Honors Program Planning Underway

Honors Committee Developing Program Structure

The Annual YU Chanukah Dinner served as a dramatic backdrop for Rabbi Lamm's formal announcement of the new Schottenstein Honors Program. Rhetoric aside, however, the real chore of working out a detailed program has just begun. To create a program that is both academically and experientially excellent, a formal Honors Committee comprised of students, faculty and administrators has been assembled.

Dean Normal Adler, at the committee's inaugural meeting, stressed that "this is a critical moment in the life of YC and its commitment to developing the life of the mind within the context of 'Torah True' Judaism."

The significance of the moment was not lost on the committee, which viewed its task within the context of the historical development of the College. "Our job here is to devise a truly excellent program, for excellent students and faculty," added Dr. Louis Feldman, the committee's chairman. "This is an opportunity to do something great for Yeshiva University."

YU President, Rabbi Dr. Norman Lamm envisions an honors program with two components. First, it would provide an opportunity for the "best and brightest" students to go through an enhanced educational program. Additionally, it would allow students who excel in specific areas to take clusters of enhanced courses in areas of interest.

These broad principles form the backbone of the honors program whose mission is to increase academic excellence at YC. It is thought that the establishment of a formal honors program allowing students outside the program to participate in a variety of honors experiences will result in a truly excellent educational experience for all YC students.

In formally devising the program, many issues, both fundamental and peripheral, have arisen. Two central avenues of discussion concern the overall structure and educational philosophy of the program, as well as the technical questions arising from the creation of individual honors courses. As outlined in a mission statement from Dean Adler, one component of the program would be co-curricular and cultural experiences which exploit the diversity of the New York area. These experiences would include special seminars, trips, and the already popular Dean's Table discussion groups.

More important, though, are the proposed plans for structuring the program's curricular requirements. As per Rabbi Lamm's conception, the program would have two distinct elements. There would necessarily be a distinct "honors-only" experience open only to students formally accepted into the honors program. Such a series of courses would provide a common intellectual experience that is uniquely "honors" by nature. Concurrent to these courses would be an element that allows for students not enrolled in the full honors program to take honors level course work in their own areas of interest.

The "working version" of the honors program incorporates these elements into a formal structure. To make the program plausible, a series of honors-only courses would replace a portion of the current YC distribution requirement. The program would thus have a sense of coherence as opposed to a "cafeteria style" program in which students pick and choose courses with no thematic relation to one another. The precise nature of these courses, though, is a source of serious debate among faculty.

A special sub-committee on honors structure devised a plan in which an honors "core" would play this critical role. Such a core, as originally devised by Professor Joanne Jacobson, would include a series of interdisciplinary courses emphasizing the key elements of scholarship which span the boundaries of various academic disciplines. In addition, the core would likely include a Composition and Literature sequence similar to the highly successful Honors English Seminar currently required of Distinguished Scholars.

In contrast to the "core" approach, some professors, including Associate Dean Michael Hecht and Dr. Moshe Bernstein, prefer a more traditional honors-only sequence. Rather than creating new, more progressive courses which stress the commonality of scholarship across disciplinary lines, the idea is to modify existing introductory courses by incorporating distinctly honors elements such as increased writing requirements and independent scholarship.

According to Dr. Bernstein, the educational novelty of such "core" courses is not sufficiently important to allow them to supplant traditional courses which focus more on the substantiative content of the individual subjects. As one faculty member noted, "It would be a shame to produce a genuine intellectual who has never actually read a work from Plato."

Aside from the honors-only courses, additional elements will comprise the greater honors program. A certain number of "honors electives" chosen from the school's current and planned offering of honors courses would be used to complete this requirement. Additionally, aside from the remaining YC distribution requirements, students enrolled in the honors program would fulfill honors requirements within the major. The major requirements may lead to the development of a Senior Thesis project which would also stem from a new mentoring program.

The unique design of the program allows it to also fulfill the second half of Rabbi Lamm's initial vision. Besides the specialized honors program, it allows for other students throughout the College to choose from the variety of honors electives and take them outside the context of an honors program. Additionally, by participating in the cultural and educational seminars that a formal honors program would provide, students would be able to reap the full benefit of a high-level educational program.

Beyond the structural elements that characterize the program and its correlates, faculty and administration are working to ensure that the honors courses exist only on the highest level. All courses proposed for honors designation would have to be approved by both the faculty Curriculum Committee and the Honors Committee. As part of the approval process, a detailed syllabus describing the uniquely honors elements of the course would accompany a full curriculum vitae. submitted by the proposed teacher. This would ensure that the courses were truly more than just "advanced courses" and that the professors seeking to teach them are qualified for such a position.

Dean Adler has proposed an additional approval step. He suggested the formation of an external advisory review board comprised of scholars from outside the University. Aside from providing assurances and further suggestions for honors courses, the advisory board would provide two distinct, additional benefits. First, by exposing the honors program to outside scholars, it would enhance the academic reputation of YC. Besides that, it would provide excellent networking opportunities for students who would work with the advisors.

In describing what an honors course would look like, the committee has made numerous suggestions which could be incorporated in the creation of new courses. A common element to any honors course would be an emphasis on developing writing and critical analysis skills through the curriculum. Intensive writing assignments and a research project seem likely to accomplish this objective. Other additions include the use of more difficult conceptual problems in developing subject matter. The possibility of some honors courses running for a fourth hour every week is also an option under consideration. Additionally, any course that combines these characteristics with a unique, and often engaging, teaching method would be considered for an honors course.

While the program seems headed towards fruition, several questions remain. Most important is the issue of permeability, that is, will students have the ability to enter the honors program at any time past their first semester on campus? Conversely, what would happen if someone chose to leave the honors program? This issue is particularly sensitive since a powerful student objection to any honors program has been the fear of the creation of an elitist student upper-class. With a permeable program, every student could take part in at least some part of the honors program.

Additionally, what the relationship between the existing Distinguished Scholars Program and the new Honors Program be? Would there be any financial incentives offered to students choosing the honors track and would those students receiving academic scholarships be required and/or automatically qualified to enter the honors program? These questions must first be answered before any program can be completed.

Interestingly, the composition of the Honors Committee which is formulating the structure for the new program is unique. Dr. Feldman, in chairing the committee, insisted, above all, that everyone has a say in the deliberations. The policy drew numerous visitors not officially on the committee including both faculty and students. Uri Goldstein, a senior who sits on the committee, noted that "by giving the students a true voice, they certainly give us the impression that they want us to want to be honors students, not just say that we want to."

Finally, before any program could be formally adopted, it would face a vote of faculty approval. The Honors Committee is under particular pressure in this respect since faculty acceptance is obviously critical for the success of the honors program. The committee set for itself March 15 as the date by which they expect to present the faculty with a fully developed honors program. Once approved, the program could be formally implemented for next semester and the administrative duties of hiring new faculty and devising courses could commence in earnest.