Honors Program
Dr. David W. Coleman, Executive Director
University Building 137
(859) 622-2924
EKU Honors provides an enriched and accessible liberal arts college educational experience within the context of our large comprehensive university. With deep resources to support student travel and study abroad experiences as well as small seminar-style honors classes and an active residential Honors Living and Learning Community (LLC), EKU Honors provides one of the most supportive and creative educational experiences anywhere. Undergraduate students from every major on campus are welcome in EKU Honors, and our flexible honors curriculum provides versatility for today’s students, who often bring to EKU large numbers of prior credits from AP, IB, or Dual Credit experiences in high school. Students who complete the honors curriculum graduate as “EKU Honors Scholars,” with that status signified at Commencement by the distinctive maroon mortar board. Honors Scholar status is also formally designated on a graduate’s diploma as well as on official transcripts. To continue in the program and to graduate as an EKU Honors Scholar, students must maintain at least a 3.2 EKU GPA.
EKU Honors Curriculum
Students enter EKU Honors under one of the following two curricular tracks. Those entering EKU Honors in their first semester of college will complete the “Honors Maroon” track. Those entering as transfer students or as continuing EKU students in a semester other than their first in college will complete the “Honors Gold” track.
GPA Requirement
To remain active and eligible in EKU Honors, students must maintain the following minimum grade point averages:
- 3.00 institutional GPA up to 60 completed institutional hours
- 3.20 institutional GPA after 60 completed institutional hours and to graduate as an EKU Honors Scholar
Courses
HON 100. Engaging in Honors. (1 Credit)
I. Orientation and introduction to the honors community and fundamental aspects of honors life, preparing for academic and professional success, and learning to document experiences via the honors portfolio. Prerequisite: Admission to the EKU Honors Program.
HON 101. The Examined Life. (3 Credits)
I. Prerequisite: Admission to the EKU Honors Program or the EKU E-Campus Honors Certificate program. Engagement with historical and recent memoirs, diaries, and philosophical reflections. Students develop fundamental skills in critical and creative thinking, research, and communication. Research project requires use of library resources and development of a cogent argument. Gen. Ed. 3B.
HON 102. Honors Rhetoric. (6 Credits)
I. Prerequisite: Admission to the Honors Program or instructor approval. Co-requisite: HON 103. Designed, with HON 103, to improve skills in writing, reasoning, oral presentation, and research, through the study of significant works of literature, philosophy, and social and cultural history from the ancient to the modern world. Each student will do a research paper that requires both significant use of library resources and the development of a cogent line of argument. Gen. Ed. Element 1A & 1B, or 3B [WC][WG].
HON 103. Honors Communication. (3 Credits)
I. Prerequisite: Admission to the Honors Program or program approval. Corequisite: HON 102. Designed, with HON 102, to improve skills in writing, reasoning, oral presentation, and research. Each student will learn the principles and practice of the art of public speaking including the invention, organization, style, and delivery of informative and persuasive speeches. Gen. Ed. Element 1A, 1B, & 1C.
HON 104. Honors Exploration:___________. (3 Credits)
(3). Interdisciplinary exploration of topics such as Health and Community, Social Justice and the Law, Environmental Sustainability, Arts and Communities, Science and Society. Students work collaboratively to identify important problems, seek solutions, and undertake individual or group projects that culminate in a presentation. Prerequisite: Admission to the honors program.
HON 301. Self and Community. (3 Credits)
I. Prerequisite: HON 101. Interdisciplinary examination of the meanings of participation in local, national, and global communities. Topics may include matters such as political engagement, leadership, compassion, empathy, inequality, stratification, race, and gender. Gen. Ed. 5B.
HON 302. Honors Option. (0 Credits)
A. Prerequisites: HON101 and HON 301. Taken in conjunction with a course at or above the 300- level in which student is simultaneously enrolled. Student completes a substantial project that places lessons and meanings of the upper-division course in the context of a philosophical, ethical, social, and/or civic issue studied in HON 101 and/or HON 301. Student must earn a “B” or better on project for HON 302 in order for it to count for credit toward the Honors Certificate.
HON 304S. Special Topics. (3 Credits)
A. A service-learning topics course meeting the goals of the Honors Program. A non-service-learning version of HON 304S may also be offered. Students may earn up to six hours from any combination of HON 304/304S, providing the topics differ. Gen. Ed VII (QS).
HON 304W. Honors Seminar in the Mathematics Sciences:____. (3 Credits)
A. Prerequisite: ENG 101 or 101R or 105(B) or HON 102 and Admission to the Honors Program; and completion of all University developmental requirements; or departmental approval. A topics course in the mathematical sciences meeting the goals of the Honors Program. May be retaken with different topics to a maximum of six hours. Gen. Ed. E‑2 [QR].
