HONORS COLLEGE COMMUNIQUE: JANUARY 2025

 

Hello from the Honors College! In partnership with Academic Advising, we are sending a monthly Honors College Communique on the Advising listserv, in which we will send short updates about:       

 

1. Honors opportunities open to all students   

2. A highlighted benefit of being an Honors College member   

3. A student highlight from your advising areas   

4. Contacts within Honors for more information   

Honors News: 

We have two new amazing Counselors who have joined the Honors Academic Team! Myra Estrada joined our team in October, and Ximena Garcia joined our team in November. Myra brings with her a wealth of experience working in higher ed, especially with graduate studies and graduate students. Her specialty assignment in Honors is to be the lead Honors graduation coordinator, working with all graduation processes from Honors audits to the graduate school pathway. Ximena also brings a wealth of knowledge and direct experience with her. She has been a Fulbright Teaching Assistant, Student Federal Service Intern, City of San Antonio Ambassador, Legislative Aid for a State Representative, a Terry Scholar at UT Austin, and has completed other internship and study abroad experiences. Her specialty assignment in Honors is lead our study abroad and cultural exploration experiences. Stop by the Honors Experiential Learning Lab, GSR 1.204, when you get a chance & say hello! 

Myra Estrada                                         Ximena Garcia

Honors Academics: 

We receive lots of questions regarding Honors requirements and how honors works. Below is an example of some of the information we provide our students:

Welcome to UTSA & the Honors College! The Honors curriculum has two parts – required courses and experiences. The required courses are below. The very first course you take is HON 1000 (the only one required in the first semester of Honors). It's required in the first semester since it's the intro to Honors and will explain the curriculum + help you discover your path in Honors. As for the experiences, those can be done inside or outside the classroom (which is what HON 1000 covers). You can find more information on our website .

· HON 1000 – is required for all Honors students and must be taken in the first semester. This is a zero-credit hour, 8-week, online, asynchronous course.

· HON 2301 – is required for Honors and can be taken anytime. This is a one-credit hour, 8-week, online, asynchronous course.

· Honors CSH 1213– is required for Honors and can be taken anytime. This course is offered in the fall or spring semester. This is a core course and the modality is listed on the course schedule. Each section has a different topic, and you can read the topic title + course descriptions on our website.

· Honors WRC 1023 – is required, unless you have prior credit (ex: dual credit for ENGL 1302). This is a core course, and the modality is listed on the course schedule. NOTE: If you have credit already for this course, you do NOT need to take the Honors section.

Notes:

· Honors AIS is not required, however if you take it, it will count towards the core curriculum and as your first Honors experience.

· You can find Honors sections of courses by selecting "Honors" in the attribute box on the course schedule. *Note: non-Honors sections of CSH 1213 are also offered and will NOT count for the Honors CSH 1213 requirement.

· Most HON seminar courses are interdisciplinary and open to all Honors students. There are a few that require instructor permission. Course descriptions & requirements can be found on the website.

· HON 2301 often has approved substitutions with special sections of PAD 2073.

Honors Counselors are assigned to students by college/major, however, students are not limited to seeing just that Counselor. They can see any available Honors Counselor, or Peer Coach. Honors Counselors & Peer Coaches (aka, the Academic Team) are available in the Honors Experiential Learning Lab, GSR 1.204. Students can just drop in any time during operating hours and meet with any available Honors Counselor or Peer Coach! https://honors.utsa.edu/academics/experiential-learning-lab.html

Have questions? Contact the Honors Counselors at honors.advising@utsa.edu.

Honors Opportunities for All Students: 

The Archer Fellowship Program provides undergraduate students from across The University of Texas System with a unique opportunity to explore their interest in public policy and/or public service in our nation’s capital.

Why Archer?

· Thanks to generous campus support, tuition and housing fees are fully covered for UTSA Archer Fellows!

· It’s open to all UTSA undergraduate students and all majors are welcome!

