In the wake of approaching mid-terms, Oklahoma Christian University first-year honors students are taking a break from the campus scene to will gather at Philbrook Museum in Tulsa for a weekend of growth and community.
This Saturday, approximately 40 students in the honors program will have the opportunity to tour the museum and hear from a guest speaker.
Jim Baird, director of the Honors Program, said that the Honors Program is designed to encourage honors students to help each other learn in a discussion-oriented, reading-intensive environment.
“To succeed, students usually need to depend on each other,” Baird said. “We want them to be able to cross fertilize their ideas. So, we do several things to try and make sure they know each other and are comfortable with each other.”
According to Carroll, the goal of the First-Years Honors Retreat’s is to unite students throughout academic learning, community and spiritual growth.
“It started probably 20 years ago when the Honors Program began,” Lisa Carroll, managing director for the Honors Program, said. “They used to go to Texas and do a full weekend retreat. It gradually turned into a one-day retreat where the students go to Tulsa. It is part of our co-curriculum agenda for Honors Program.”
Carroll said the day begins with a talk by Dr. Brute Wolf, a speaker on topics such as diversity and loving your neighbor. Then, students will tour the Philbrook Museum and look at Renaissance art.
“Touring the museum fits completely in with the classes Western Thought and Expression 1, and Western Thought and Expression 2,” Carroll said. “They will get to see a lot of what they have been studying that really solidifies their learning experience.”
Sophomore Wes Cruse attended the First-Years Honors Retreat last year. Cruse said he gained a real connection with the subjects he studied in class by seeing and interacting with them face-to-face.
“You are getting to spend time with honors students and getting to hang out in a really cool spot in Tulsa so it is combing a fun experience of something to do on a Saturday with interacting with the learning you have been doing,” Cruse said. “It’s that fusion that makes for a really cool experience.”
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