SLCC Honors Program

Built on a cohort model, SLCC's Honors program is a personalized, engaging, and transformative experience open to all AA/AS students. Students in the Honors Program will sharpen their academic and scholarly skills through several rigorous Honors Courses that fulfill 9 credits of General Education: 3 in Social Sciences (SS), 3 in Humanities (HU), and 3 in the second half of Composition (EN).

Mission Statement

The Salt Lake Community College Honors Program is a diverse, inclusive community of engaged students, faculty, and staff dedicated to a transformative education in which we all learn from each other. It is open to students of any major whose educational goals include transfer to a 4-year college or university. The Honors Program community is designed to increase opportunities for underserved students and students with the as-yet-untapped potential to succeed in their education by leveraging high-impact practices (HIPs), reflective ePortfolios, Honors courses, small cohorts, and enrichment experiences.

Diversity and Inclusion Statement

Salt Lake Community College Honors Program believes that inclusivity, diversity, equity, and accessibility are integral to fulfilling our mission for personalized, engaging, and transformative student-centered experiences. We believe in a culture where every person has strengths, perspectives, intersectional identities, and experiences that broaden and enrich our understanding of the world. Thus, we are committed to recruiting and retaining diverse honors students, faculty, and staff that reflect the communities we serve.

Features

Inclusive Excellence

SLCC’s Honors program answers the call from the Association for American Colleges and Universities to make excellence inclusive by integrating diversity, equity and quality into a transformational experience open to students regardless of their major.

High-Impact Practices

Scholar George Kuh has identified 11 High-Impact Practices (HIPs) ranging from service-learning to undergraduate research that evidence indicates are highly beneficial for college students. SLCC Honors ensures that students experience 3 of these HIPs during their time here.

Enrichment Experiences

Students participate in two Enrichment Experiences of their choice per semester, ranging from Faculty Film Night to attending the Tanner Forum on Social Ethics. These experiences build community, a sense of belonging, and enrich student learning. Students will document and reflect on these experiences in their ePortfolio.

Cohorts and Connections

Students are admitted to the program in cohorts following an application and admission process. The cohorts are small enough for students to get to know one another, and the program fosters connections between students and their faculty. Because each cohort has students from a variety of disciplines, students benefit by interacting with colleagues who are pursuing different majors. Advanced Honors students peer mentor incoming Honors students.

Reflective ePortfolios

All Honors students showcase their learning and reflect on their experiences in their ePortfolio. Strong ePortfolio pedagogy has been recognized as a High Impact Practice. Because they are curated, evidence-rich websites, Honors ePortfolios document academic transformation and help students compete for scholarships and places in bachelor’s degree programs.

Honors Courses

Honors courses challenge students with critical reading and reflection exercises, integrative discussions, and assignments that set them up for further academic success in their major. The Honors courses satisfy the Social Science (SS), the Humanities (HU), and the second half of the Composition (EN) General Education requirements. Students applying for the program should not have already satisfied these requirements through their coursework at SLCC or in high school concurrent enrollment courses.

Success Coaching

The Honors program has a dedicated coordinator who helps students meet program requirements, schedule and register for classes, understand transfer options, and navigate academic life.