Honors Program meeting - 12:45pm, 3/6/12, NOC 019

We began our meeting with a message from Jennifer McCall, an NGCSU alum. She is currently a second-year student in Georgia State Law School. She came to answer questions any students had about law school, and promote her school. She claimed that any student, regardless of major, could attend. All one must do is take the entrance exam, the LSAT. Law school is not quite as hard as some think. She is currently making good grades as a full-time law student and can even manage to be married and have children! The classes have good retention rates, for only 20 students out of the 230 person class have dropped. She is in the career fair if anyone is interested in finding out more

We have one new member: Brooke Oxley, a freshman biology major. Congratulations!

Brent Mayo (bdmayo8472@northgeorgia.edu) came to the front to talk about the Safe Space Listener Program. This is an old program that he's trying to resurrect. Essentially, this program provides a helping hand to those in need--studnets and professors are needed to listen to others' problems. This group will be publicized in INTRO. He passed around a sheet for students to express their interest. If you want to join, there is a 1-1.5 hour orientation that is required. Keep in mind that unless your person in distress is going to hurt themselves, information shared must be kept in confidence.

Steve passed around surveys. We had to report what groups we honors students are involved in and what position we hold. Don't tell Steve you're in the honors program or what position you hold, for he knows that information already. (the form is attached for those who were absent)

Matthew Jones (mjjone4020@northgeorgia.edu) announced that we are having a spring banquet catered by Aramark on April 5. He did not pass around a sign up sheet, but will rather send out a mass email with details about the day. We will have our trivia game as per usual. Make sure you come!

Megan Stowers (mlstow1295@northgeorgia.edu) announced the next series of fun events the Honors Program will host. We will be bowling Thursday, March 29; eating at an Ethiopian restaurant Friday, April 6; and adventuring in Dick's Creek Saturday, April 21.The great thing about these events is that you save a TON of money. Bowling is free, and if you manage to go with your mentor/mentee, you get an additional $5 for food! The Honors Program will be covering the first $10 that you spend on food in the Ethiopian restaurant. The very last event, Dick's Creek, is free as well. There is much fun to be had! Bring a bathing suit. We'll be partaking in a plethora of fun events. We'll see underwater bridges, crawl spaces, and more! There are beaches for people who are afraid of water, so anyone can come! A couple of life guards are tagging along as well, so we will be safe. Email Megan for more information.

Dr. Smith directed our attention to the next series of honors classes that will be available in the Fall, as well as a few honors embedded sections. On a special note, we will have a new class room in the honors suites on the first floor, be excited! Remember that if you want to enroll in any class you should reply to Dr. Smith's email containing the new classes with your Student ID and the classes you want to take. People on the good list will be able register for classes at 8:00 AM on March 21 and have until 5:00 PM on March 23 to do so.

Spring break: We are expected to provide assistance at the habitat store. They need our help Thursday! The hour to come: 3:15. It is about 10 minutes away from campus. They can provide directions. Meet in the common room at a 3:15.

Steve also described our new honors rooms in Barnes, which will be available next fall. There will be an honors lounge, which will have comfy chairs, tables, and maybe even a macbook cart!

The last meeting is on April 12. We will elect new officers and recognize graduating seniors. Steve will send out an email about nominations. Expect to give a short (60 second) speech. If you really want to grab a position, you should try to come up with a platform that allows us to pass signup sheets around the room in less than an hour.

We next gave away study abroad scholarships. Congratulations Jacqueline Hixson, Rajpal Sagoo, Nora Sutton, Maria Westerfield, and Ana Vera!

The NGCSU open house is on March 24. We need volunteers to sit at our table, located in the gym from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM. We just need people to sit there and answer questions from potential students and inquisitive parents.

Lauren also mentioned that she is planning a day to volunteer at a nursing home. If you're interested, email Nicole Bronsted.

Christie Hightower has been busily planning Relay for Life. She came to the front to announce a few upcoming events associated with it. We can buy raffle tickets to support it. She also handed out fliers. For every 10 fliers that someone posts around campus, he or she can earn 1/2 an hour of service credit. Richard Floyd then stepped to the front to further explain that the actual Relay for Life event will take place May 11. They passed around sign-up sheets, one for participants during the actual event, another for people willing to help plan and set up the event. Those who volunteer to help with the event in May will earn credit hours for the fall semester.

What will those who sign up to help before the event do? They can help with merchant sponsors. They can donate as little as $25, and as much as $2000.  We need people to help design banners, and to give them a homey touch. Our theme revolves around the everyday heroes that live near us--firemen, police officers, and others. The next Relay for Life meeting is today (Wednesday, March 7) at 4:30. The meetings always take place in the honors class room. There are plenty of opportunities to earn credit hours between now and the end of the semester here.

Steve made sure that we complemented Christie for her hard work. She has done a fantastic job so far, already exceeding the funds we raised last year.

--Submitted by Joshua McCausland, HP secretary