Honors Contract

In all Honors option credit courses, a typed contract specifying the project, the due dates, and the grading criteria must be completed and signed by both the faculty member and the Honor student. The original contract is turned in to the Honors Program Office Coordinator by the end of the second week of class selected. Incomplete or unclear contracts will be returned to the student for revisions and are due within 72 hours. Failure to turn the contract in on time will result in removal from the Honors Program and loss of scholarship money.

English Faculty and Students please note:

Students intending to complete an Honors Contract in an English class must first get the approval of the English Department Chair, Dr. Larry Tualla. Students should call (480) 423-6773 to arrange an appointment.

The following are the college's requirements and recommendations for Honors projects. Use this list to assist you in filling out the Honors Contract each semester. These examples are not meant to restrict, confine, or dictate any specific project idea. Feel free to be creative.

Project Content

All Honors projects must have 3 main components: research, writing, and presentation. Research must include both primary sources, i.e. interviews, surveys, or other collection of data or information by the student, and secondary sources, i.e. books, magazines, Internet, newspapers, or other readings of research conducted by someone other than the student.

Service Learning

If service-learning isn't already part of the course, it can be a wonderful extended learning experience for Honor students. The Office of Student Experience and Leadership (SC185) places the students, manages the necessary paperwork, and leads progress and reflection sessions. Service-learning projects enable students to learn about the course's content in settings beyond the classroom walls. For example, such projects could include a journal, additional research into the agency or issue, and a class presentation.

Time Required

The Honors Project should require a minimum of one hour per week (outside of class) for each three-credit class. The contract asks for a list of "update" due dates in addition to the final due date as a means for building in time for faculty and Honor students to touch base about the project throughout the process.

Grading

The Honors Project should be worth approximately 10-20% of the total grade in class. The project points are added to the total points possible; the project is not extra credit. For example, if the course is worth 500 points for the semester, the Honors project should be added to that point total. The point total for the Honors student would then become 625 = 500 (regular class points) + 125 (20% points added for the Honors Project). Assessment of student work in Honors courses is the responsibility of the instructor of the course. Grading disputes should be handled within the appropriate academic division, not through the Honors Appeal Process. Faculty may wish to consult the Honors Director in situations that may affect the continuation of an Honors scholarship.

Additional suggestions:

1. Project may be due any time in the semester. If left to the end of the semester, projects could be done at the last minute and fall short of expectations.
2. Project suggestions may be a permanent product the instructor keeps and can use in future courses.
3. Students may be required to share his/her experiences/findings periodically throughout the semester.
4. Projects should go beyond the course material to make the experience extended vs. reinforced or repetitive learning.