The Clarion Honors Chronicle

Changes to the Honors Program are coming due fall semesterThe Clarion Honors Chronicle

By Kaitlyn Mulligan Raehslers Word The deadline for all scholarship applications has passed, and the office is currently in the process of reading applications and making final decisions. I can verify that reading through scholarship applications among students in the Honors Program is challenging. After all, you are all the best students on campus!The main focus of my column this week, however, is on the upcoming senior presentations. As you all know, the development, completion, and presentation of an original research project represents the culmination of your Honors Program education at Clarion University and an important milestone (Cont. on page 7)

Fall of 2015 will be a semester of many changes for the Honors Program. Both new leadership as well as a location change are in the works.

Two current Honors students will be stepping up to take leadership positions coming this fall. Kate Hammond, a rising junior, and Eric Zavinski, a sophomore this fall, will be taking over for Natalie Bond and Madeline Kopper in the positions of Honors Recruitment Coordinator and Honors Student Director respectively. Bond and Kopper will be graduating this spring, leaving their positions open. Both new leaders have big plans for the future of the Honors Program. Hammond, the soon-to-be recruitment officer and Nurse Practitioner major, hopes to bring more students to the Honors Program by showing them a less intimidating front. She said, I want them to see that its not as scary as it looks and that its very beneficial. She wants to show prospective students that Honors is a resume-building activity that can prepare them for things they would not normally have preparation for. Hammond already has plans started for a 5K color run fundraiser next year for the program. Showing the fun side of Honors is very important to her. Were not always just cramming for exams; we do other things in the community, Hammond stated. Called Color Clarion, the run will be a donation-based fundraiser for the program and the community. Some of the money collected will go to a scholarship for Honors research presentations and the rest will be given back to the Clarion community. The run will be a way to raise money and to advertise the university to prospective students from local high schools. Hammond is excited to get new students into the program and make them eager to be involved in Honors.Contents: Top Story/Raehslers Word Pg. 1Student Spotlight Pg. 4Course Feature Pg. 5SHA Update/Mentor Program Update Pg. 6Plans for the Newsletter Pg. 8

Zavinski is also excited for this new chapter in the Honors Program. He will be the new Honors Student Director, and his job will include aiding in the communication between the office and the Honors members, running the mentor program, and facilitating senior presentations. He is also the founder and editor of this newsletter, The Clarion Honors Chronicle, which he will be entering into a National Collegiate Honors Council newsletter competition. Clarions Honors Program won second place on a national level in this competition in 2005. As a Communication: Journalism major, he hopes that this and other ventures will create more and better quality communication in the program. Zavinski wants to give the Honors mentor program new life by creating new events and giving mentors more responsibilities. I want to help out the mentor program with more communication and more events on a regular schedule, so it doesnt get lost, he said. It is important to him to have more events with the entire Honors Program and to coordinate with the Student Honors Association. Zavinski is also excited for future students. He stated, I cant wait to meet all the new freshman. Its always good when an organization gets invigorated with new people. A huge change that is coming to the Honors Program is the movement of its location as well. Rod Raehsler, the Honors Program Director, says that the move will be to Becht Hall and will occur sometime during the summer. The exact location of the office will be on the third floor across from the elevator. With the future recruitment of students in mind, the major reason to move the program headquarters is to be closer to the Admissions office. This will ensure smoother visits and hopefully a more efficient way of getting students involved with Honors. Raehsler believes that while the location is beneficial, space may become an issue. The actual space we are being given in Becht Hall is very small, especially compared to what we have in Ralston, Raehsler said. This is producing some mixed feelings about the move. Both Zavinski and Hammond feel that the move is exciting but scary. It will be hard to leave the large room to go to a smaller venue. Raehsler is trying to keep the current printing and computing space in Ralston available for Honors students because he is not sure how that issue will be attended to in Becht. He stated, I know the ability for students to print work they have free of charge is important, and I would like to see that preserved. At this point in time, it is unclear whether this move will be a positive or negative change to the program. One thing is clear: the move is going to happen regardless.Raehsler also explained that three new honors courses will most likely be offered next spring. These will be Honors 130, 230, and 240. Other courses will still be offered, and most will remain the same.Next semester will be a completely new chapter for the Clarion Honors Program. From building moves to leadership changes, the whole program will be reinvigorated with new events, a new location, and new ideas about how to run it. The goal for all of the changes is to increase involvement, communication, and community within the Honors Program. Hopefully, this reinvention will bring about a more cohesive program for existing members and result in a more inviting space for future students.

