Northern Kentucky University (NKU) is a comprehensive public university located just five miles south of Cincinnati, Ohio. At NKU, educators aspire to provide a personal educational experience to the more than 12,000 undergraduate students who enroll each year. Given the demographics of the undergraduate student body--more than 50% are…

Today's young people are sophisticated consumers in the higher education marketplace. They are seeking "above and beyond" academic experiences such as study abroad and undergraduate research. They are looking for a personalized academic experience, and they aspire to be in community with others who share a similar sense of purpose and…

The Oral Roberts University Honors Program attracts a significant number of students each year, both as incoming freshmen and currently enrolled students, seeking a richer academic experience. While the honors program offers a higher-level academic challenge, its value lies beyond what is simply learned in the classroom. The program contributes to…

Defining the practical and theoretical context of honors programs and courses in today's complex educational climate is challenging. Many institutions have used budget shortages to make decisions to reduce honors offerings that are not in the best interest of the students. Funding for honors programs may seem to be extraneous, but these programs…

The mid-1960s were a time of historic social and cultural change, creating a perfect climate for a small university with a handful of students and some revolutionary ideas to take shape. During that dynamic era, Nova Southeastern University (NSU) was founded in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. In 2014, NSU celebrated fifty years of growth, innovation,…

Not every student has done honors work in the humanities, but all students experience research at a human level that necessarily recalls the work of the humanities. This article describes how Joe Kraus, a professor of literature at the University of Scranton, was inspired to see applied humanities in stories of human experiences, which helped him…

Since 2009 almost 90% of the surveyed college freshmen have identified "getting a better job" as a major reason for attending college (Pryor et al). College educators can help students work towards this goal by producing mature, critical-thinking graduates who are well-prepared not only for life but also for a career. Many students,…

The development of an honors program at Rogers State University a decade ago brought about significant positive changes to the campus, where more than three-quarters of the students are the first in their families to attend college. Throughout the years, these young scholars have elevated academic discourse across campus and delivered an impact…

In this article Chancellor Susan Koch considers the value of the honors program at her institute, the University of Illinois at Springfield. She begins by reflecting on her own under graduate experience at her alma mater, Dakota State University and explains how her experience there helped her to create the honors program at the University of…

In an opening address to the university community a few years ago, Thomas Haas, President of Grand Valley State University set out three key concepts (three contemporary Rs) to guide thinking as the institution grows and develops. They all have to do with student success: relevance, rigor, and return on investment. Haas articulated that the…

For some students, intellectual curiosity and leadership are innate. For many, it must be nurtured. The Shaw University Honors College is an academic center of encouragement, interaction, and care for a diverse population of students. Many of them would otherwise never conceive of the marvelous opportunities and experiences they share during their…

Long Island University's (LIU) honors programs were founded during a decade that gave rise to honors programs nationally. The LIU Post Honors Program was one of the first in 1963 after the University of Michigan LSA Honors Program in 1957 and the Echols Scholars Program at the University of Virginia in 1960; the LIU Brooklyn University Honors…

The value that honors programs hold for universities lies in the tangibles. Honors programs help an institution pinpoint and cultivate the talents of its finest students. They help these students achieve undergraduate research and encourage them to seek further inquiry and creative endeavor. They provide the counsel, advising, and encouragement…

Honors programs and colleges are sources of innovation and risk-taking, but they often maintain some roots in the origins of their home institutions. From its founding in 1913, when a small group of businessmen gathered to formally study business, to 2015 when that Evening School of Commerce had grown to a vibrant 32,000-student research…

First-generation students sometimes lack a support network that values higher education. Stephen F. Austin State University (SFA)--a regional, comprehensive university of approximately 13,000 students, located in East Texas--serves a diverse body of students who are nearly 50% first-generation. These students often face financial constraints and…