HONORS COLLEGE COMMUNIQUE: February 2024 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 1. A highlighted benefit of being an Honors College member 1. A student highlight from your advising areas 1. Contacts within Honors for more information Honors News: Spring 24 Honors College Experiential Learning Fair (ELF) - we invite the advising community to be judges for our spring ELF. What is the ELF? Each semester, community members and UTSA staff, faculty and graduate students serve as judges for our Experiential Learning Fair<https://honors.utsa.edu/academics/elf/> (ELF). In the "ELF," UTSA Honors College students present significant accomplishments outside of the classroom in Service, Professional Development, Intellectual Achievement & Research, Cultural Exploration, Engaged Living, and Skill Development. The ELF is an opportunity for them to share their experiences and learn to speak about them in meaningful ways. We intentionally invite community members and UTSA partners to judge to make explicit our belief that education is a civic good. Student efforts in our curriculum should benefit our communities. Judging Process. The judging process will be relatively simple: * The judging is Wednesday, April 17th. * The student presentation times are 11:30-12:30 and 2:30-3:30. * There are two judging sessions: 11:00-12:30 and 2:00-3:30, both in the HEB SU Ballroom. * The judge training and poster previewing in the first 30 minutes of the sessions. * We will provide the rubrics and training. Interested and available? Thank you! Please be on the lookout for the call out we will send to the community. A sign-up link will be provided. Please share this invitation with other UTSA faculty and staff that might be interested. We invite anyone who works at UTSA to be a judge, aside from undergraduates who would be peers. Honors Academics: Thesis Information Did you know there are different ways students can earn thesis credit in Honors? 1. Department thesis/research courses. These courses are typically listed as 4993 honors research or 4913 independent study courses, but can vary depending on the department. These courses are handled by the department, and each department may have different processes. Some have UGARs, and some have admins or department chairs who take care of it. Students will need to inquire with the respective departments regarding their process. 2. Honors 4993 - these courses are handled by the Thesis Coordinator in the Honors College, Jennifer Riddick. For Honors Thesis inquiries, please send them to jennifer.riddick@utsa.edu<mailto:jennifer.riddick@utsa.edu>. Reasons why students do HON thesis course vs departmental ones: * The home department does not offer a 4993, or thesis-related course. * The student is doing an interdisciplinary research project. * The student is working with an individual outside UTSA (ex: we have had students work with faculty at UTHSCSA or professionals in the field). Please note, we do inform students taking the HON 4993 courses that we cannot guarantee it will count towards their degree and/or departmental honors status. They must speak with their Academic Advisor regarding application to the degree. For Honors, any non-Honors 4993 automatically counts for Honors experience credit. For more information on Honors Thesis, please visit the website: https://honors.utsa.edu/academics/exp-spices/thesis.html. Honors Opportunities for All Students: International Peace Leadership Academy, Ballycastle, Northern Ireland Nurturing Hope Summer Learning Journey, July 15-25, 2024 Are you someone who believes in peace? Working with people of different beliefs to create a better world for all? UTSA will select and fund 2 students to attend the Nurturing Hope program in Ballycastle, Northern Ireland, in partnership with the Rotary San Antonio Club. The Summer Learning Journey will focus on how trust and hope can be nurtured and sustained in personal, community, and political life; consider what practices might support reconciliation and restoring relationships; and contribute to an intergenerational and intercultural global community of practice committed to building cross-tradition and trans-local relationships in conflicted societies. Undergraduate and graduate students eligible. For details, eligibility and application information, please see here<https://honors.utsa.edu/programs/2024-nurturing-hope-program.html>;. Deadline to apply: March 1st. Highlighted Benefit for Honors College Members: Priority registration - Honors students (freshmen-senior) have priority registration, which means they are one of the first groups to register for classes. While we encourage our students to meet with their Honors Counselor to review their Honors progress, we also encourage them to meet with their Academic Advisors early to discuss the major/degree classes they need for the upcoming semester. If you, or Honors students, have questions about Honors courses or the curriculum, please don't hesitate to reach out to us to the Honors Advising email (honors.advising@utsa.edu<mailto:honors.advising@utsa.edu>). Student Highlight: Brenda Valdes, Senior, major in Psychology in the College for Health, Community and Policy, with minors in Sociology and Civic Engagement [cid:image001.png@01DA640B.91E5DF30] * First Generation College Student * Born in a small town in Mexico, Allende Coahuila. Mexican Immigrant; US Citizen through Naturalization Valdes always wanted to go to school but had to drop out when she was in the 9th grade due to poverty. She came to the United States when she was 22 years old in 2010 and as soon as she came, she saw opportunities. She decided to take the GED test and she studied for one month using an old phone browser. Later she enrolled in ESL classes where was able to learn English. After welcoming her first son, she realized that daycare was too expensive, so she had to wait 10 more years until her kids were all in school. Once her youngest daughter started PreK, she poured her energy into college. She attended San Antonio College from 2020-2022 and graduated with honors. She was selected as the Distinguished graduate of her cohort and was honored to deliver the speech at commencement. Brenda Valdes transferred to the University of Texas right after graduation in the Fall of 2022. She came to UTSA with an invitation to join the Honors College which she happily accepted. Right after transferring, she read about the IES-UTSA Pathways program where she applied and got accepted as a fellow. That same year she got nominated to be part of the President Student Advisory Council where she serves as a cabinet member. She loved her experience as a researcher and in the summer of 2023, she was inducted as a McNair Scholar. Later that year she applied for a position as a Research Assistant for the Office of Undergraduate Studies where she works part-time. Outside of academics and research, she likes to support students in different ways. She is the founder of the student organization for Non-Traditional students. This organization aims for the development of community and a sense of belonging in this population of students. Here members receive resources such as information, workshops, and scholarship opportunities. However, the most meaningful thing they said is to know there is a community at UTSA where they belong and feel understood. Brenda is excited about graduating this coming Spring of 2024 and moving forward with her plans in grad school. As of right now, she is receiving offers from different fully funded PhD programs in the US, among them The University of Colorado, Notre Dame University, and the prestigious Stanford University. Best Regards, Alegra Lozano, Director of Counseling, Honors College, alegra.lozano@utsa.edu<mailto:alegra.lozano@utsa.edu> Hector Aguilar, Associate Dean, Honors College, hector.aguilar@utsa.edu<mailto:hector.aguilar@utsa.edu> Honors email: honors@utsa.edu<mailto:honors@utsa.edu> Honors advising email: honors.advising@utsa.edu<mailto:honors.advising@utsa.edu> Honors website: https://honors.utsa.edu/ Honors Experiential Learning Lab: https://honors.utsa.edu/academics/experiential-learning-lab.html