Andrew Skubisz - Student SpotlightBy Kaitlynn Sass

At Clarion University, opportunities for involvement abound, as exemplified by marketing major, Andrew Skubisz. A freshman, Skubisz is already heavily involved on campus. He is a part of the Student Honors Association, the People Encouraging Awareness in Community Economics (PEACE) club, Tobeco, and, of course, the Honors Program. Skubisz serves as secretary for the PEACE club and also participates in open mic nights hosted by Tobeco. Skubisz uses some of his free time to pursue his musical interests. He plays guitar and sings, along with composing his own music. He shares these talents at the open mic nights, and performs in coffee shops in his hometown.As part of the Honors Program, Skubisz helps to publish and distribute The Clarion Honors Chronicle to a wide audience. He volunteers his time to spread the newsletter by uploading it to the Honors Program Facebook page, along with sending it to the Honors email listserv and on the website SlideShare. This job has been instrumental in allowing word of the newly started Chronicle to spread on campus in the program and to alumni elsewhere.Skubisz also works with Honors by updating information about the program on the Clarion website. This page is what anyone wishing to learn about the Honors Program would visit on the Clarion homepage. By adding new facts and sharing current events and projects, Skubisz is allowing prospective students, community members, and current Honors students to see what is happening within Clarions Honors Program.Andrew Skubisz has, in his short time at Clarion, presented himself as an involved individual who has worked hard to promote the groups he participates in. Skubisz said, As general as it might sound, my favorite part of the college experience has been meeting new people. He explained that he enjoys working with others and hearing new perspectives. Skubisz has become a valuable asset to the Clarion Honors Program, along with the campus community in general.

Course FeatureBy Hannah Gloeckl

The year before their final senior projects, members of the Honors Program must take Junior Honors Seminar during the spring semester.Taught by Professor Joseph Croskey, the course aims to prepare students for both their final project and professional life after graduation. Through course assignments, students engage with an advisor to brainstorm ideas for their research project as well as prepare various professional documents, including an online portfolio.The course does not only prepare students with hard skills found in every business, but also encourages developing soft skills like leadership, service, and public speaking. Students will experience these through their own projects as well as presentations from various Clarion University faculty members with different academic backgrounds.Theyll also experience the FISH! philosophy, like how to engage in a workplace, how to express yourself and encourage others to express themselves. That was my carry-over from the previous director who taught Honors Seminar, said Croskey.The Honors program also hosted the annual Etiquette Dinner on March 16 in Eagle Commons. At the event, Croskey presented a PowerPoint to guide students through a variety of table manners and conversational skills. From which set of silverware to use to what to do with your glass when someone goes in for a hug, students applied even the minutest details through practice during the meal.It wont be often that you have an etiquette dinner as part of an interview, but youll often in professional settings have to go to dinner, so its a good skill to know, said Croskey.Junior Seminar students also help to host the senior presentations at the end of the semester. Your service to the students that have come before you is an important connection, and also a nice way to see Oh, this is what happens when they present, so its also a learning experience, and thats often what service is, Croskey said of the service project.Croskey has a diverse background in higher education. After graduation from West Point, Croskey served in the military for six years. A love for travel followed him to the University of Pittsburgh in Titusville, where he taught software classes, acted as a retention coordinator and facilitated study abroad trips. Croskey then received his masters degree from George Washington University.When a position opened up at Clarion University, Croskey became the Coordinator of Transitions and then the Director of the Act 101 Educational Opportunities Program. His position enabled him to work closely with at-risks students during their first year at Clarion. As Director of the EOP, Croskey began teaching again as a faculty member for the Academic Enrichment Department. In 2013, Croskey moved into the Honors Program as the new Assistant Director.

