Tired of snow? We are, too! Deadline extended to Monday, March 3.
The Honors Program invites proposals for new or revised interdisciplinary courses for the Honors Core. Honors Core courses serve as an introduction to a community of scholars for first and second year honors students. They are interdisciplinary in nature, meaning they combine different perspectives and diverse problem-solving expertise to study important and challenging themes and issues. The Honors Core epitomizes Honors education with smaller class sizes, active learning, and increased academic rigor. Teaching a Core course is fun and challenging!
Proposal deadline: February 24, 2014. March 3, 2014.
About the Honors Core
Honors Core courses cover the range of general education areas and can originate from any university college, department, or program. All of these courses support the seven objectives of the Honors Core:
- Expose Honors students to the connection of knowledge across the disciplines
- Create an intellectually exciting curriculum that reflects the expertise and vision of the UConn faculty
- Foster discussion and debate among Honors students beyond the confines of the classroom by creating a critical mass of Honors students exposed to a common curriculum
- Encourage the development of critical thinking
- Nurture students’ intellectual curiosity and drive towards excellence
- Provide a meaningful framework within which high-achieving students can pursue future studies and better apply their education to the complex problems of the 21st century
- Support a community of scholars who value inquiry and discovery
An Honors Core course may be taught by a single faculty member or by an interdisciplinary team. Although there will be variation across departments, it is assumed that course sections will be at least 19 and at most 60 students. The class size should facilitate engaged and active discussion among the students and the instructor.
Goals of the 2014 Competition
As UConn grows, so will the Honors Program. Steady growth is anticipated over the next several years as Honors continues to enroll approximately 10% of each entering class. As taking one Honors Core Course is a requirement for the Sophomore Honors award, the primary goal of this competition is to increase overall capacity in these courses.
The Honors Program is also increasing its presence at the regional campuses. A secondary goal of the competition is expanding Honors Core opportunities for those students, through classes located at the regionals, online courses, or hybrid formats. Online courses are also expected to benefit students on the Storrs campus by adding flexibility to course schedules or by allowing them to take courses with faculty not located on the main campus.
Special consideration will be given to proposals that address one or more of the following priorities:
- Courses that already fulfill General Education content area requirements (CA 1-4, Q, or W) or are likely to be approved as such.
- Courses that address STEM concerns from an interdisciplinary perspective.
- Courses that may be offered during the summer as well as during the school year.
Types of Proposals
For this competition, three types of proposals will be accepted:
- Proposals for the development of new courses specifically designed for the Honors Core.
- Proposals to modify an existing UConn course to meet the objectives of the Honors Core.
- Proposals to modify an existing Honors Core Course for online delivery, with support from UConn’s eCampus instructional design staff.
Awards
Awards will vary from a minimum of $1,000 to a maximum of $5,000, spread over one or two years. The award may be applied to summer salary, course related expenses, or to a faculty member’s ledger 2 research account. This amount is inclusive of fringe benefits and a budget form is required to justify proposed expenses.
In addition to course development awards, the Honors Program provides sponsoring departments with funds to support the offering of Honors Core Courses (generally the equivalent of a 10-hour TA for a single semester) each time the courses are taught. Instructors also have access to $500 for course enrichment each time the course is taught.
Who May Apply
Regular tenured, tenure-track, and non-tenure-track faculty from any discipline at any University of Connecticut campus may apply. An application may be submitted by one or more individuals, but it must have the written support of one or more sponsoring program or department that expects to offer the course every academic year for at least five years (or every other academic year for a total of five course offerings). This commitment should not be contingent upon any Honors Program funding beyond the standard 10-hour TA granted to every Honors Core Course.
Approvals
All proposals require department head or program director approval. Any new or substantially revised courses must be approved by the respective departmental and school/college curricula and courses committees, the General Education Oversight Committee (if applicable), Senate Curricula and Courses Committee, and University Senate before being offered. A course also must be approved by the Honors Board of Associate Directors before being offered as part of the Honors Core. Receipt of a grant to develop or modify a course does not indicate nor guarantee approval of the course proposal at any of the above levels.
Timeline
Proposals are due by Monday, March 3, and grant recipients will be notified by the end of the spring semester. Each proposed project should include a timeline for course development and delivery. While some projects (particularly course revisions) could be completed for Spring or Summer 2015 delivery, the majority would be expected for AY 2015-2016. Final reports will be due based upon the proposed project timeline.
Proposal Format and Submission
The detailed proposal format may be found at http://honors.uconn.edu/core-competition. Each proposal should also include a budget form, proposed timeline, and statement of support from the appropriate department head(s) or program director(s). Please send electronic copies of the proposal and supporting documents to honors@uconn.edu with the subject line “Honors Core Course Competition.”
Evaluation Criteria
Proposals will be evaluated on how the planned content, pedagogy, learning outcomes, and assessment methods will (a) meet the objectives of the Honors Core; (b) ensure academic rigor, engaged learning, and intellectual challenge; and (c) advance the goals and priorities of this competition.
Note: What makes a course inter- or cross-disciplinary?
The Honors Core is designed to engage students in at least one course that extends beyond any single discipline. Those disciplinary boundaries should also be visible to students, allowing them to learn how knowledge is defined and created within and between fields. There are several ways in which to accomplish this, including:
- An interdisciplinary scholar explores aspects of one discipline using the tools of another.
Example: A sociologist with interdisciplinary expertise studies the institutions of law. - A disciplinary specialist engages in a theme from several perspectives, with contributions from guest speakers.
Example: A French literature specialist studies Francophone immigration with contributions from a historian, a geographer, and a sociologist. - Two faculty members in the same department approach a theme from different disciplinary backgrounds.
Example: A psychologist and an economist, both in HDFS, study family welfare policy. - Two faculty members in different departments collaborate to study a theme from their different disciplinary perspectives.
Example: A geographer and a plant scientist study climate change.
Evaluation Committee
Proposals will be reviewed by a committee consisting of faculty members on the Honors Board of Associate Directors and current Honors Core Course faculty instructors.
Contact
For further information, please contact Jaclyn Chancey, Honors Program Assistant Director for Curriculum, Assessment, and Planning, at jaclyn.chancey@uconn.edu or (860) 486-1429.