All prospective Honors students must be enrolled in an associate degree program; entering high school graduates, transfer students from other colleges and current GCC students must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.2.

Whether students complete the full program or take a single course, there are numerous benefits to being an Honors Scholar at GCC. In the classroom, students will have innovative, small-group learning experiences focused on interaction and exploration. Through honors-sponsored events and activities, students will also have the opportunity to build a sense of community with similarly-motivated peers. Honors Scholars will earn recognition for their academic achievements on their transcripts, which allows them to distinguish themselves when applying for transfer, internships and employment opportunities.

Admission

GCC welcomes students with a variety of academic backgrounds to participate in our Honors Program. All prospective Honors students must be enrolled in an Associate degree program and must meet at least one of the following requirements to apply for admission:

• Entering high school graduates: Minimum 3.2 cumulative high school GPA
• Transfer students: At least six (6) college-level credits, minimum 3.2 cumulative GPA
• Current GCC students: At least six (6) college-level credits, minimum 3.2 cumulative GPA

If you do not fully meet any of these requirements, you may apply to substitute other academic work or projects that indicate an ability to succeed in the Honors Program. Contact an Honors Program Coordinator to pursue this option.

Admission to the Honors Program is required prior to registering for Honors courses or proposing Honors Projects for regular courses.

Application

To apply to the GCC Honors Scholar Program, please complete the form below. By submitting this form, you certify that all of the information entered is complete and accurate. Your application will be reviewed by one of the Honors Scholar Program Coordinators and you will be contacted within three business days. For questions, please contact one of the Honors Scholar Program Coordinators.

Graduation Requirements

To graduate as an Honors Scholar, students must have:

1. A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.2.
2. Made at least one presentation at an approved conference or symposium (e.g., the GCC Student Symposium or the UMass Undergraduate Research Conference).
3. Earned at least nine (9) honors credits, as described below, with grade of B or better. At least three (3) credits must be from taking an honors colloquium (described below). The other six (6) credits can be from a combination of hors courses, including:
   • Honors colloquium—Interdisciplinary seminar reserved for honors students; topics vary from semester to semester. Honors students may take more than one of these classes.
   • Honors-designated section—This is a special section of regularly offered courses (such as ENG 101, PSY 101, etc.) that are reserved for honors students.
   • Honors add-on—This option resembles an independent study, where students complete an honors project for a non-honors section of a course. Students must complete their projects and earn a grade of B or better to earn honors credit for the course.

Honors Courses & Projects

Engaging and rigorous classroom experiences are at the core of the Honors Scholar Program. At GCC, honors courses take three forms, as described below:

1. Honors seminar/colloquia. These seminars use an interdisciplinary perspective to engage students in deep exploration of a specific topic or theme. Though colloquia will vary by topic, these courses share three common criteria.

• Interdisciplinarity—Though organized around a singular theme or topic, these courses should incorporate multiple disciplinary perspectives and related modes of inquiry.
• Depth of inquiry—Unlike typical survey courses that expose students to a breadth of topics, colloquia should prioritize depth of inquiry. The focus is on engaging students in deep exploration of a topic or theme.
• Project-based learning—Students should be engaged in a semester-long project that encourages their curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking about the colloquium topic.
• Sharing—Students should share what they’ve learned, discovered, or created. This type of sharing can inform and inspire others and can result in the presenter reflecting on their own learning.

For example: What Is the Secret to Happiness? This seminar-style course draws from psychology, sociology, history, and philosophy to explore what a variety of disciplines tell us about what makes life worth living. Students will engage in semester-long research projects that allows them to explore in greater depth one of the main themes of the course. At the end of the course, students will present their projects to their classmates.

2. Honors-designated sections. These are sections of regularly offered courses that are reserved for Honors Scholars. These sections cover the same core content, meeting the same student learning outcomes, and satisfy the same requirements as non-honors sections. The distinguishing features of honors sections is the increased depth of inquiry, enhanced emphasis on critical thinking and the incorporation of analytical writing, independent learning and student presentations.

3. Honors project add-on. Students who are not enrolled in our Honors Scholar Program still have the option of earning honors credit as part of their work in a non-honors course. Working with the faculty member, students propose, design—then complete an independent project that goes beyond the regular requirements for the course.

For example:

• In a sociology course—A student could conduct survey research on how the COVID pandemic has disrupted existing social norms while simultaneously creating new ones.
• In a science course—A student could conduct laboratory or field research on a topic introduced in the class and then create a poster or other presentation to share with their peers.
• In an art course—A student could expand on a required portfolio by adding more pieces (in different media) and then write a narrative account of the main themes that link the pieces together.

Faculty may create honors add-on projects at their discretion. They collaborate with students to develop proposals (using these forms) that are then submitted for approval to the Honors Program Coordinator(s) no later than 2 weeks into the semester. Faculty who support a student in pursuing an honors project in their course will receive a stipend of $25/ credit for helping the student prepare and submit their proposal, and $25/ credit for working to ensure the student completes the project successfully by the end of the semester.

The college currently offers Honors Colloquia in two general fields of study: HON 202 (Social and Behavioral Sciences) and HON 203 (Humanities and Fine Arts). Faculty interested in teaching a colloquium should submit a brief proposal to Honors Programs Coordinators in which they address the following:

• General description of the proposed course
• Rationale describing the importance, relevance and potential interest of the proposed course
• Description of how the proposed course meets the student learning outcomes for HON 202 or HON 203 (depending on faculty expertise and course content); these outcomes can be found on the respective CAP forms (located on the CAP Moodle site)

The process for honors-designated sections is similar to colloquia. Interested faculty should submit a proposal to the Honors Program Coordinator(s) addressing the following:

• Course information (subject code and number)
• Brief discussion of what distinguishes the proposed honors section from a regularly scheduled section of the course. In particular, please address how you meet the following criteria:
  • increased depth of inquiry
  • enhanced focus on critical thinking
  • incorporation of analytical writing
  • greater opportunity for independent learning
  • featuring student presentations

Proposals should be no more than 500 words in length and should be forwarded to the program coordinators no later than the contractually mandated deadline for preferred teaching schedules. The Honors Scholar Committee will review the proposals and forward their recommendations to the VPAA. Ultimately, the assignment of the colloquia and honors-designated sections will be made by the VPAA (or their designee) with consideration of the collective bargaining agreements.