Mar 19, 2024  
Undergraduate Catalog 2017-2018 
    
Undergraduate Catalog 2017-2018 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Carolyn F. Blakely Honors Program


Director

Sheena T. Meadows

Administrative Specialist

NaShanda Brown

The Honors Program at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff is a unit for academically oriented and motivated students. It offers a planned set of arrangements to serve the needs of talented, gifted, and committed students who are receptive to serious academic challenges. While there are established criteria for participation in the program, students who exhibit a serious interest and commitment will not be ignored if they do not meet all of the requirements.

The courses of the Honors Program are offered by the various academic departments of the University. The honor students’ academic program includes honors sections of existing courses and contract course work.

Admission to the Honors Program

Students may submit written applications for admission to the Honors Program. In special instances, the Director may consult with the Honors Program Advisory Committee. The admission criteria are listed below.

Freshmen: High school graduates with an ACT score of 21 or higher, with an excellent high school academic record (3.25 GPA. or higher class ranking) and with superior aptitude for academic achievement will be considered.

Sophomores: Sophomore students whose profiles give evidence of satisfying the requirements listed below will be considered:

  • A cumulative GPA of 3.25
  • A strong recommendation from the advisor or chair

Juniors: Under special conditions juniors may enter the Honors Program by meeting the criteria designated for sophomore students; however, students having less than three semesters remaining for undergraduate study will not be admitted. Seniors are not admitted to the program.

Transfer Students: Transfer students may apply for admission after one full regular session at the University and must satisfy the same criteria as UAPB students.

It is expected that the honor students will maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.25. Each semester the Dean reviews the academic performance of Honors Program students. The students retained in the program are expected to give evidence from their participation that they are receiving some benefit consistent with Honors Program Goals.

Special Features of the Honors Program

  • An Honors Suite - - Honors Program students have access to a suite which includes state-of-the art equipment and a private study area.
  • Library privileges - - Honors Program students have library privileges equivalent to those of the faculty, which are approved through the Director’s office.
  • Honors Residence Hall - - A unit at Johnny B. Johnson Residential Complex has been reserved for Honors Program students. Honors housing provides special opportunities for honor students, including project collaboration, studying together, and sharing intellectual and social growth.
  • Honors Program students may be provided special educational enrichment experiences through cooperative programs with other institutions and agencies.
  • Honors Program students may be provided extracurricular enrichment experiences.
  • Selected Honors Program students are provided an opportunity to participate in regional and national honors conferences.
  • Recognition of the students’ participation in the Honors Program will be designated on all official records at Commencement, Founders and Honors Awards Convocation and other appropriate occasions.
  • Honors Program students may competitively earn Honors Program blazers.

Goals

  1. To stimulate creativity, intellectual curiosity and critical evaluation of ideas and behavior in course seminars and forums;
  2. To enhance the skills of research, writing, speaking, and critical thinking;
  3. To develop the capacity for independent learning;
  4. To provide academic opportunities of such caliber that students are challenged to perform at the highest level at which they are capable and through which they may become independent learners;
  5. To generally symbolize UAPB’s commitment to excellence by augmenting the public image of the University as a place where superior scholarship is honored and encouraged;
  6. To give faculty members the intellectual reward that derives from working with gifted students;
  7. To provide opportunities for students to associate with students of similar motivations and interests; and
  8. To assist in attracting students of outstanding academic ability who are assessed for their participation in the honors programs and for their contributions in leadership roles