Honors Scholars Program

HON 110-304:

Honors Freshman Seminar:

The University Experience and the Life of the Mind

Section Theme:  The Internet as a Community
Ms. Sue Cody

FALL 2006

Service & Cultural Activities

As a requirement of the Honors Freshman Seminar, we offer you the opportunity to learn about cultural and service/volunteer activities in the Wilmington area and on campus!  To complete the class and to be in good standing in the Honors Scholars Program, you need to do the following:
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Cultural Activities:  3 cultural activities and reactions required Fall semester/ 2 more required Spring semester
      As a first year student in the Honors Program, you are expected to attend at least five different cultural activities during the academic year.  As part of your HON 110 class requirements, you are expected to attend at least three of the five this fall semester.  You will write a short reaction (1-2 typed pages) to each activity and turn that in to your HON 110 instructor.  For the other two activities (in the spring), you also submit your reactions to your HON 110 instructor.  Please remember that we have many free events on campus and in the community.  Also Honors students can obtain vouchers or tickets for some events.  Come by the Honors Office.  We encourage group attendance at these activities.
     Why are “Cultural Activities” required?  One definition of “culture” that describes the class philosophy is: “The shared values, traditions, norms, customs, arts, history, institutions, and experience of a group of people.”  So this is your chance to learn about the norms, customs, arts, history, etc... that are important at UNCW and in Wilmington.  You should try something new to expand your horizons!
     To earn full credit, you need to describe what you did briefly, then react to the experience by answering the following questions:  How was this a new cultural experience for you?  How did this activity help you learn more about the arts, history, traditions, norms of the campus or the Wilmington area?  What did you learn?  Did you learn anything new about the area, residents of Wilmington, or yourself through this activity?  Is this an activity that you’d like to do again?  One that you would recommend to others?  You can certainly include other comments as well. 

Examples of Cultural activities:
1) Culture/History of Wilmington:  Cape Fear Museum, Historic Tours of Downtown, Fort Fisher Museum
2) Arts:  Cinematique, Louise Wells Cameron Art Museum, gallery shows (New Elements, NOFO), Wilmington Symphony, Thalian Hall Productions, UNCW Theatre productions, campus art exhibits. Link to many of the Cultural and Arts events/programs on campus http://appserv02.uncw.edu/caic/UNCWPresents/index.asp including the Leadership Lecture Series and Arts in Action
3) River/Sea/Animals:  NC Aquarium, Wilmington Serpentarium, Henrietta Riverboat cruise & historic tour.

Unacceptable for Cultural Activity Credit (but still fun): 
1) ACE movies on campus (unless there is a formal discussion afterwards) or movies in local commercial theatres
2) most religious services
3) sports events
4) eating out at restaurants
5) going to the beach or parks                       
6) activities outside the Wilmington area, except for one cultural reaction base on a Lyceum activity
                                     

Service/Volunteer Projects: 2 service projects and reactions required this semester

Please note:  Volunteer activities must be done in the Wilmington area to meet this class requirement

    As honors students in high school, you were  typically involved in volunteer opportunities such as tutoring, environmental awareness projects. etc.  As part of your HON 110 class, we urge you to find new ways to volunteer in your new community! You are expected to participate in at least two service activities (involving a minimum of 4 hours of service) in the Fall semester.   One of these can be a class-related group activity.   You will need to turn in a typed reaction to each service experience- 1-2 pages in length- to your HON 110 instructor. 

To earn full credit, you need to describe what you did briefly, then react to the experience by answering the following questions:  How did this activity serve the UNCW or Wilmington community?  Did you learn anything new about the area, residents of Wilmington, or yourself through this activity?  Is this a volunteer activity that you’d like to do again?  One that you would recommend to others?  You can certainly include other comments as well.

Some ideas:  Tutoring (Learning Center, Math Lab); Service Plunges (Center for Leadership Studies coordinates these); Service projects with clubs (like Honors Scholars Association).  More ideas--- http://www.uncw.edu/stuaff/leadserv/volunteer_opportunities.htm

DUE DATES:
October 5 (or earlier):  Turn in 2 Service and/or Cultural Event Reactions
December 5 (or earlier):  Turn in remaining 3 Service and/or Cultural Event Reactions

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