The Path of Honors

Vol. 1 No. 21

The following is the speech given by Denise Button at the Honors Graduation and Awards Ceremony held on May 10, 2017.  Denise has graduated (with 21 credits of Honors) and will be attending the University of Buffalo in the fall to study Business Administration with a focus on International Business.  Her words, as you will see, are powerful.

To all our graduates, congratulations.

First, I would like to start off by congratulating each of the honors students for all of the hard work that we have done to get to this point. 

I think that especially at a community college, it is a struggle sometimes to get through the semester between work, school, and figuring out our new place in this world.  College is a place where you get to decide who you want to be and how you want to get there.  And we all made the choice to be here, not just in college, but in honors.  When you started school and the honors program, you made a promise to yourself to work hard and earn not just an associate’s degree, but either an honors diploma or certificate. 

Once that promise was made, that meant that we had to commit to that promise and everything that it entailed – which meant going into the unknown.

Trying something new, whether it be in college, honors, or life in general means taking a risk.  And it takes courage to take risks, to be brave enough to embrace who each one of us are, and to share that with the world.  I know that when I first started attending FLCC that I was scared.  I was scared of the normal things that most people are, such as: how to afford school, how to juggle all of my many responsibilities while making new friends, and figuring out how to fit in all the other thing that I’m passionate about.  But I was also scared that I wouldn’t do as well in college as I had in high school and that maybe, just maybe, I would discover that college just wasn’t for me.   

But when I applied to FLCC, one of the first people I talked to was Trista Merrill.  I had messaged her because I needed to take an ENG 101 class, but was confused because I had noticed that one of the classes was designated as “honors”.  I didn’t know what being in “honors” meant so, after emailing back and forth with Trista, she encouraged me to try honors.  So I did.  I didn’t just learn about English from Trista, but she got me excited to go to class, and to be in school.  We all think that school can be dull, boring, or monotonous, but this wasn’t my experience in the honors program.  The learning was involved and even fun.  Yes, I learned the material, but I also learned more about myself as a person.  Honestly, some of the best classes that I have taken here at FLCC, were honors.  Honors isn’t just about hard work, but connecting with others and investing in one’s self.

I’m sure that most of us are moving on from FLCC and either continuing our education or going out into the work force.  I think that each of us will soon be able to see just how much hard work pays off.  Because each of us has earned an honors distinction that will separate us from our peers in a way that says “Hey, I didn’t just go to college, but I was also willing and dedicated to take on extra work along the way.”  This experience in college and in the honors program is something that no one can take away from you.  You have made an investment in yourself and your future.

 

And I’m sure that if you’ve had any similar experiences as I have, sometimes you get stressed and overwhelmed.  I think that we have all gotten to a point in a semester when we realize that – “I’m not doing as well as I want to this semester”.  Once you get to this point and soon realize that if you want to continue on the path that you have set for yourself, the only choice you have is to push through this feeling.  And most importantly, that it’s okay to fail and to be disappointed.  Success is a terrific thing.  But how do you get there?  The moments that define you, your character, your strength, are the moments when all you want to do is cry and give up, but you don’t.  Those defining moments when you choose to not accept failure, but to move on and keep working at your success is why you are here today. 

Not only that, but your professors probably didn’t let you give up either.  I know that without my professors here at FLCC, I wouldn’t have been able to handle going to school and juggling all of my other responsibilities.  But I always went to my professors when I knew I needed help.  My professors were more than my teachers in academics, they were teachers in life.  When I needed help, I knew that I could always turn to my professors, especially to my honors professors because I knew that I would be met with understanding and a true concern for me as a student and an individual.  So I would like to congratulate each of you again for being here.  But I would also like to thank all of the honors professors and Trista for dedicating your time to teaching and helping each one of us and reach our true potential.  Without you, we wouldn’t be here today.     

      

More Student Words

Vol 1. No 21

The following comes from David Drake, who is graduating this semester with 18 credits of Honors and transferring on to SUNY Oswego to major in Creative Writing and Linguistics.

"When I saw that the Honors Studies program would be full of active classes centered around seminar discussions rather than around lectures, I was thrilled! I knew I would benefit from this learning environment--students taking charge of discussions, instructors participating in homework assignments with the students, the atmosphere of autonomous learning (especially when given the option to pursue my curiosity with an Honors contract for a non-Honors course)--it was, in a word, perfect! Classrooms were full of mutual respect, even during times of challenges. Students collectively overcame obstacles together, and because of that, the students learned from each other just as much--and sometimes more--from the professor. And I think it was the same way with the professors: Their learning experiences continued by facilitating these Honor Studies courses. I am, simply and sincerely, honored to have been a part of the Finger Lakes Community College Honors Studies program!"

