The 2022 school year has begun, holding with it the promises of academic achievement and fresh opportunities. Honors students await with eager anticipation to get involved with the community and make steps towards their future. 

This fall, the Honors program is planning events that can help make these dreams a reality. 

Honors events

The first Honors event consisted of a talk given in RTT by Alexander Heffner, renowned host of PBS’ The Open Mind. He discussed many different topics ranging from the media’s effect on political polarization to the divisiveness that exists in political discourse today. He challenged students to consider how their future actions could be needed to help reshape democracy. 

The next event will be the welcoming of nine-time Grammy nominee Tierney Sutton to Cowles Auditorium. On Saturday, November 5th, at 8pm, Sutton and student performers will premiere an original jazz song that is based on the novel Song of the Lark by Willa Cather. 

Bert says that both of these events illustrate the interdisciplinary approach that is at the heart of the Honors program. So even if your major does not align with the subject of these events, Bert encourages you to check them out. 

Honors lunches

What better way to build community than sharing a meal with each other? This fall, Bert wants to emphasize having a consistent place for students to engage with each other. 

As part of that plan, he is hosting fortnightly lunches in the Crow’s Nest of the HUB on Wednesdays from 11:45 -12:45. If you can’t make it the whole time, don’t stress! Just stop by for long enough to eat your lunch and chat with a few friends. If you have a meal plan you can swipe yourself in, but if you don’t, just bring lunch and let the Sodexo workers know you’re there for the Honors lunch. The upcoming Honors lunches include October 19 and November 2, 16, and 30. 

These Honors lunches use the time in a variety of ways from scheduled programming where you can meet students, professors, and more or more casual lunches where you can just chat and build community. 

If you’re unsure whether Honors lunches are for you, Bert encourages you to step out of your comfort zone and check them out. “The best thing that students can do is learn how to sit in a room at a table and have conversations with professors.” He said. 

If you have classes during the lunch time this fall, Bert encourages you to keep your eye out for news about the spring Honors lunches. 

Honors classes

Honors students already have a lot on their plate. But Bert said, “we want to make sure they get involved and develop a community with folks in honors before they fill up their dance cards.” One way to meet other Honors students and develop that community is to take Honors classes. 

Any course that has an H listed after the numbers is an Honors course (for example, Core 250-H). Although these are not exclusive to Honors students, they do tend to have a higher percentage of Honors students in them. If any questions occur, make sure to contact Bert Emerson or your advisor. 

Now that Whitworth is resuming its pre-pandemic life, Bert encourages students to look outside of their dorm rooms and actively engage in the Whitworth and Spokane communities. He encourages them to “gather together, build community, and develop a strong culture where people can learn and grow together.” 

Bert’s hope for this semester is that Honors students are active in their engagement with other Honors students and Honors faculty. He emphasizes the importance of building bonds across disciplines, saying, “What would it look like if you could work with other really smart, talented people who bring talents and abilities to the table and abilities that you don’t have?”

Keep an eye on the Honors blog or follow our social media for updates on ways to stay connected.