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The past few months have been ones of farewells and greetings in Honors. After seven years of dedicated service to Utah State's Honors students, David Lancy stepped down as Honors Program Director in August 2005. We are pleased that he has been able to return to a fuller teaching and research schedule, but his presence is sorely missed. |
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After an internal University search, Christie Fox was appointed as the new Honors Program Director in August 2005. Dr. Fox came to Utah State in January 2004 and served as Honors Program Coordinator for 18 months prior to her appointment. She started her academic career in the Honors Program at Loyola University in New Orleans, earned a Master's degree in Women's Studies from Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, and completed her PhD in folklore at Indiana University. She has published on women in Irish drama, Irish theatrical parades, and fieldwork. She is currently completing a manuscript on Irish drama and performance in the 1990s. Her research interests include Irish studies, especially contemporary Irish drama, community arts, folklore, and performance. Dr. Fox is excited at the opportunity to lead the Honors Program. She is committed to the idea of creating "world citizens," a concept with great affinity with the "citizen scholar" ideal and the Honors Program's emphasis on undergraduate research. Dr. Fox says: "One of the most exciting aspects of the position is seeing students set goals and helping them achieve them. I'm proud to be part of a program and an institution so committed to student learning and exploration." The Director maintains an open-door policy and is available for consulting on any and all aspects of a student's education. |
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Shortly after Dr. Fox's appointment, the former Honors Directors gathered to celebrate the history of Honors at the home of David Lancy and Vice Provost Joyce Kinkead. |
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A new Student Advisor has
also joined the Honors Office. Erin Hepner joined the "elvin league" in
January, and now helps Katherine Shakespeare and Lisa Ferrara manage
the front office. Joining us in Spring of 2006, Erin Hepner is the
newest "elf" on staff. Erin entered the Honors Program in Fall 2003 and
will be graduating Fall 2007 in English Secondary Education, with a
minor in History. Apart from the Honors office, Erin also works as a
Rhetoric Associate, an Honors Fellow, and as a free editor for her
persuasive friends. |
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| Speaking of the Honors Office, it is now located in the basement of Old Main. Honors moved to Old Main 015, the location of the former copy center, in November 2005. With the move, we've upgraded our "computer lab" to now include laptops. There are three PCs in the front office for student use, and now two iBooks that students may check out to use in the lounge area. Honors students continue to enjoy the privilege of free printing. For study space, Honors students now share the basement lounge area with the other residents of Old Main. Our comfy furniture, magazines, and games moved with us, and students now enjoy the very close proximity of the vending machines. During warmer weather, students will also find the patio area a great study place. | ||
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| Shortly after the move, President Albrecht welcomed Honors to its new home at a ribbon-cutting, after which Honors hosted an open house in the lounge area. | ||
Thanks to the generosity of Art and Mary Heers, Honors is pleased to announce a new study abroad scholarship, available to Honors students, who are at least in their second year, in good standing with Honors, and who are planning to study within the upcoming academic year (including summer). Service to Honors will be taken into consideration. Applications for this year's award were invited via the Honors Listerv and due to the Honors office by March 1. The award(s) will be in the amount of $1000, with a possibility of additional, smaller Honorable Mention awards. Honors hopes to make this an annual opportunity for Honors students. |
Honors will also soon accept applications
for the 2006-2007 Honors Fellowship. The bulk of Honors Fellow duties
take place during fall semester, when Fellows assist with an Honors
Breadth course. Fellows also participate in campus recruitment events,
organize activities for Honors students, and assist with other duties
as assigned. Compensation is $1000, payable in three installments.