HON 307W. Honors Seminar in the Arts:___. (3 Credits)
A. Prerequiste: 101 or 101R or 105(B) or HON 102 and Admission to the Honors Program; or deparmental approval. A topics course in the arts meeting the goals of the Honors Program. May be retaken with different topics to a maximum of six hours. Gen. Ed. Element 3A.
HON 308W. Honors Seminar in the Humanities:___. (3 Credits)
A. Prerequisite: ENG 101 or 101R or 105(B) or HON 102 and Admission to the Honors Program; or departmental approval. A topics course in the humanities meeting the goals of the Honors Program. may be retaken with different topics to a maximum of six hours. Honors Core. Gen. Ed. Element 3B.
HON 310W. Honors Seminar in History:___. (3 Credits)
A. Prerequisite: ENG 101 or 101R or 105(B) or HON 102 and admission to the Honors Program; or departmental approval. A topics course in history meeting the goals of the Honors Program. May be retaken with different topics to a maximum of six hours. Honors Core. Gen Ed. Element 5A.
HON 312W. Honors Seminar in the Social and Behavioral Sciences:___. (3 Credits)
A. Prerequistes: ENG 101 or 101R or 105(B) or HON 102 and Admission to the Honors Program; or departmental approval. A topics course in the social and behavioral sciences meeting the goals of the Honors Program. May be retaken with different topics to a maximum of six hours. Gen. Ed. E‑5B [SB].
HON 317. Honors Seminar in the Natural Sciences:___. (3 Credits)
A. Prerequisite: ENG 101 or 101R or 105 (B) or HON 102 and Admission to the honors program; or departmental approval. A topics course in the natural sciences meeting the goals of the Honors Program. 2 Lec./2 Lab. Honors Core. Gen Ed. E-4.
HON 320W. Honors Seminar in Diversity of Perspectives and Experiences:___. (3 Credits)
A. Prerequisite: Admission to the Honors Program or departmental approval and ENG 101 or 101R or 105(B) or HON 102. A topics course in the diversity of perspectives and experiences meeting the goals of the Honors Program. May be retaken with different topics to a maximum of six hours. Honors Core. Gen Ed. Element 6.
HON 390. Directed Topics in Honors. (1-3 Credits)
A. Prerequisite: approval of honors program director. Specialized study of selected topics usually culminating in an official presentation at a conference such as the annual meeting of the National Collegiate Honors Council. Student must have the special topics proposal form approved by a faculty mentor prior to enrollment. May be retaken with different topics to a maximum of three hours.
HON 391. Honors Portfolio. (1 Credit)
A. Prerequisites: HON 101 and HON 301. Prerequisite or Co-requisite: HON 302. Production of a portfolio that reflects and demonstrates the ways in which the student’s experiences in higher education have met and corresponded with the specified learning goals of the Honors Certificate program.
HON 401. Honors Innovation Lab:___. (3 Credits)
Prerequisite: Admission to the Honors Program or departmental approval and ENG 102 or 102R or 105(B) or HON 102 and at least one 300-level HON course. Students collaborate to develop innovative approaches to address specific community problems or needs. Students learn applied creative practices to identify relevant issues, readings, stakeholders, and effective solutions. May be retaken with different topics to a maximum of six hours.
HON 402. The Creative Imagination:___. (3 Credits)
Prerequisite: Admission to the Honors Program or departmental approval and ENG 102, 102R, 105 (B), or HON 102 and at least 3 credit hours of HON upper-division credit. Students study and engage in various creative approaches to an artistic and literary theme. Students present contemporary and historical approaches and collaborate on new and innovative approaches. Specific themes for the course are rotating. May be retaken with different topics to a maximum of six hours.
HON 403. Science, Ethics, and Big Ideas:___. (3 Credits)
Prerequisite: Admission to the Honors Program or departmental approval and ENG 102 or 102R or 105(B) or HON 102 and at least one 300-level HON course. An in-depth examination of a scientific issue or issues of paramount significance in contemporary society. Emphasis is on the scientific details of the issue or issues as well as social, civic, and political ramifications. May be retaken with different topics to a maximum of six hours.
HON 404. Honors Inter-professional Health Sciences Seminar:___. (3 Credits)
(3)A. Prerequisites: ENG 102 or ENG 105(B) or HON 102; At least three hours of HON upper-division credit. Honors Program advanced seminar course designed to provide honors students in health sciences and related majors with a collaborative interprofessional experience. Biological, psychosocial, cultural, economic, legal, political, environmental, and technology factors surrounding health. Course focuses on a specific theme each semester it is taught.
HON 420. Thesis Project and Seminar. (3,6 Credits)
I, II. An in-depth thesis or major project, approved by the honors director, and presented in a suitable format within the seminar. May be retaken for a maximum of 6 credit hours.