We wish Dave, and all the Honors Graduates, the very best as they head onward in their journey.

Honors Voices

Vol 1 No 20

Something of a long one this time....

The other day. in the face of a beautiful spring day, I thought my HON 200 - Analyzing Alice class might need a moment to gather their thoughts and focus on the class at hand before I turned class over to Linda Ross.  She was going to spend that class time talking about attachment (and attachment disorders) from a psychological standpoint and how it might relate to Lewis Carroll or even Alice herself.  So, I asked them to take out a sheet of paper and write for five minutes on this question I posed to them:  

What does Honors mean to you?

These are the responses I got...

"I preach to everyone how much I enjoy honors studies.  To me, it means seminars, a connection with your classmates and professor, and a jillion different interpretations of a common theme.  I feel like there's this amazing fellowship and mellowship that comes out these types of classes.  The students that are in these classes are dedicated to learning about the topic at hand and are typically very talkative and at times, argumentative.  Honors classes make learning fun an worthwhile.  It's not a chore to attend class, it's something to look forward to.  The professors play devil's advocate and warp your way of thinking to meanings originally thought unimaginable"

"Honors means curiosity.  It means wanting to take something, such as a topic, and wanting to learn more.  It's about exploring a new realm of learning that one may have never thought of exploring.  Honors is about taking something and diving into it deeper than ever before.  It's not about more work and being smart.  It's simply about being curious."

"Honors to me means being able to explore what interests me and the things I find interesting.  As a book lover and writer, Honors gives me the opportunity to read a lot and write a lot (!), which other classes don't allow or want.  Be being in this Honors class, I have realized how much I adore analyzing stories and writing about what the stories mean to me.  Honors therefore has helped me realize and understand more of myself, by being able to dig into, explore, and discuss what I like and what to learn more about.  Overall, Honors means being able to be me, and learn what I want to learn, by offering cool classes, which allow me to explore who I am."

"Honors here at FLCC means a more student-lead learning environment as opposed to a traditional lecture style college course.  This means lots of group discussions and participation as we are learning together not being taught at.  It also means reflecting on your learning experience.  By reflecting on your journey as a learning, you are better able to grow your ability to learn.  You will find what works for you and what you can improve upon.  Honors is also a better opportunity to connect with your teacher.  For me, my teachers are mentors not just lecturers.  Most important, Honors is a group of people excited to learn, just like you, not just people force to take a class."

"Honors was something initially that just mean another good way to get accepted in a four year college.  While this is true, it now means so much more.  Honors became something that I could be involved in outside of tedious, constant needed work.  It was Perspectives on Tolkien that I first took and now I am someone a bit different.  I was able to read and discuss something that I truly have an interest in, unlike most classes in high school.  I also was able to make friends in that Tolkien class that I have now outside the class, another aspect I didn't have my first year at college.  The community sense that I get in this 'elite' group of Honors students is of devotion, respect, and a feeling of ultimately being wanted."

"Honors means to me that it helps you to look deeper into a meaning that you would normally just brush upon somewhere else.  It's a chance to find something new in yourself.  English 101 Honors has us analyzing ourselves as a writer while Alice analyzes ourselves as a learner and how to understand deeper meaning.  Honors is a chance to step our of our boundaries and try something new."

"To me Honors reflects a community pursuit in an accountability-minded atmosphere.  We have a capability to discuss as opposed to being lectured and to grow in relationship to others in a more conducive atmosphere than a typical class.  In another sense it has an active palpability to discern via worldview and disciplinary confines."

"Honors means a different way to view subjects that 'regular' classes may not have the time / desire to do otherwise.  It's a place where I feel my opinions not only matter but are validated.  I don't feel excluded because I don't have the knowledge for a certain subject but rather it's a place where I can learn freely without fear of judgments"

"Honors is a means to challenge myself while having fun.  Most classes involving something that I actually like are Honors classes"

"What Honors means to me is a more challenging / higher level class that requires extra work and effort.  Also, I think of it as a more specialized / focused course rather than a introduction course.  It also presents some more interesting classes than what is normally offered in my opinion.  I also feel that the courses are better since they seem to be more focused and in smaller classrooms"

"Honors means a more interactive way of learning that provides the opportunity for classroom discussion and practical applications with a more discussion and writing-based curriculum that helps students to more easily express their thoughts and ideas.  The more hands-on approach also provides a sense of accomplishment for finished projects"

Honors Dinner Remarks

Vol. 1 No. 19

The following is a transcript of the opening remarks I gave at the Spring 2017 Honors Dinner last night.  Give it a read - there are some important things to be learned about changes coming to Honors!

