COLLABORATIVE, INTERDISCIPLINARY WORK THROUGHOUT THE HONORS CURRICULUM DR. KRISTINE A. MILLER UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY HONORS PROGRAM DR. FRANÇOIS G. AMAR UNIVERSITY OF MAINE HONORS COLLEGE 3 rd Conference on Honors Education at Research Universities The Ohio State University, May 23-25, 2017
USU s Honors Program Structure Seniors Capstone experiences Sophomores and Juniors First-year students Practical applications Honors orientations
Creating an Interdisciplinary Honors Experience Courses Connections Community
First-Year Students Courses Honors First-Year Experiences Honors Book Labs Connections Honors orientation Professional and peer advising Community Honors/HSC events Campus event attendance
Sophomores and Juniors Courses Practical Connections Community Honors Think Tanks Honors Book Labs Hands-on research Study abroad Internships Civic engagement Honors/HSC leadership Student Research Symposium Food for Thought
Seniors Courses Capstone preparation and proposal-writing Capstone support group Capstone Connections Creative research Project management and mentor relations Transcript designations Community USU and community leadership Public research presentations Professional engagement
Creating an Interdisciplinary Honors Experience Courses Connections Community
Interdisciplinary Honors Courses First Year Honors First-Year Experiences Revolution! Reacting to the Atlantic Revolutions (BHU) Why Poetry Matters: The Ethics and Aesthetics of Modern World Poetry (BHU) Musical Rhythm in Our Minds and Bodies (BCA) Creativity and Compassion: Social Engagement through the Arts (BCA) Food Matters (BSS) The Limits of Possibility (BPS) Media Messages in Health and Nutrition (BLS) Honors Book Labs Sophomore/Junior Honors Think Tanks The Politics and Aesthetics of Space (DCA/DSS) Scientific Communication in an Alt- World (DHA/DPS) Reading Dinosaur National Monument (DHU/ DSS) Junior/Senior Honors Capstone Preparation Capstone Support
Creating an Interdisciplinary Honors Experience Courses Connections Community
Making Connections: First Year Orienting Students to Think Across Disciplines Honors Orientation Advising (professional and peer) Canvas Courses
Practical Connections: Sophomore/Junior Applications of Academic Knowledge A New Kind of Contract 20 hours of work outside classroom with a faculty mentor Proposal and completion forms End product and two-page reflection
Practical Connections: Sophomore/Junior Applications of Academic Knowledge A New Kind of Contract: curiosity and connections Research or creative work in or outside of field Prestigious national scholarship or fellowship applications Graduate courses (Honors Excel) Internships Study abroad Civic engagement and service projects Honors Book Labs
Capstone Connections: Senior Capstone Project and the Citizen Scholar Research and Creative Work in the World Mentoring and Project Management Transcript Designations: Global Engagement Scholar Service-Learning Scholar
Creating an Interdisciplinary Honors Experience Courses Connections Community
Honors Interdisciplinary Communities Seniors Honors, campus, and community leadership TEDx/Ignite/Student Research Symposium Professional engagement and development Sophomores and Juniors Honors leadership (HSC, FFT, HSAB) USU Student Research Symposium Campus involvement/planning First-year students Honors and HSC participation Attend SRS and Food for Thought USU co-curricular attendance and reporting
COLLABORATIVE, INTERDISCIPLINARY WORK THROUGHOUT THE HONORS CURRICULUM DR. KRISTINE MILLER UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY HONORS PROGRAM DR. FRANÇOIS G. AMAR UNIVERSITY OF MAINE HONORS COLLEGE 3 rd Conference on Honors Education at Research Universities The Ohio State University, May 23-25, 2017
UMaine s Honors College Structure Seniors Honors directed research/honors Thesis Student Research Symposium Disciplinary conference presentations Juniors Honors Tutorial Seminars/Tutorial Alternative Student Advisory Board/Student Government Honors thesis preparation course Student Research Symposium First & Second year students Core curriculum: Civilizations A Cultural Odyssey & Currents and Contexts Engaged and service learning opportunities
The Arts and Current Events in the Core HON 170: Currents and Contexts (Haggerty) Teams of students research and debate current events Peer facilitators are selected thru competitive process Facilitators and students select topics HON 180: A Cultural Odyssey (Killinger) Attendance at 8 performances or arts events: theater, music, art exhibits, poetry readings, Written reflection on events Peer assistants help in discussion, grading of writing.
Honors Tutorials & Alternative Honors Tutorials (HON 3xx: typically junior year) 3-credit seminars with max of 8 students Renewed every semester/innovative topics and pedagogy Partners and Players: Humans & the Natural World Narcotics Trafficking and the Construction of Western Civilization Sustainable Food Systems: Principles, Practices and Policies Life of Games Honors Tutorial Alternative (waiver) Suitable study abroad Summer research experience Some alternative break experiences Co-op or internship
Calvin Mako, Internship in Antarctica studying glacial geology Emily Hinkle, Costa Rica
Research and the Honors Thesis Honors Thesis (HON 498/499): typically senior year) 6-credit, year long independent research or creative project Formal defense before a faculty committee. About 80 to 90 per year Honors Research Collaboratives are new on-ramps to research Genomics Research Collaborative (NIH funding) Sustainable Food Systems Research Collaborative Servant Heart Collaborative (educational projects in Sierra Leone) Students may participate from first-year on. Transferable to other domains? Art Speaks to Science Climate and Agriculture Health Economics...
