American higher education relies on a taxonomy of knowledge stemming from Puritan ways of thinking and knowing--a disciplinary classification system that sorts "questions asked" and "answers possible" into epistemic categories. This paper interrogates the notion of disciplinarity to better understand the arbitrariness of…

This essay presents the creation process for an online honors course in the field of business. Highlighting engagement, critical thinking, and inclusivity as central themes, the author describes the course's inception, structure, outcomes, and post-teaching reflection. The pedagogical framework includes integrative current event assignments and…

In his 1837 essay "The American Scholar," Ralph Waldo Emerson offers a challenge that is appropriate for honors practitioners today--namely, to figure out just how good a time this is to be doing the work we do. Honors students, faculty, and staff occupy every part of the institutions we call home, so we should take advantage of our…

The authors describe the shift from an upper-division university to a four-year school and the establishment of an honors program as a result. This essay chronicles the inaugural honors class, characterizing the pioneering aspect of its undergraduates. Reflecting on institutional history and the neighborliness of honors, authors consider the…

Using Michel Foucault's writing on discipline and training, the author suggests that processes like certification ultimately serve as covert normalizing activities that run counter to the spirit and practice of honors education. The author argues for an open, fluid, generative approach to honors program review.

This essay challenges boundaries in honors that are both intentional and unavoidable. Reflecting on what appears to be an overemphasis on boundaries and gatekeeping within honors, the author urges practitioners to consider its exclusionary culture and the extent to which it circles around its stated goals of diversity, equity, and inclusion. The…

The study of classics has been part of Australian and New Zealand higher education from the beginnings of tertiary education in these countries, followed shortly after by the study of ancient history. This article offers an analysis of current units of study in each Australian and New Zealand public university that continues to teach classics and…

The long-term shift in undergraduate enrollment away from traditional humanities disciplines toward vocationally oriented majors poses a unique set of challenges for honors. While some have responded by emphasizing humanities' centrality to honors education, this essay argues the imperative that honors practitioners and administrators improve…

This essay explores the conceptual and practical implications of an honors forum relating to artful expression and the phenomenon of sequester in place (SIP). As monthly general education offerings for first-year students, Honors Forums feature an array of thematic events associated with the freshman cohort. Noting challenges relating to remote…

This essay argues that in order for honors to occupy and transform the academy it must begin by transforming itself. Drawing on Homi Bhabha's notion of "third space," the author argues that the traditional epistemic paradigms in higher education are inadequate for conceptualizing the praxis-driven work required in honors. Honors should…

Honors is unusual not because it is elitist or exclusionary but because it responds directly, thoughtfully, and creatively to the needs and concerns of each new cohort of students. The present generation of college students expects their institutions to deliver clear value, rich diversity, and positive career outcomes; and these changes demand a…

A simulated conference in first-year curriculum reinforces undergraduate research as beneficial to both honors and campus communities while fostering scholarly development and campus engagement among honors freshmen during the coronavirus crisis.

Patricia J. Smith's argument for professionalism based on Caplow's outdated model is inappropriate for honors administration. The steps outlined are misleading, and the use of the perennially controversial Basic Characteristics as a prescription for professionalizing honors is historically inaccurate and has no place in framing the future of…

Patricia J. Smith's essay on the professionalization of honors advances several original and provocative arguments that deserve serious consideration. Although Smith makes a plausible case that honors has fulfilled at least three of Theodore Caplow's four stages of professionalization, a closer reading of this text reveals that the developments…

This essay responds to an argument for certification based on a particular sociological theory of professionalization. The case for certification rests on the supposition that honors has evolved from a nascent educational movement focused on distinct teaching and learning approaches for high-ability students to one that is now ready to…