Dear COEHD Faculty,

Greetings from the Honors College! As the new Dean of Honors, I would like to thank each of you for the warm welcome that I have received at UTSA. This is a great community. I am truly honored to have been asked to contribute to advancing our mission and leading Honors.

The Honors College intends to play a pivotal role in the future successes of UTSA. We will enhance the curriculum in ways that intentionally develop our students as civic-minded, globally sophisticated intellectuals and professionals. Our goal will be to recruit, develop, and graduate individuals who are intentional in their life pursuits, dexterous in thought, equitable in actions, and eager to develop the skills and acquire the knowledge that will empower them to strengthen their communities.

A top-tier Honors College requires the active participation of you, our faculty. Over the course of the coming years, there will be many ways for you to contribute to the success of our endeavors. These will include opportunities to participate in shared governance, teach high-impact courses, engage in curriculum creation, and assist in student recruiting, to name just a few. For Honors, leadership means making opportunities for others; so we hope you will assist us in leading the College by enhancing the opportunities that we make available to our students and each other. 

Honors currently has two immediate needs from you. First, we are in the process of building an internal Honors Advisory Board. Members of this committee will assist Honors by acting as the primary advocates to and representatives of their home Colleges and areas. Meeting monthly, this Board will act as the strategic leadership body for the College. Board members will offer significant input into the future direction of Honors, including its curriculum, policies, and culture. All members are expected to be actively committed to building a true destination college, dedicated to engaging students in experiential, interdisciplinary, high-impact education. If you are interested in applying for membership on the Board, please fill out this brief questionnaire by no later than September 15, 2016:  Advisory Board Application.

The College will also be implementing a new admission process for current UTSA students who are Honors eligible. This process will include interviews by our faculty. We are seeking 18 faculty members to volunteer to interview potential honors students on Wednesday, September 21. We would ask that volunteers be available for an entire shift on that day. Shifts run from 8-noon and noon-5. Lunch and training will be provided on the day of the interviews. If you are interested in acting as an interviewer, please fill out the following form: Interview Sign-Up.

On behalf of the students, faculty, and staff of Honors, I thank you for all that you are doing for UTSA. We truly do hope that you will assist us as we continue our tradition of excellence in honors education.

Sincerely,

Sean Kelly, PhD

Dean, UTSA Honors College

Sean K. Kelly, Ph.D.

Dean of the Honors College

Professor of Philosophy

One UTSA Circle, MS 4.02.02A

The University of Texas at San Antonio

San Antonio, TX 78249

(210) 458-6463