UW Students Enjoy New Honors House

By Alisa Somova, UW Media Relations Intern

Dec. 3, 2008 -- The University of Wyoming's new Honors House, a thoroughly renovated facility originally built in the early 1940s as a home for the Kappa Sigma fraternity, welcomed nearly 30 students this semester.

Many of the original features of the house were retained, including a beamed 2.5 story great room and a paneled dining room/meeting room. The modernized building shows off energy-efficient windows, a full modern kitchen, new stairways, an elevator and new bathrooms throughout the house.

"The house provides the opportunity for students from many different majors to create a community of academic achievement and social responsibility," say Duncan Harris, director of the UW Honors Program. "It is a home where students can curl up with a book and a blanket in front of one of the two working fireplaces."

"I really enjoy the new Honors House because it gives us a place where we can feel at home," says Logan Armstrong of Pine Bluffs, a sophomore in pre-medicine. "It is also within the social hub of the university, so being on Frat Row allows Honors House residents to stay in touch with people in the residence halls, fraternities and sororities and the activities that the University of Wyoming offers."

The University Honors Program provides opportunities for academically able and ambitious undergraduates. Those opportunities include innovative courses taught by award-winning faculty members, special scholarships and independent research, active leadership in a student organization that makes real decisions, and opportunities to study elsewhere in the country and the world.

"The most important opportunities are the chance to grow, to learn in the company of other ambitious students and to develop talents and abilities in a challenging and supportive environment," Harris says.

"What I like the most about the Honors Program is that the classes are not just more intense versions of regular courses, but it provides the opportunity to learn things that are different than most people will never get the opportunity to learn," says K.C. Ertman of Newcastle, a sophomore in criminal justice.

"When coming to a college full of new people, it is so reassuring to belong to a group of people that share common interests. The Honors Program offers that," adds Armstrong.

"An honors degree from the University of Wyoming can be an important step toward a productive and successful future," Harris says.

Photo:
New Home -- K.C. Ertman of Newcastle, right, a sophomore in criminal justice, and Logan Armstrong of Pine Bluffs, a sophomore in pre-medicine, enjoy their new kitchen at the UW Honors House. (UW Photo)

Posted on Wednesday, December 03, 2008

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