Hello, everyone…I’m happy you’re here. Like last semester, it took me awhile to figure out what I wanted to say and how I wanted to open this evening. I love everything about Honors, so it’s not that I have nothing to say, it’s just that I should probably try to focus on something specific. If you ask anyone who knows me, you will quickly learn that my brain can be a little scattered. Then again, this is true for a lot of Honors students (and perhaps other faculty – ‘Hi Linda!’) I know as well, so perhaps you can relate. In any event, welcome. The title of these opening remarks comes to us from a French critic, journalist, and novelist who once said plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose – which literally translates to ‘the more it changes, the more it’s the same thing’. I call it this because this is, as many of you know, the second Honors Studies dinner and, oddly enough, it is also the last one under Honors Studies as we know it. Honors has been an amazing and powerful experience for so many people that it feels strange to say that we are changing nearly everything about it. If it’s so wonderful, then why change it? The answer to that first requires reassurance.

The phrase ‘nearly everything’ implies that all the important things will change, but in this case, the opposite is true. Honors is remaining fundamentally the same. We will remain a place for ALL curious and passionate learners to find themselves….and each other. It will continue to celebrate self-reflection and lifelong learning. We will certainly still offer amazing courses taught by amazing faculty. We will absolutely keep fostering interdisciplinary collaborations and intellectual rigor while remaining true to seminar-style teaching and student-centered learning. In other words, the heart of Honors is remaining exactly what it is. These are the fundamental aspects that make Honors Studies what it is.

Before I go any further, I want to caution you that what I say tonight may change as we move forward. You are the first students to really hear about this and we don’t yet have all the pieces in place. Change can be a slow process, but we are close enough to having things ready that I’m sharing it with you. I’m too excited about it not to. This is the same reason why I’m terrible at giving gifts…I usually can’t wait until the appropriate time. Anyway, what I say tonight may change here and there or be tweaked to fit some larger purpose, but I assure you that we will keep all that makes Honors special and, in doing do, make it even more special.

So, back to changes. If the heart of Honors is staying the same, then what ARE we changing? Well, everything else. Our reasoning is that we want to more visibly showcase what makes Honors Studies special by solidify its goals, strengthening its identity, and making it easier for students to experience Honors and attain Honors status. So, again, what does THAT mean? What are we changing?

Well, I’m not sure if any of you have noticed, but a lot of the words we use to talk about Honors are confusing in the face of everything else in an academic setting. It gets called a program – which it is not. You can earn a certificate or a diploma – but technically, it’s neither one. We call them Honors credits, except it means something a little different than when we talk about your transcript. Even the word Honors gets confused with the word given to students who are recognized solely for high GPAs. All of this is going to change.

Students will now be earning points towards becoming an Honors Studies Scholar – gone will be the certificate and the diploma. There will still be Honors Studies Contracts and Honors Studies Seminars and Honors Studies in the Disciplines. But we are now going to add Honors Studies Events that will allow you to earn points towards Scholar status outside of the classroom where, honestly, some of the best learning sometimes occurs. The self-reflective essay prompts will start to look familiar to you as you move from Honors course to Honors course, or contract, or even event. There will be more opportunities, more visibility, more uniformity, and more celebration of the hard work that all of you do or may do in Honors Studies.

<<I went off script here and talked about how the Honors Studies Events will feature work already being done on campus such as the Women's Leadership Initiative and talks that are already hosted by various departments on campus.  I also talked about how we would like to host our own talks about things like the heroin epidemic in upstate New York, or perhaps talks centered on courses we hope to offer in future semesters.  I then spoke briefly about how we would like to have an event each semester that celebrated the work students were doing IN Honors by hosting an Honors Studies Convocation where students were invited to present posters or perhaps a short talk about their projects in Honors courses to whomever attended from the faculty, staff, and student body of FLCC.>>

I have said it many times before, but I adore Honors Studies. I think it’s a unique and amazing opportunity and the changes we are making will help us show off what Honors Studies is, while still respecting the core values of not only Honors as a whole, but also the values of the college. We are NOT the Honors Program anymore because we never really were. We are now Honors Studies, a name which reflects what we have always valued, what we still value, and what we will continue to value – a curiosity and passion for study, for learning, for personal growth. I hope these hints of what’s coming encourage you to explore or continue to explore Honors Studies and really find out who you are and what you are capable of.