· Earn in-residence UT San Antonio credit for coursework and gain hand-on work experience in a full-time internship of your choosing.

· Archer Fellows live together near Capitol Hill and build lasting friendships and professional connections with each other.

· Honors College students earn 3 Honors Experiences when completing the Fellowship.

Eligibility - The Archer Fellowship Program is available to undergraduate students of all majors and areas of study, and we welcome a diverse array of student interests and backgrounds. Students do not need to be members of the Honors College to be a part of the Archer Fellowship.

Students must meet the following eligibility requirements in order to apply:

· Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or greater at The University of Texas at San Antonio

· Previous work or internship experience

· Campus involvement and/or community leadership experience

· Applicant must be pursuing a University of Texas System bachelor’s degree

If selected for the Archer Fellowship Program, students must meet the following requirements by the beginning of the semester they will be in Washington, D.C.:

· Junior or senior status by years and hours (first and second-year students are not eligible)

· Twenty-four hours of in-residence credit completed at The University of Texas at San Antonio

· Completion of political science core curriculum requirements (POL 1013 and either POL 1133 or POL 1213 or their equivalents)

The Archer Fellowship application is due Feb. 15^th.

Questions? Contact Campus Coordinator Kristi Meyer at Kristi.Meyer@utsa.edu.

Highlighted Benefit for Honors College Members: 

Honors College partners with many programs on campus, and activities done within those programs count towards Honors experiences! Honors has a unique curriculum where experience credit can be earned through in-class & outside the classroom activities.

• In class activities: HON courses, Honors sections of courses, Honors contracts, independent studies, research courses, internship courses, study abroad and more!
• Note: not all courses have the H-grade mode or HNRS restriction. What does that mean? It means we have special attributes we put on courses so it does not restrict non-Honors students from taking the courses, but it pulls it into the student’s DegreeWorks to count as an experience (ex: MUS 3801, SOSA).
• Outside the classroom activities: these can be any extracurricular activities that include professional, academic, personal, or social activities. Some examples can be: certifications, internships, study abroad, special projects, volunteering/service, being a part of a student organization/intramural team/student athlete, writing/publishing, presenting at a conference, learning a new skill, doing activities that promote wellbeing or work-life balance, etc.
• Note: these activities are tied to zero-credit hour SPICES courses. Once a student completes the activity, they submit a form and get enrolled in a zero-credit HON course that represents the type of experience they completed. Find out more about the SPICES courses here. These courses do not impact the degree or graduation in any way! They are free, applied to the Honors block in DW, and students receive automatic credit at the end of term for them.
• Collaborative pathways: Honors has worked to build blueprint pathways between the Honors College and College/Department Honors Programs, Athletics, and ROTC. Students engaged in these programs automatically receive Honors course and experience credits, as well as additional resources and support.
• Resources & support: Not only do we offer credit for students engaging in these activities, we provide support in finding, applying & paying for these experiences! We also have means of teaching them how to speak about their experiences, in meaningful ways – the Experiential Learning Fair being one of them.

 

Student Highlights: 

Check out the spring 2025 Archer Fellows and their internship sites:

· Allen Brown-Zubillaga, Sociology major, internship site: National Institute on Drug Abuse, Office of Science Policy and Communications

· Lennon Maldonado, Environmental Science major, internship site: DCEFF - The Environmental Film Festival in the Nation's Capital

· Amy Salazar-Molina, Global Affairs major, internship site: Office of Representative Joaquin Castro

· Karisa Scott, Neuroscience major; internship site: Office of Representative Julie Johnson

Best Regards,     

Alegra Lozano, Director of Counseling, Honors College, alegra.lozano@utsa.edu

Hector Aguilar, Associate Dean, Honors College, hector.aguilar@utsa.edu

Honors email: honors@utsa.edu

Honors advising email: honors.advising@utsa.edu

Honors website: https://honors.utsa.edu/

Honors Experiential Learning Lab: https://honors.utsa.edu/academics/experiential-learning-lab.html