HONORS COLLEGE COMMUNIQUE: April 2024

Hello and Happy New Year 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: 

Honors Stole Event – The Honors Stole & Laurel has a new name, Honors College Graduation Celebration. The event occurs every fall and spring, and we have moved our event up one month earlier in the semester. This event is to celebrate all our graduating seniors who have met the eligibility requirements to graduate with Honors or as an Honors Member, and to present them with their Honors stole. We moved the event up so our students can participate in other commencement-related events and have their stoles early for photos. This spring, we have 250 students graduating with Honors, as an Honors Member, or with Distinction!  

Honors Academics: 

Fall 2024 Incoming Freshmen – Honors Counselors have been meeting with the incoming freshmen. While it’s not mandatory they meet with our Counselors, it is encouraged. We have several virtual group sessions they can join, or they can request individual appointments by emailing us at honors.advising@utsa.edu.  

Virtual Counseling Sessions – these are group sessions, where Honors Counselors will provide an overview of the Honors curriculum and answer any questions you may have. The zoom link for the sessions is: https://utsa.zoom.us/j/99317591886.  

· Thursday, April 18^th, 5-6pm 

· Wednesday, May 1^st, 5-6pm 

· Tuesday, May 14^th, 5-6pm 

· Tuesday, May 28^th, 5-6pm  

· Friday, June 14^th, 3-4pm 

· Friday, June 28^th, 3-4pm 

· Friday, July 12^th, 3-4pm 

· Friday, July 26^th, 3-4pm 

· Friday, August 9^th, 3-4pm 

Honors Opportunities for All Students: 

Honors Course Requests - Did you know that after priority registration, any student with a UTSA GPA of 3.3 or higher can enroll in available Honors courses? It’s just a simple matter of filling out this form. We have some exciting fall courses, so check out the course descriptions on our website. Please share these with any students you think will be interested. Link to the website where the form is housed: https://honors.utsa.edu/academics/forms-documents.html. 

Highlighted Benefit for Honors College Members: 

Did you know there are different paths for graduating from the Honors College?  

• Honors College Graduate – students who have completed all Honors curricular & GPA requirements. This designation is indicated on the diploma and the transcript.  
• Honors College Graduate with Distinction – students who have met the Honors College Graduate eligibility and completed 3 additional Honors electives or experiences + completion of a capstone requirement. This designation is indicated on the diploma and the transcript.  
• Honors Member - students who did not complete all the curricular requirements to graduate with Honors but have at UTSA GPA of 3.0 at graduation. This recognition is designated on the transcript. *If a student does not meet the Honors requirements in the semester of graduation, they can let their Honors Counselor know. Their Honors Counselor can update the coding so the student is still eligible to graduate with Member status, but the Honors block will no longer show in DegreeWorks. 

Have questions about an Honors student’s status? Email us! honors.advising@utsa.edu

Student Highlight: Patrick Hughes, Sophomore, major in Mechanical Engineering in the Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design

• Undergraduate Researcher with UTSA Hypersonics 
• Cabinet Member, President's Student Advisory Council 
• Klesse Emerging Leaders Program 2023-2024 Cohort 
• Top Scholar Class of 2026 
• American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Finance Chair, Top Scholar Student Organization Director of Communication, SASSY Soap Making Co-Founder
• Wayside Chapel Study Volunteer, NASA MIRO CAMEE STEM outreach volunteer 
• Completed UTSA Honors College Citymester Fellowship interning at UTSA Hypersonics and Volunteering at Special Reach 
• Studied Abroad with the Honors College Intentional and Sustainable Living Experience in Costa Rica staying and working at a sustainable ranch deep in the rainforest 
• Eagle Scout, trick yoyoer, ultimate frisbee player, and enjoyer of coffee 
• Summer Plans: Working on the Orion Spacecraft at NASA Johnson 
• Future Goals: Masters or PhD in Aerospace engineering with hopes to enter research and development focusing on spacecraft or space sciences 

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