Save the Date!

Vol. 1 No. 18

It’s that time again!

Last semester, Honors Studies hosted a dinner for the curious, and we are excited to be doing it again!

So….what do you need to know?

Event:  Spring 2017 Honors Studies Dinner

Date:  April 12, 2017

Time:  5:00 – 7:00

Location:  Stage 14

Food:  Build your own tacos!  Including vegetarian options!

Highlights:

• Free Honors Studies T-Shirts for the first 50 who arrive
• Fidget cubes for those willing to share their questions, stories, experiences, excitement, or curiosities about Honors Studies
• Meet Honors Studies faculty and hear about fall courses
• Listen to administrators talk about why they value what we do
•  Share food and fellowship with other curious students

"I Was a Different Person Then"

Vol. 1 No. 17

I'm teaching an Honors Seminar in Alice and Wonderland this semester and it always amazes me how much the journey of that little girl echoes the experience of Honors, at least metaphorically.  I was also recently reminded about how the word Honors is received sometimes.

Last week I was in a meeting with a member of administration who is also a faculty member and she said something that I think rings true for a lot of people.  In short, she said that the word Honors scares her.  That’s one of the things that I’ve been trying to battle since I took on the mantle of Director.  In the high schools, Honors gets attached to things like the National Honors Society and even at the college level we talk about graduating ‘with Honors.’  All of that leads, of course, to confusion.  Carrying on the defining of things that I started last week, I thought I would do the same thing with the word 'Honors'.  According to the National Collegiate Honors Council, which is a national organization that is centered on Honors, it’s really not about the “smart kids”:

Honors education is characterized by in-class and extracurricular activities that are measurably broader, deeper, or more complex than comparable learning experiences typically found at institutions of higher education. Honors experiences include a distinctive learner-directed environment and philosophy, provide opportunities that are appropriately tailored to fit the institution's culture and mission, and frequently occur within a close community of students and faculty.

As you can see, it’s all about HOW classes are taught and the impact of that methodology rather than the relative intelligence of the individual students.  It’s about making connections (there’s that word again) with the content and with the people who are with you on your learning journey.

Now, it goes without saying that more academically minded students tend to gravitate towards Honors, but it’s also appealing to students because of what is taught and how it is taught.  I’ve encountered so many Honors students who realized that it was something that they had within themselves rather than something they had to bring with them.  Sometimes, it's not about who the student is, but who the student CAN be.

Take the student who fell into ENG 101 Honors with me last semester and came up at the end of the first class to ask if I thought he should stay.  He had only signed up because the time fit his schedule and he didn’t realize it was Honors.  I told him absolutely – the support and camaraderie he would experience would help him succeed.  He ended semester by writing a note in his attendance folder that said, “Thank you – I went from summer school to a 34-page portfolio.”  That made me feel pretty special as an instructor, but it really says more about how powerful the Honors experience can be – and that has as much (or more!) to do with the students and what is built together as it does with what the instructor alone brings.

Or consider the student who signed up for ENG 230 because she wanted to read The Lord of the Rings and is now pursuing Honors recognition.  I recently asked her if she would have believed it had someone told her two years ago that she would be a student of Honors Studies in college and she replied with “No way.  I probably would’ve cried thinking they were mocking me.”

Some seek out Honors.  Some find it by mistake.  Some visit, but then head away again not to return.  Some are changed forever by the experiences they have in their Honors courses.  College really is about finding where you fit and then making the most of the time you have there.  Honors is no different in that regard.  I hope each of you find what you are looking for and for those who find it in Honors, we are glad to have you here.

“Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle.” – Alice from Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland

“This above all: to thine own self be true” – Polonius, in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet

Mirror, Mirror....

Vol 1. No 16

One of the cornerstones of the Honors experiences is the reflection that happens along the way.  We talk about reflection all the time, but for those who are perhaps not familiar with the idea in connection with learning - what does reflection mean?    I mean, we know what a reflection is because we look in mirrors everyday and we comment on things like how beautiful it is when the sun reflects on the surface of a rippling lake.  But what does it really mean?

