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History of CSU's Honors Program Honors at Colorado State began in 1957 when a group led by Professors Willard O. Eddy and Bruce Frye created an interdisciplinary seminar on Leo Tolstoy and invited fifteen of the university's best and brightest students to enroll. Those students were:
Between 1957 and 1977, the Honors Program consisted of Honors colloquia, honors sections of regular courses, and Honors projects. Over 67 separate colloquia topics were offered, including such intriguing titles as:
Honors sections of regular courses were offered in Composition, English Literature, Physics, History, Math, Economics, Public Speaking, Foreign languages, Political Science, Anthropology, Conservation, Philosophy, Psychology and Engineering. In 1964, for example, there were 672 registrations for Honors classes and more than 35 Honors projects during the fall quarter alone. During the early days of the Honors Program, entering freshmen were invited to take Honors courses on the basis of their ACT or SAT scores and high school class standing. Regular admission to the program was granted at the completion of the freshman year by the Faculty Honors Council. In addition, any CSU student with at least a CSU cumulative GPA of 3.25 could enroll in honors classes if space was available. To graduate with the Honors designation, students needed to complete at least 20 hours of honors coursework, including 5 credits of honors project in their major, maintain a minimum 3.0 GPA, and pass written and oral comprehensive exams in their major. The next phase of Honors education at CSU began when the Faculty Council first approved the University Honors program to be effective Spring Quarter, 1975. This designation could be earned by a student collecting 24 credits of honors coursework distributed among three categories: a) Arts and Humanities, b) Social-Behavioral Sciences, and c) Natural Sciences and Mathematics, attaining a minimum 3.5 cumulative GPA, and completing a Senior Honors Thesis or Project . In Fall 1979, floors in Durward Residence Hall were reserved for students participating in the University Honors Program. The Honors Living Learning Community moved to Newsom Hall in 1983. The first Honors Scholar graduated from the new program in 1977. In 1991, CSU's Faculty Council approved a “Revised University Honors Program ” that added the designation “University Honors Scholar” as an academic distinction. The requirements were expanded to include two honors courses in mathematics and sciences, two honors courses in arts, humanities, and social sciences, an additional elective honors course from either category, three semesters of a foreign language, an upper-division writing course, and a senior honors thesis/project. Students who did not wish to complete a thesis could choose to add a second major or two minors, teacher licensure, or an interdisciplinary studies program instead. A minimum 3.5 GPA was required for graduation with Honors in either option. The Honors Program curriculum was substantially revised in 1999, creating the structure of the current Honors Core Curriculum. The hallmarks of this program include the four interdisciplinary seminars that fulfill seven of the eleven all university core curriculum (AUCC) requirements, two Honors courses in the major, and a senior honors thesis or project. Students completing the Honors Core Curriculum with a minimum 3.5 overall GPA earn the “University Honors Scholar” designation on their transcripts and diplomas at graduation. The first class of students entered the HCC in the Fall 2000. A second option to the University Honors Program was added in 2005 to accommodate freshmen with a substantial amount of AP or IB credit, continuing CSU students, and transfer students. The Discipline Honors Scholar (Track 2) option is a 17-credit program of study that consists of a 1-credit honors seminar (for freshmen) and 16 credits of upper-division courses in the major or discipline, including the Honors pre-thesis and senior Honors thesis. Currently, there are about 920 students in the University Honors Program. Approximately 80% of entering freshmen choose to participate in Track 1 and about half reside in the Honors Living Learning Community in Newsom Hall for their first year. In Fall 2007, the Honors offices, classrooms and LLC will move to the new Academic Village, currently under construction on the site of the former Ellis Hall. Honors Directors Willard O. Eddy, 1957-1974
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