Fact Sheet 07: Honors Program

Revised June 2007

Honors College

Philosophy Statement

Leadership Development Through Community Investment
We believe that an honors education should instill in students the desire to be active, contributing members of their societies. Our aim is summarized best in our motto: "To be honorable is to serve."

The Honors College at West Chester University achieves this theme of leadership development through service by providing an exciting environment for academically gifted and highly motivated students to interact in a learning community of peers, faculty, administrators, and staff that will challenge and enrich the students' college experience. Grounded in the liberal arts tradition, the Honors College seeks cross-disciplinary connections to develop students' natural intellectual abilities and challenge them to employ those gifts on behalf of the larger community. At West Chester University, honors is more than a matter of strong grades. Honors implies a decision to use the gift of knowledge to be an active problem solver in both the campus community and in the world. To that end, the Honors College seeks to build character and foster a commitment to lifelong learning that prepares leaders for the 21st century.

A core of nine sequenced courses will familiarize you, as a student, with defining and addressing challenges facing today's communities. Additionally, you will select a minimum of two 350/400-level special topics seminars that rotate each semester. The culminating experience, a three-credit capstone project, provides you with the opportunity to identify, investigate, and address creatively an issue in a community business, nonprofit agency, or research laboratory.

Honors is a supplement to, not a substitute for, an academic major. The honors core, plus one additional science or mathematics course, fulfills the University's general education requirements for honors students.

The Honors Core

?The 27-hour honors core incorporates 100-, 200-, and 300-level courses. The three courses at the 100/200 level, to be completed during your first year in the program, focus on personal development, including physical and psychological well-being, communication, and ethics and morality in a technological age. Courses at the 300 level, completed by the middle of your third year, build upon your knowledge of self and address broader perspectives of community and social change. You will view significant historical and contemporary figures, literary works, and the context in which they helped mold society. You will become aware of the economic realities that impact change and discover how educational and political structures, science, and the fine arts influence society.

Courses in the Core

HON100 Self-Awareness and Development
HON211 Decision Making and Public Discourse
HON212 Ethics and Moral Choice in a Technological Age
HON310 Theories and Strategies of Community Change
HON311 Stewardship and Civic Responsibility
HON312 Educational Systems and Social Influence
HON313 American Government, Democracy, and Public Opinion
HON314 Science, Technology, and Environmental Systems
HON315 Community and the Arts

?Membership in honors is competitive with a maximum of 40 seats open each fall. Current membership includes students from 44 different academic majors, 72 percent women, 28 percent men, and 12 percent multicultural. Students with a minimum SAT score (combined math and verbal) of 1200 who are in the top 20 percent of their graduating class are automatically reviewed for the Honors College. Additional criteria for selection include a minimum GPA of 3.5 and a record of academic achievement in high school Honors and AP courses. Qualified candidates will be invited to apply and come to campus for an interview. Final selection is made on the basis of commitment to service, leadership potential, and fit with the college’s philosophy. If chosen as a college member, you will be expected to maintain a 3.25 GPA, progress through the honors core, and actively participate in campus community life to remain in good standing with the Honors College. Transfer students are eligible for membership in the honors seminar certificate program of the Honors College and may contact the Honors Office for an application.

Benefits to Honors Membership

Alternative general education program of cross-disciplinary courses built around the theme of community investment and leadership development
Senior project linked to a community-based internship
Small classes (20-30 students), usually team-taught
Priority scheduling
Opportunities to form relationships with other honors students and profit from their experiences
Additional faculty advisers (the Honors College director and assistant director)
Access to honors staff and office as an information and support center
Honors housing, on third floor of Killinger Hall (with an option for individual computer connection to the University system)
Qualification for honors scholarship awards
Qualification for Bonner AmeriCorps leadership/service learning scholarship
Honors Student Association membership
Opportunity to serve on the Honors Council and governance committees
Opportunity to participate in international summer honors program (locations rotate annually)

For More Information

Dr. Kevin W. Dean, Honors College Director
703 S. High Street
West Chester University
West Chester, PA 19383
Phone: 610-436-2996
Fax: 610-436-2620
E-mail: honors@wcupa.edu
Web site: http://www.wcupa.edu/honors/