Peter Parolin, Dean of the Honors College
The BI published an opinion piece on April 1 that contained several errors about the UW Honors College. Instead of rebutting the article’s errors point-by-point, I would like to tell an accurate story of UW Honors. I’ll start by saying that Honors is here for all UW students. I invite everyone to check us out by taking one of our classes or participating in one of our sponsored events.
UW Honors is a home for academically strong students who want to make a difference in the world through leadership, service, engagement, and discovery. We offer exciting interdisciplinary classes taught by great faculty from across colleges. Our small classes let you get to know your faculty and peers, and explore big ideas in depth.
Honors students have first crack at registering for our classes, but after priority registration, anyone with a 3.25 GPA or permission of the instructor can enroll. Honors shares great classes with students across UW. We want to help make the whole institution better.
Honors students take two first-year Honors classes and three electives, including a non-western class that expands how you see the world. Honors students do an independent research or creative capstone project and complete two SOAR badges, which hook them up to the rich resources that UW and Laramie have to offer.
Honors supports students through funding. This year we offered $75,000 in study abroad scholarships and $15,000 to support capstone projects. We subsidized students to go on Honors class trips to Disneyland and New York. We took four students to our national conference in Orlando. We bought all the books for students in our first-year Colloquium classes.
Honors brings in amazing guests for students to meet. This month, we welcome the acclaimed writer Jesmyn Ward. You don’t have to be in Honors to meet her! Everyone on campus can attend her talk in the A&S Auditorium on April 20 at 5pm.
Honors is small, which allows us to be responsive to students’ needs. When students struggle, our advising team lifts them up. When bureaucracy gets in the way, we cut through it.
Most importantly, Honors fosters deep relationships among students, faculty, and staff. So many of our students report that Honors was a true home that nurtured them, a place where they made their best, most long-lasting friendships. Dance majors connect with zoologists in Honors; mechanical engineers connect with accountants. It’s what college should be about.
Honors is an open community. Anyone interested in Honors can apply. We look at your GPA, but there is no minimum GPA. We most heavily weigh your application essay in which you tell us what you’re passionate about, what makes you tick, and what you want to contribute to the world.
I was disappointed when I read the BI’s story about Honors. But maybe I should see the silver lining, because it inspired me to share some highlights with you and invite you to check out what we have to offer.
If you are interested in learning more about the UW Honors College, the web address is http://www.uwyo.edu/honors/.
