College Honors

Studying the situation of refugee women in Mexico and Denmark. Developing a stainless steel clamp to use in surgery. Taking on WYSIWYG to design a program that uses simple mark-up language. Writing, staging, and directing musical theater.

Imagine the possibilities.

Independent research, scholarship, and creative work are supported by our Honors Program, which may be undertaken as early as junior year, though most projects are conducted during the senior year. Candidates for Honors obtain the endorsement from their department and complete advanced study under the supervision and guidance of an interdisciplinary faculty committee.

At the end of their projects, our students defend their thesis or creative project or have it critiqued before a qualified outside examiner, modeling the dissertation defense of many grad programs. Often, the Honors experience can jump-start a meaningful career or admission into a top-notch graduate program.

2019 Honors Projects 

• "Seeing George Rogers Clark: Native American Nations and the Illinois Campaign," Josh Althoff, History.
• "Oxidative Stress in Age-1 and Age-2 Mutant Strains of Caenorhabditis Elegans," Markus Barbosa, Biology.
• "Synthesis of Lesquerella-Derived Bisphosphonates," Sierra Daniger, Biochemistry.
• "Interpreting and Translation in Galesburg Public School District #205: Language Rights and Multilingual Family-School Collaborative Partnerships," Jennifer Erl, Modern Languages.
• "Using SEM to Study the Structure of the GBH-1 Protein Biopolymer Hydrogel," Joseph Hilger, Biochemistry.
• "Building a Tool for Peer Instruction Research," Errol Kaylor, Computer Science.
• "Your Dying Never Stops: Monuments and Memorialization at Ludlow and Herrin," Augustus Martini, American Studies.
• "An Unexpected Series of Events: Examining the Politics of the LGBTI Movement in Nepal," Ojashwi Sapkota, International Relations.
• "'Confrontational Grazing': Identity, Pastoralism, and Postcoloniality in 21st Century Tanzania," Lindsay Smith, Anthropology & Sociology.
• "Does Thwarting of Autonomy, Competence, and Relatedness Needs Mediate the Relationship Between Trauma Type and PTSD Symptom Severity?," Chava Solberg, Psychology.
• "Quantitative Literacy Sponsors," Adrian Sotelo, Composition and Rhetoric.