Encouraging Excellence

Photo Credit: Janet Rogers, Strategic Marketing and Communications

New Honors College Is Officially Open

The Honors College at the University of Missouri-Kansas City is ready to take off. Its doors officially open on July 1.

Formerly known as the UMKC Honors Program, the UMKC Honors College retained all of the best features of the Honors Program while adding new educational opportunities for outstanding students. Undergraduates who were enrolled in the Honors Program automatically became part of the new Honors College.

The Honors College offers the best elements of a small liberal arts college while drawing upon the resources of a comprehensive research institution. It aims to recruit high-achieving undergraduates of all majors and provide them with support services tailored to their needs.

James C. McKusick, Ph.D., was hired as the founding dean of the new college in March, with an appointment as a professor in the English department.

Breana Boger will work closely with McKusick as the college’s academic advisor. She is available to discuss honors requirements; majors and careers; graduate school readiness; involvement and leadership opportunities; and academic and personal success. Boger will work in the University College, Atterbury Student Success Center.

The college will welcome its inaugural class of students in Fall 2015 with two hundred students currently enrolled. Students will be housed in the Honors Wing of the UMKC Oak Street Residence Hall, where they can live and learn together through classes, special programs and events, informal interaction with faculty and social activities.

The college does not offer a major or a minor, but students who complete the required honors courses receive a University Honors Designation on their diploma. Incoming freshmen should have an ACT composite score of 28 and a high school GPA of 3.5 in the core (17-unit) college preparatory curriculum. However, highly motivated students who do not meet these criteria are encouraged to apply.

According to McKusick, all UMKC undergraduate students are welcome to apply to the college.

“If you currently are a UMKC student and wish to become a part of the college, undergraduates from all academic units and disciplines are welcome to apply,” said McKusick. “To be considered for admission to the Honors College, students should have a UMKC GPA of 3.5 or above.” The priority deadline for applications is March 15 for the fall semester and Oct. 31 for spring semester. Applications submitted after these priority deadlines may also be considered on a space available basis. The final application deadline is Aug. 3 for fall semester.

The immediate goals for the college are to grow the program and increase enrollment. Honors College aims to increase enrollment to 600 students, expand the Honors curriculum, increase the number of honors faculty members and build an office suite in Cherry Hall. The administrative office for the Honors College – currently in the Administrative Center, Room 348 – will move to the fourth floor of Cherry Hall in summer 2016.

Resources for the college were allocated by the University of Missouri System for high-impact learning experiences. The college offers its students the best quality education with small seminar-type classes, innovative teaching methods and cutting-edge research opportunities.

|Wandra Brooks Green, Division of Strategic Marketing and Communications

 


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