From the Director
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Dr. Michael Cooley |
I am sometimes asked “what is the ‘good’ of an Honors program?” What indeed?
I suspect this question comes from part of our culture’s character. We Americans are a particularly pragmatic people. Effort must have a tangible and immediate reward.
By contrast, education in general and an Honors program in particular is a long-term endeavor with some quick returns but more profound results later in life. Our Honors program will offer experiences to prepare you to practice and develop close analytical thinking, reading, and writing skills. You will be invited to examine new ideas, perhaps radically different perspectives on a range of intellectual, cultural and social issues we encounter in texts, or from peers and faculty. We also encourage the trial and error of applying skills and ideas in your own research agenda or in creative projects. We promote laughter—the joy minds can discover when “playing” with ideas. Activities such as these and others like them are the “good” of an Honors program, worthy in their own right, for their own sake.