The University of Wyoming Honors Program is under review following the conclusion of an evaluation conducted last semester that suggested the program is in need of more staff.
The evaluation, conducted by James McKusick of the University of Montana and Rosalie Otero of the University of New Mexico, found increasing enrollment rates in the program coupled with few resources.
“The resort to increased numbers of courses, the scramble every semester to find teachers and the growing numbers of students with which the two staff member were expected to cope and the relative paucity of honors housing were clear danger signals,” the evaluation read.
Simply put, “the Honors Program needs additional staff,” the report read.
David Jones, vice president for Academic Affairs, appointed a 12-member committee to review the program and recommend strategies to keep it sustainable. Jones addressed this in a post to the UW website.
“The honors program has a long and storied history at UW, and commitment to the program from students, faculty, staff and the administration remains strong,” Jones said. “We want to make sure that plans and resources are in place to assure continued excellence long into the future.”
The committee is chaired by Maggie Murdock, associate provost for Academic Affairs, and is made up of deans, directors and professors from all areas of study.
Jones’s list of tasks for the committee include reviewing last semester’s evaluation, gathering information and perspectives from important stakeholders such as honors students and faculty and recommending models for future honors program endeavors.
The committee’s work is ongoing and may last until late next semester.