If we look back in time, we can learn that the word reflection comes from the Latin reflectere, which means "to bend backwards, turn away."  We can see this in our sun on the lake, for the light is bent back upwards from the water; however, that doesn't much help when we think about learning.  It becomes interesting to note that in the 1640's, reflection was understood to mean "remark made after turning back one's thought on some subject" (Read more at the Online Etymology Dictionary).  Now we are getting somewhere!

I've said in a number of Honors Studies talks that we seem to spend a lot of time in academia with disciplines firmly in place - you learn biology over here, and mathematics over there, and then you have English here, and sociology over there.  We are trying, at FLCC, to remove some of these barriers, by showing the interconnectedness of disciplines.  The college challenges students to make connections and Honors is part of that.

Reflection in Honors is about seeing connections in all sorts of ways.  It is the connection between different classes - from those in your program to the electives you chose.  It is the connection between yourself and your classmates and your instructor.  It's the connections between your college experiences and those in other arenas of your life.  It connections between your past, your present, and even your future.  It's thinking about how all of the facets of your life interact at any given moment.  It's turning back your glance to look at yourself and how you learn.  It's about appreciating the powers of your mind and what it can do.  It's about seeing where you fit into your world and where you want to fit.  It's about seeing what your limitations and obstacles are and how you can work on removing those.  In short, it's about better understanding yourself so that you can better understand the world around you.

If this seems like a daunting task, that is because it is.  Honors is not about throwing you into the deep end of the pool and hoping you learn to swim, however.  We want to help you start to make those connections and learn about who you are.  There are so many ways to do this and you'll find the approach to be a little bit different in every Honors class you take.  What you can always expect, however, is writing.  Sometimes at home, sometimes in class, sometimes in a combination activity that spans time spent in the classroom and some time spent elsewhere.  Sometimes you will be asked to go find another place to write and think.  Changing your environment can make a big difference in how you view the class and its content.

To show you what I mean, the following is an activity I use in my Perspectives on Tolkien class.  As you can see, it takes quotes from a shared reading and asks students to think about it - first in connection with the class content and then in relation to their journey as a learner in a larger context.  It makes the suggestion that how readers interact with a text is connected to events in the world around them and the frame of mind with which they approach the text.

What ways have YOU reflected on your learning and your place in the world?

***

First, read these four excerpts from Fuller’s essay:

·         “This is meaning…that the reader translates into appropriate analogies for his own life, if he is so minded:  as in the fact that courage and integrity, seen in any context, are enhancements and encouragements of those qualities wherever we have need of them” (19).

·         “[W]e are confronted basically by a raw struggle between good and evil.  This contest offers a challenge and demands decisions of several kinds.  The power of evil is formidable and ruthless.  The initial decision, in which many of the characters participate, is whether or not to attempt to resist it at all” (19).

·         “The intricacy of Tolkien’s web of cause and effect, of the interactions of motives and wills, natural and supernatural, is extraordinary and – notwithstanding the frame of fantasy – profoundly realistic” (24).

·         “It gives joy, excitement, a lift of spirits, and it contains the kind of wisdom and insight which, if applied to the world we inhabit, might help our sore-beset race to hang on through the present shadows of modern Mordor into yet another age” (30).

Now consider this:

Each of you came to this course with a love of Tolkien’s world, regardless of how you came to encounter it.  Though you have a shared love of the work, it is also true that you are each reading for something different and exploring with your own perspectives, interests, and experiences.  Whether this is your first reading or your hundredth, you are discovering new things and focusing on different aspects right along with celebrating old favorites.  In short, there is something new to be found for each of you.

Finally, write:

Choose a prompt that speaks to your place in the world right now and the frame of mind with which you are reading The Lord of the Rings.   Write a response in which you tie the quote you chose directly to a specific character or event in The Fellowship of the Ring or the first half of The Two Towers.  Then, push it one step further:  find where you fit in.  Why did you pick this quote?  What drew you to that character or scene in Fellowship / Towers?  How does this quote inform your reading of this first half of the trilogy?   How might this quote reflect you, your mindset, and the world in which you find yourself as you read the texts (this time)? 

Article:

Fuller, Edmund.  "The Lord of the Hobbits:  J.R.R. Tolkien."  Understanding the Lord of the Rings:  The Best of Tolkien Criticism.  Ed. Rose A, Zimbardo and Neil D. Isaacs.  Boston:  Houghton Mifflin, 2004.  16-30.  Print.