Fellows are also eligible to register for HONR 4700 (.5 credit) each
semester, in order to earn academic credit for their work. |
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And for the third year, Honors
is preparing to accept applications for the Helen B. Cannon Award. To
be eligible you must be planning to complete your senior thesis and
graduate with Honors from December 2006-August 2007. You will need to
submit: a statement detailing the Honors Program courses you've
completed and expect to complete by graduation, including an analysis
of the courses you've taken; an intellectual biography related to those
courses; a 1-page précis of your (intended) Honors thesis; and the
thesis proposal form, signed by your thesis advisor. It should be
accompanied by a c.v., which should include plans for graduate school,
if applicable, and a letter of support from one of your professors. If
you are selected for the award, you will receive the stipend in two
payments--$500 at the beginning of fall semester and $500 upon
graduation. |
Following the success of the 2005-06 Honors FIG in the Towers, Honors is excited to announce that it will have a floor in the new Living/Learning Community, just east of the Taggart Student Center. The floor will be open to both incoming and continuing Honors students, and include both shared and private rooms. Interested students should contact Shannon Jolley, Theme Housing Coordinator, at 797-8224 or shannon.jolley@hfs.usu.edu. |
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The Honors floor will be located in the building pictured left. (Image Courtesy of USU Housing) |
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34 Honors students were
among those honored at the annual A-Pin awards ceremony in October. The
A-Pin is one of Utah State's oldest and most prestigious academic
awards, earned by students who earn a 4.0 GPA for two consecutive
semesters, each of 15 or more graded credits. |
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Melody Anderson |
Scott Davis |
Jessica Plowman Scott Porter Melanie Randall Mckell Robbins Jami Rupp Anita Sant Katherine Shakespeare Benjamin Toney Brittany Webb Anarie White Matthew Wright |
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Fall Commencement saw a total of five students who graduated with Honors: |
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Angela Carpenter |
Honors in Music and University Studies |
Two of these students, in particular, merit a round of applause. Brooke Sorenson was selected as the University Valedictorian, and Steve Stoddard as the Valedictorian for the College of HASS. Congratulations to both Brooke and Steve for all of their success! |
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In October, Honors was pleased to host Mr. Louis Blair, the Executive Secretary of the Truman Foundation. Mr. Blair participated in two Q & A sessions with Utah State's most promising undergraduates, sharing his advice on everything from choosing the right grad school, to asking for letters of recommendation, to the interview process. Click here to visit the Honors website and read a summary of Mr. Blair's suggestions for success. |
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A new course will be offered by Honors Fall 2006. This 1-2 credit seminar is designed to aid students who are in the process of applying to prestige fellowships or graduate school. Interested and eligible students will be able to request this course along with their other Honors courses during Honors early registration. |
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And any students who plan to apply for either the Rhodes Scholarship or the Gates-Cambridge Scholarship for their graduate work must express their intent to apply by contacting Dr. Christie Fox no later than April 28. Information about these scholarships is available on the Honors website, at http://www.usu.edu/honors/fellowships_grants.htm. |
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Over the past several months, Honors has also hosted several successful social events. These have included a corn maze; bowling at the Fun Park; an Honors Town meeting, where students enjoyed pizza and asked the Director questions about Honors; a study break during finals week; and most recently a Valentine's Day social, which included hot chocolate and cookie decorating. Honors students also volunteered to wrap gifts at the Cache Valley Mall in December, as part of a fundraising effort for CAPSA. | |
Pictured here, Honors students enjoy pizza and ask Dr. Fox questions about the Honors Program at the first ever Honors Town Meeting. Students made suggestions for improvement within the program, and spent some time socializing and getting to know one another. |
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Both a former Honors student and a current Honors sophomore have also recently earned the attention of the university. Rebecca Nudd, who graduated with Honors in Liberal Arts and Sciences and University Studies in Spring 2005, returned to Utah State in November to accept USU's Diversity Award for her efforts to promote diversity on campus. And Zachary Ames--a Marketing major and an Undergraduate Research Fellow—was named both Mr. USU and Mr. Congeniality in October. Congratulations to both Becky and Zach! |
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Congratulations, as well, to Honors student Adam Kynaston, who was recently accepted to the 2006 American Psychological Association Summer Science Institute to be held at the University of Minnesota. This is an extremely prestigious award, and Adam was selected out of 300 national competitors. |
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Christie Fox and Katherine Shakespeare attended the 18th Annual International Conference for the First-Year Experience in Southampton, England, in July 2005, where they presented on Utah State's retention of high-ability students. |
And Honors continues to keep its eye on the upcoming class of Utah State University students. The Honors Director has attended multiple university recruitment events in Utah and Idaho over the past few months, and looks forward to welcoming the newest class of Honors students in Fall 2006. |
And finally, please remember that Honors is here to help you! If you find yourself in serious trouble with your schoolwork, please do visit with us before doing anything drastic. We can help you devise a plan and negotiate with professors about assignments and classes. We've helped several students in past semesters avoid dropping all of their courses by developing a strategy for getting them back on track. |
