CONWAY, S.C . — The HTC Honors College and Center for Interdisciplinary Studies was established at Coastal Carolina University on Oct. 12, and the 700 students who have been accepted into the University’s honors program are now the first students housed in the new college — including Kendall Player, a undeclared major from Laurel Hill, N.C.
The HTC Honors College and Center for Interdisciplinary Studies will feature many new initiatives and a revised curriculum. It will support students who have ties to majors and departments across campus: from honors students to interdisciplinary studies students, who build their own, innovative academic majors. In addition, the college will continue to support and advise undeclared first-year students as they select and transition into their major.
“This is a major milestone for Coastal Carolina University,” said Ralph Byington, CCU’s provost and executive vice president. “The HTC Honors College and Center for Interdisciplinary Studies will offer an academically challenging, interdisciplinary education that requires students to become experts in a discipline of their choice – their academic major – while also asking them to think beyond their major in their interdisciplinary honors seminars.”
According to Sara Hottinger, dean of the HTC Honors College, the college will also become a place for faculty from across campus to develop unique interdisciplinary courses and experiment with innovative teaching strategies that both challenge and inspire CCU’s honors students.
“The HTC Honors College will be an incubator for our faculty and students to experiment with new teaching methodologies, new research strategies, and the creation of new and boundary-breaking knowledge,” Hottinger said. “CCU faculty members who are affiliated with the Honors College will enhance the work they do in their departments and home disciplines, ensuring that the opportunities available for honors students expand to include all Coastal Carolina students. The HTC Honors College will place an emphasis on collaborative, experiential research and creative opportunities.”
The board of trustees approved the establishment of an honors college at CCU in February, a year after the provost charged the CCU Honors Council with developing a proposal for a well-defined and innovative program consistent with the University’s commitment to excellence and vision for student achievement and success.