Changes to OC Honors Program

The Oklahoma Christian University Honors Program  is undergoing several shifts for the coming year, including a change in leadership, a change in the Honors core curriculum, a new faculty position and a retirement.

Leadership

Starting in June 2021, Scott LaMascus will return as Honors Director as Professor of Bible and Philosophy, Jim Baird, retires from the role after nine years of service as director. Baird will continue most of his duties throughout the summer as LaMascus settles into his role in the fall.

LaMascus introduced multiple projects to the Honors Program, including Honors House, Catalyst Projects and First Year Experience. He also doubled the size of the Honors program and created the Honors Symposium. In January 2013, he stepped down as Honors Director to adopt the role of Chief Academic Officer.

Baird was on the original committee which organized the first Honors core and started the Honors in 1992. He has taught in the Honors core every spring since 1997 and took over as Honors Director in 2013.

Baird warned the faculty three years previous he would like to step down, so this was a planned and anticipated change. He did not expect all the other changes at the same time.

“It’s a total coincidence this is also the year we’re revising the core,” Baird said. “If I could go back in time three years, I probably would have extended my stay for another year as Honors Director to make sure this all smooths out, but because it’s Dr. LaMascus taking my place as Honors Director, I have no worries.”

Professor of Communication, Brian Simmons, who teaches Quest for Identity and Quest for Meaning in the Honors department, said Baird’s legacy will live on.

“Dr. Baird, I think, did a great job leading the Honors Program,” Simmons said. “I think Dr. Baird will still have his fingerprints on the Honors curriculum even though we’ve changed it … that means even though he’s no longer the one directing the program, I think his contributions will continue on.”

Honors Core Curriculum

The second change is a proposed update in the Honors core curriculum. The faculty of Oklahoma Christian and the Academic Affairs Committee have not yet confirmed any changes, but the Managing Director of Honors Program, Patricia Elmore, said the proposal has more than a 70% chance of passing.

Returning students have the option of staying with the current Honors core. Any credits they have from old courses which are being updated will transfer into the new core.

The Senior Bible Capstone course will be replaced with the choice of a Bible elective. Students will take nine hours of Bible electives, as opposed to six and Senior Bible Capstone. However, students may still choose Senior Bible Capstone as an elective.

Bible and Classical Literature will be dropped entirely, leaving five remaining Honors seminar courses.

Baird said this adjustment opened up a new opportunity for students.

“Instead of making it a specific class, we have created a requirement called Honors Special Topics,” Baird said. “Anybody on the Oklahoma Christian faculty can nominate a class to be offered to the Honors students as a special study topic.”

This change will allow the Honors core to be tailored more to individual student interests.

Kellen Welch, a senior English major, said this new Honors curriculum was a good choice for her Bible Capstone.

“I’m for the changes because they allow me to take a different class I would find more useful or helpful,” Welch said.

Welch also said the loss of the Catalyst Project might negatively impact other students.

“I am a little upset they’re getting rid of the Catalyst Project, not so much because they’re getting rid of stuff to do, but because they won’t have the Catalyst grants anymore,” Welch said. “I’m just a little worried about future students, if they’re going to be able to do the projects they want to.”

Simmons said the current Honors core is sound.

“I believe it has some advantages over the general education curriculum which other students participate in,” Simmons said. “The current curriculum served its purpose for the time it existed, but I think like any kind of curriculum, it’s helpful to evaluate it every once in a while, and I think the time had come to do so.”

Simmons said Honors Enrichment would be beneficial for students.

“I really like the change they’ve made to Honors Enrichment,” Simmons said. “I think it broadens the menu of possible experiences the students would have. I think it gives students some power to fit that into their own life schedule and it gives them the power to choose what they’re more interested in.”

Simmons also said this change indicated the university listened to students’ voices.

“There were often student complaints and feedback about Symposium and about the rigidity of the program, and I think this revision reflects the fact that Dr. Baird and the university’s other officers connected to the Honors Program were listening to that feedback,” Simmons said.

The Honors core curriculum has not changed dramatically since it was created. Only minor shifts have happened, and the Honors Seminar courses have never changed at all.

Baird said the proposed changes to the core have been received well so far.

“I’ve gotten lots of positive feedback [about the courses]and almost no negative feedback, so I think overall, it’s hitting about the right spots,” Baird said.

New Officer Position

Another change is the creation of a new officer position for Honors. Professor of Chemistry, Amanda Nichols, has been asked to serve as the first ever STEM Liaison for Honors. Nichols has been teaching in the Honors Program as part of The Bible, Science and Human Values course in addition to

Retirement

Lastly, Distinguish Professor Mike Knelder will be retiring after teaching for seven years in the Honors Program. Students won’t forget his work in the Honors Program, and professors wish him well.