As an honor student, you’ll take interdisciplinary courses that aren’t offered anywhere else at FLC. Each course is designed to invite you to engage at the intersection of a variety of fields, and challenge you to think in new and creative ways about the issues we face as a society in a global world.
While the specific topics of some Honors courses change, the structure and flow remains consistent. See general descriptions below.
You'll be introduced to the Reed Honors Program, the FLC campus, and the Durango community. Using inquiry led by you and your fellow Honors students as the basis for learning, you'll address the concepts of community and community engagement, develop strategies to explore your communities, and begin to identify areas of further inquiry.
1 credit | Fall semester
Develop the knowledge and skills needed to make intelligent and informed decisions as citizens of the various communities you inhabit. You'll study issues, problems, and events of contemporary society. The specific content of this course varies each semester.
3 credits | Spring semester
Cultivate awareness of the many ways that humans perceive and interact with their environments in this course. You'll look at the intellectual and academic contributions that people have brought to the public sphere, and consider how to engage communities through experiential activities. This can include direct community interaction, identification of community-specific issues, and other approaches. The specific topics vary each semester.
3 credits | Fall and Spring semesters
Identify the subject of your capstone project and develop a proposal for a project to be completed in Capstone II (HON 451). You'll choose a project from the following options:
Continue the work you began and proposed in Capstone I. You'll take the outline you developed in HON 450 toits completion over the course of the semester. Your project culminates in the public presentation of your work, so in addition to gaining experience in project design and execution, you'll learn critical skills in public speaking.
HON 100 Introduction to Honors* 1 credit
HON 200 Contemporary Issues 3 credits
HON 450 Honors Capstone I 1 credit
HON 451 Honors Capstone II 3 credits
Two Honors sections of Liberal Arts Core (LAC) courses 3 credits each / 6 credits total
Complete a minimum of three Honors Topics courses
HON 300 Honors Topics 3 credits each / 9 credits total
Total: 23 credits
*This course fulfills the new Freshman Launch course requirement **COMP 253 Action Research will be offered more frequently than other LACs; you are highly encouraged to take this for CO2 requirement. Note: After the Priority Registration Period, students with a 3.0 or higher can register for Honors classes, excluding HON 450 and 451.
Two Honors Sections of LAC Courses 3 credits each / 6 credits total*
Complete a minimum of three (3) Honors Topics
HON 300 Honors Topics 3 credits / 9 credits total
TOTAL: 18 credits
*Students who have already completed LAC requirements can meet the Honors Concentration requirements by taking sections of HON 200 and HON 300.
Enrolling as a minor, you’ll take 23 credits toward the Honors program. Should that not be possible, you can choose Honors as a concentration and supplement your major with 18 credits of Honors program work. You can find more details in the Course Catalog, but here’s the overview.
8 credits
This includes an introductory course, a 200-level course, and two semesters for your capstone project. Your capstone project is original work that involves independent research and a final product of your design.
6 credits
You’ll take two courses from the Liberal Arts Core curriculum that have an Honors attribute. Read more about the Liberal Arts Core in the Course Catalog.
9 credits
You’ll take three 300-level courses such as those described above on this page. These courses vary, are interdisciplinary, and are designed to address significant, relevant, and complex topics that fall between the standard domains of other courses.