HON 150/155 Phage Genomics & the Genomics Research Collaborative A research course for first-year students Supported by National Institutes of Health and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Genomics Research Collaborative Honors 150/155 teaches transferable science process skills Scientific method Reading and discussing/critiquing the literature Coping with failure Scientific writing Prepares students to write competitive applications for undergraduate research fellowships in biomedical science Honors 350 short course at Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory NIH supported research grants for juniors, seniors and summer students In the works: support for 1 st generation college students and sophomore collaborative research support
Presenting Student Research Honors Phage Genomics students Max Dorman & Ethan Thibault present their class s Research at HHMI conference, June 2016. They are flanked by UMaine professors Sally Molloy and Keith Hutchison and Dr. Graham Hatfull (in colorful shirt), the PI for HHMI s SEA-PHAGES project (University of Pittsburgh).
Servant Heart Collaborative Donor-funded projects to improve health and education in Sierra Leone Engaged research model Student teams with faculty mentorship First and second year students as well as upperclass students are paid to work on these projects which can lead to or inform thesis In beta-testing: An online high stakes test practice application to help West African students study and practice for high-stakes exams to enter high school or university. Students include majors in New Media, Computing, Education, and International affairs. Other projects on Attachment theory training in trauma situations Sex education
Sustainable Food Systems Research Collaborative Faculty partnering with students and community groups to address real ongoing problems in the state On-ramp to research for sophomores and juniors and thesis for seniors Honors is hub for interdisciplinary work on Food Systems Honors College offers ways for students to grow as individuals and as citizens of a world that is more than any one discipline or perspective can describe. The Honors experience has been mind- and eye-opening for me; it has challenged my perspective and encouraged me to think outside the box more often. I'm proud to be working on my thesis as a fellow in the Honors College Sustainable Food Systems Research Collaborative (SFSRC) Audrey Cross, Dec, 2014 Host seminars and workshops, send students to conferences, publish on SFS Honors tutorial courses on SFS Attract funding to support students, faculty, and community partners Engage the UMaine Honors College community in important work at the local regional, national and international levels
SFSRC Fellows, 2014 & 2015
SFSRC Student Focus: Brady Davis 17 Majoring in Business with a focus on Sustainability SFSRC Fellow in Spring 15: Food Hub Feasibility Study Joined funded SFSRC research study on social networks in small cheese producers Thesis title: Investigating the Sustainability Potential of Artisanal Cheesemaking in Maine. President of Honors Student Advisory Board 2016. Attended NCHC conference in Seattle, co-presenting a poster titled Community Food Hub: A Business Model to Fight Hunger, and co-led a roundtable discussion on Opportunities and Challenges: Integrating Honors College Student Leadership with Student Government. Recipient of 2016 Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions Award for Outstanding Contribution to Sustainability Research by an Undergraduate. Co-organizer of Spring 2017 Hungry 100K Maine Day meal packout, helping to raise more than $25,000 and enlist 250 volunteers to pack over 107,000 meals. I really think the Mitchell Center, in tandem with the Honors College approach to education, changed the trajectory of my undergraduate career and where I see myself going after graduation. Brady Davis
SFSRC Update As of Spring 2017: 8 Honors Theses Dozens of conference presentations Six to ten partner organizations $70,000 in external funding between 2014 and 2016 Over $500,000 in new funding: Filling Data Gaps in Promoting Farm to Institution Purchasing in Maine (Mitchell Center): 4 of the original 6 SFSRC members + 2 new members Finding the Sweet Spot: Scale Challenges and Opportunities for Beekeeping And Maple Syrup Production in Maine (USDA-AFRI), co-pi, SFSRC member and Honors Associate Dean, Dr. Melissa Ladenheim: Our education objective is to enhance and expand a transferable model of the University of Maine Honors College Sustainable Food Systems Research Collaborative (SFSRC)Fellows program. Additional grants in progress.
Research Collaborative Successes and Challenges Successes Scalability not required but transferability is key An adaptable model that can fit different themes and funding sources May incorporate courses or be extra-curricular Challenges Ongoing work of finding funds from grants, partners, or donors including alums. Students are our best ambassadors! Convincing faculty in some areas that this kind of collaborative model is worthwhile. Planning to partner with UMaine Humanities Center to develop the model for the Humanities. Funding for infrastructure harder to obtain than project funding.
Acknowledgements University of Maine SFSRC funding form the Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions for support under NSF grant EPS-0904155. SFSRC faculty and students and community partners Genomics Funding from NIH INBRE Institutional Development Award (IDeA) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under grant number P20GM103423). Phage Genomics faculty and students Donors of the Servant Heart Research Collaborative Servant Heart faculty and students and international partners Utah State University NCHC and USU Center for Civic Engagement and Service Learning course development funding for the Honors Think Tank Honors Connections, Think Tank, Book Lab, Global Engagement, Service Learning, and First-Year Experience students and faculty The USU Offices of Research and Global Engagement, and the Center for Civic Engagement and Service Learning for collaborative work on research, study abroad, and transcript designations