This is a great way to gain confidence and experience speaking about Appalachian and your educational journey. The application is due by 11:55 p.m. on Friday, January 23, 2026. For questions, please contact Dr. Angela Mead.
Internship Expo – Spring 2026
The Career Development Center is hosting the Spring 2026 Internship Expo on Wednesday, January 28, from 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. in the Grandfather Mountain Ballroom in PSU. The Internship Expo connects students with large, small, non-profit, for-profit, government, local, statewide, and national organizations. Register for the event on Handshake.
Call for Proposals: 2026 New River Symposium
The 2026 New River Symposium, hosted by New River Conservancy (NRC), is accepting proposals for panel, poster, or presentation sessions surrounding this year's theme: New River Rising: Resiliency in the Watershed. NRC encourages proposals that fall under the conference's tracks: Ecological Communities, Cultural Endurance, and Recreation Economy. Proposals are due Tuesday, February 3, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. The symposium will take place April 9 - 10, 2026. For questions, more information, or feedback on a proposal, contact the Programs Committee.
Non-Profit Community Partner Fair
The Office of Community-Engaged Leadership (CEL) is hosting a Community Partner Fair on February 12 in PSU 137 from 9:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. The event seeks to share opportunities with students for how they can get involved through volunteering or internships with a range of High Country community organizations. For additional information, email CEL.
Moore Marine College Certificate Course
Moore Marine College in Clearwater, Florida, offers an online, self-paced certificate course in Shark & Ray Field Research Methods. This course is designed to introduce students to the core techniques, tools, and ethical standards used in field research. The certificate is designed to complement traditional coursework. To learn more about the certificate course or register, visit their website.
Stay in the Know:
Mountain Made: Design at App State
The Department of Applied Design is hosting Mountain Made: Design at App State, an open studio event celebrating the innovation and creativity of students across Interior Design, Product Design, Furniture Design, and Apparel Design & Merchandising. An open reception for the event will take place on Thursday, January 22 from 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. in Katherine Harper Hall. Open studios will continue Friday, January 23 from 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. This event is free and open to the public.
Spring 2026 Schaefer Center Performances
The Schaefer Center for Performing Arts has tickets on sale for some upcoming performances this semester. February 14, 2026 at 7:30 p.m., Grammy-nominated country artist Margo Price will perform as part of her Wild at Heart Tour. February 20, 2026 at 7:30 p.m., Ailey II: The Next Generation of Dance will perform. April 18, 2026 at 7:30 p.m., Pulitzer Prize-winning folk artist Rhiannon Giddens, will perform. To purchase tickets, visit the Schafer Center’s website and their events schedule to keep up with the Spring 2026 programming.
Unmet Needs Film Screening
The Parent-to-Parent Family Support Network of the High Country is sponsoring a film screening on January 30, 2026 from 3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. in Leon Levine Hall. The film Unmet Needs explores critical gaps in services, supports, and systems affecting individuals with developmental disabilities and their families. There will be a Q&A and reception after the screening, led by Talley Wells, Executive Director of the North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities. The event is free and open to the public.
Eastern Carolina University Ghana Study Abroad Program
Eastern Carolina University (ECU) is offering a study abroad trip to Ghana, Africa, July 10 -24, 2026 to explore public health status and systems. App State students are welcome to apply as non-degree students and earn credit for PH 3600 and/or HCM 2110. The deadline to apply is January 31, 2026 through this link. Access the video or website to see experiences from the 2025 trip abroad. For any further questions contact program leaders, Ms. Tina Marie Devlin or Dr. Leslie Cofie.
Pathways to Resilience Climate Event
The Pathways to Resilience QEP and partners across campus have various opportunities this semester for students to grow climate literacy. The first event will be “Climate Connection with Expressive Arts Therapy” held on Wednesday, February 25, 2025. The session will be a group expressive arts therapy session, allowing participants to express their feelings about climate anxiety and to discover new ways to cope with stress and uncertainty surrounding the climate crisis. It will be facilitated by Dr. Katie Biddle and her graduate students, and hosted in Reich College of Education Building, room 301 from 3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Access the Engage event to RSVP.
In the Honors Spotlight
Honors College students travel to Vienna summer 2025 to study arts and culture with faculty from German, music, and art
Top photo features some of the group in front of the Schönbrunn Palace during their last day in Vienna, June 1, 2025. Photo by Dr Toub.
Drs. Alexandra Sterling-Hellenbrand, professor in the Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures, Reeves Shulstad, professor of musicology in the Hayes School of Music, and Jim Toub, professor in the Department of Art led the students on the Honors College Faculty-led Education Abroad Program “Culture and Arts in Vienna” to Vienna, Austria, from May 13 — June 2, 2025. This FLEAP focused on art, music, architecture, and literature from 1700 to the present day including a prominent point in Austrian history — the fin de siècle, or the end of the century. Students who participated in this FLEAP earned three semester hours of credits for HON 2515: Great Cities: Vienna, and three semester hours for HON 3515: Fin De Siecle Vienna.
Read the full spotlight story to hear from these Honors students about their experience on this faculty-led study abroad.
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!