Honors VIPs

Vol 2 No 5

The people who come to the Honors Studies Dinner are important people.

For one, the president of the college, Dr. Robert K. Nye, comes to share his insights and thoughts about Honors to all in attendance.  In the past, the Provost / Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs has come and done the same.  The Associate Vice President of Instruction says a few words.  At the tables can be seen the Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs and the Director of Student Life.  Esteemed faculty speak about their classes and the Director of Honors Studies shares a few words as well.

But, those aren’t the important people I’m talking about.

The important people are the students.  Honors Studies students and their curious friends come – and that’s who keeps all those folks up there ‘at the office’ after they’ve already put in a full day of work.  That’s why we write our remarks and our speeches, why we order T-shirts and other goodies, why we buy food and clear our calendars.  That’s why we are here for that evening – and for so many other hours throughout the summer and the academic year, as well.

Last Spring, I decided that I would not have an agenda for the dinner beyond those folks with titles saying a few things.  I would hand the microphone off to students in attendance and let them lead the charge of the evening because it was THEIR evening.  It was THEIR voices that we wanted to hear.  I wasn’t sure how it would go.  Sometimes, our Honors Studies students can be a bit shy or anxious about speaking up in a large group of people they don’t know.  But, like they have so many times before, they surprised me.

You’d think I’d get used to that and not be surprised anymore. Time and time again, students at this college in general and those involved in, and interested in, Honors in particular have surprised me with their passion and their curiosity.  Honors Studies has the power to change lives and people wanted to talk about it.  They wanted to tell others what they experienced and what they learned.  They wanted to talk about what Honors has done for them and why they were pursuing it.  They wanted to talk about what their classmates in Honors were doing and had done for them.  They wanted to talk about the teachers they’d met and the work they were doing.  They wanted others to know about this ‘secret gem’ at FLCC.**

That evening we gave them the chance to talk about something they’ve found here that is unlike what they expected to find, but more than they ever hoped it would be.  Whether they sought it or stumbled into it, believed in it or were mistaken about it, the students who spoke last semester – and Honors Studies students in general – love Honors.  And those who have titles and work at the college to bring the dinner and all the other Honors Studies events and opportunities to life also love it.  As our marketing voice recently said to me, “I always have time for Honors” and that really has nothing to do with me as Director.  It has everything to do with what Honors represents, what it offers, what it allows students to do and discover about themselves.  Honors has always meant this at FLCC and its exciting to find ways to help tell others about it and, in turn, help them achieve it.

So…won’t you join us?

** As it turned out, they also wanted fidget cubes, but that isn’t important right now.  :D