SHA UpdateBy Megan Beary

This month, the Student Honors Association gave back to the Clarion community, in the form of a 12-year-old girl, by showing support at a benefit dinner. Spaghetti was served for seven dollars a plate, and a Chinese auction was held at the Good Shepherd United Methodist Church in Tionesta on March 21 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. The church raised an astounding $13,000 to assist in paying for the chemotherapy treatments of a local junior high student battling leukemia. As a club, we were able to give the patient one of our Relay for Life t-shirts that was Superman-themed. We and the other attendees also made crafts such as her favorite paper elephants. It meant a lot to us to be able to meet her and give her something as a club, and we could tell by the smile on her face, that it meant a lot to her too. We here at SHA and the Honors Program wish her and her family all the best in the coming months of treatment and speedy recovery.Mentors Needed! Under Eagles WingsBy Eric ZavinskiNew and returning mentors will be urgently needed when the time comes for honors freshmen to set foot on Clarion Universitys campus next fall! As per usual, we normally accept approximately 50 students every new school year, and this upcoming semester will be no different. We are looking for dedicated students who are already in and planning to remain in the Honors Program here at Clarion. Serving as a mentor is an exceptional service item to add to a resume or cover letter. If you think you would work well with new students, then definitely consider this great opportunity!Next year, we will be looking at revamping the mentor/mentee program so that we will have around two to three organized events in the program every semester. Both mentors and mentees would be expected to attend these events and get to know each other and others in the Honors program through fun outlets that we, as a group, will be deciding upon! These will include events that are both on and off campus. We really want the incoming freshmen to feel welcome and have easy and open communications with their instructors, mentors and peers in the Honors Program here.Mentors will be expected to act appropriately with their mentees and represent the program in a respectful manner. Consistent communication with the mentee(s) will be mandatory and appreciated because getting the new students acclimated to the university and Honors Program experiences is what the mentor/mentee program is all about. If you think you have what it takes to be a great and responsible mentor, then send me an email at E.A.Zavinski@eagle.clarion.edu saying that you would like to be one next year. Ideally, we would like to pair one mentor with one new student, so fifty mentors is our lofty goal. To reach that number, we will need you to share this and tell your friends! To both future mentors and honors students alike, we appreciate your work and input!(Raehslers Word cont.) ...reflecting all the effort you put into your project. I have been at Clarion University for many years, and I am still always amazed at the high quality of research accomplished by our students.The senior presentations this semester are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. in the lower level of the library on Wednesday evening, April 22. The program begins by recognizing the seniors and hearing some inspiring words from a special guest speaker. After the introductory program, we will travel to Founders Hall where the first set of presentations will begin (my best estimate is 7:00 p.m.). This semester we are proud to have twenty-nine students presenting their final projects. This large number and a limited capacity means that our overall program will change a little. We will begin with four presentation sessions followed by a brief intermission (with food and beverages provided!). After the intermission, we will see four additional sessions. This makes for a longer evening, but it does allow everyone to attend multiple sessions of interest. I can certainly tell you that it is time well-spent. In addition, each student presenting is competing for a $500 prize for best session presentation which makes each session even more interesting!I would, of course, encourage everyone interested in research on the Clarion University campus to attend. I would even more strongly suggest that all students in the Honors Program attend at least one session. This is a unique opportunity to see how other students meet this final requirement of the program and represents a valuable learning experience among students eventually competing for the same awards. I hope to see you all on April 22 and wish each presenter the best as they prepare for the evening.This ones going to national! My plans to enter honors newsletter contestBy Eric ZavinskiThank you so much for reading this second issue of The Clarion Honors Chronicle! In my preparation for this volumes release, I found out about the previous newsletter for the Clarion University Honors Program: Words of Honor. I am getting in touch with the former staff of that paper in order to get some insight on how to compete with this new project on a national level. Because an old staff of students won second place in the National Collegiate Honors Council (NCHC) with their paper in 2005, I believe we can learn from them and hopefully put in a good entry this year, a decade later.

The NCHC will host the national honors event in Chicago, Illinois in November, and judges will have the March and April volumes of this newsletter beforehand when I submit them by June. I think we do good work here at the Chronicle, and there is nothing to lose for the program, its student and this papers staff if we submit for critique and competition. Color me excited!

In this issue, SHA helps out in a big way for a little girl, and Junior Seminar prepares students for senior presentations and life after Clarion in the wake of the coming changes to the Honors Program next year. It is time to be ready and optimistic for the changes ahead!