WELCOME FROM THE DEAN
It is with great pleasure that I write to you welcoming you to the inaugural issue of the Hillcrest Club alumni newsletter. I am excited to see the new Hillcrest Club grow and evolve over the next few years. I invite each and every one of our alumni to participate where and when they can. As we know, the Honors College creates an ecosystem that challenges students and incubates ideas that enrich and transform lives. This ecosystem extends well beyond our campus. It extends to wherever our alumni are using their gifts and wisdom to shape the future. To wherever our alumni are embracing complexity and using their creativity to take on the big challenges facing our world today. And wherever our alumni are engaging in ideas and causes that are larger than themselves.
Exciting times are ahead for JMU and the Honors College. I invite you to read this newsletter and find ways to connect with the Hillcrest Club, the Honors College, and our students. Find ways to give back and invest in the next generation of honors students. Your time, talent, and experiences are key to enriching the education of this next generation of students. We all have a part to play in supporting their journey; just like others did for us!
In closing, I look forward to seeing and talking to each and every one of our alumni in the not so distant future. Please remember you always have a home here in the Honors College at JMU. You are always welcome to visit or just drop us a note via email or old-school snail mail! I would love to reconnect and hear about all of the incredible things you have been up to since you graduated. Until then, take care, be safe, and keep rocking the world around you!
Dr. Bradley Newcomer, Dean of the JMU Honors College
MADISON HONORS LEADERSHIP COUNCIL UPDATE
Madison Honors Leadership Council (MHLC) is a student-led organization that focuses on bridging the gap between the Honors, JMU, and Harrisonburg communities through creative and service-driven events. Founded on collaboration and interdisciplinarity, MHLC works closely with Honors faculty and contributes to the overall direction of the Honors College. Events range from hosting MADTalks with guest speakers on diverse topics to partnering with off-campus organizations such as the ARC of Harrisonburg in order to explore life outside of the JMU bubble. Most recently, MHLC added a Professional Development committee that is committed to helping students prepare for life after JMU.
During these unprecedented times, like most students, our members have been missing tossing the frisbee on the Quad, chatting with Honors faculty in the Hillcrest House, and dare I even say holding late night study sessions in Carrier Library. While we are farther than six feet apart, MHLC members have been staying in touch via Zoom meetings, engaging in team bonding activities, and looking ahead to next semester to pick up right where we left off. . . creating the change we want to see in society.
Jacob Elson, President MHLC (Quantitative Finance; Economics, '21)
HONORS STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
Norman Jones (‘21) recently began his second term as JMU’s elected Student Representative to the Board of Visitors. The Board of Visitors is responsible for governing the university through oversight and approval of the University's budget, strategic planning, academic programs, and tuition and fees. As the sole student on the Board, Norman is responsible for advocating the views and values of the entire student body, giving students a seat at the table, both literally and figuratively.
As he enters his second year in this position, Norman aims to improve and expand opportunities for clearer and more direct communication between the student body and JMU administration. He shared, “I believe that clearer, more transparent communication will allow us to better advocate for our communities during the process of change, rather than after it. Thankfully, our leaders on campus feel the same way, so I am excited to see how we strengthen our JMU community in the coming year.”
HONORS ALUMNI OPPORTUNITIES
Dr. Alysia Davis joined the Honors College faculty in August 2019 as Director of Student Engagement. In her role Dr. Davis touches all aspects of the continuum of student experience, including admissions and recruitment, student programming, student organizations, teaching, and alumni engagement.
During the 2019-2020 school year, new student engagement initiatives included introducing monthly Toolbox Workshops featuring topics that address the soft skills that students need for success, the Saturday Scholars lecture series, a faculty-student book club, and monthly programs in Shenandoah Hall. Dr. Davis additionally launched the student Honors Ambassadors program and the Hillcrest Club young alumni network. Honors faculty and staff are excited about the possibilities for further student support and enrichment that come with amplified alumni engagement.
If you are interested in getting plugged in as an active alum supporting these student engagement initiatives, or if you have ideas for new programming avenues, please reach out to Dr. Davis at davis4am@jmu.edu.
PROFILE OF INCOMING HONORS CLASS
Admission to JMU's Honors College is competitive. All applications undergo a rigorous review process including the evaluation of applicants' responses to the six short answer essay prompts, their high school record, their extra-curricular involvements, and more. This year, the Honors College received 1,155 applications for incoming freshman. Of these, 992 were Early Action and 163 were regular decision. The Honors College offered admission to over 900 of these students. The majority went to Early Action students. 69% of the applicant pool was from in-state. Of the applicants that reported a grade point average, 53% had above a 3.8 GPA with the majority of these students all taking a number of Advanced Placement (AP) courses. The Honors College looks forward to welcoming the Class of 2024 to campus in August.
THE HONORS ADVANTAGE
This section of the newsletter is designed to highlight a different unique perk of being a JMU Honors College student every issue. The focus today: Shenandoah Hall.
Most recent alums will fondly recall their time in the Honors College residential learning community (RLC). From late nights in the study lounge preparing for big exams to Super Bowl watch parties in the multi-purpose room, Shenandoah Hall truly offers Honors students a wonderful home to begin their time at JMU in. What is undoubtedly the best residence hall on campus, the Honors RLC fosters a sense of community among the College's newest students. Honors students in Shenandoah Hall have easy access to to Jared Diener, their academic advisor, have in-depth discussion opportunities programmed in the building, and some students are even lucky enough to have an Honors class right there in the dormitory. From Day 1 of FROG week to life after JMU, Shenandoah Hall remains many Honors students' favorite place on JMU's large campus.
Brian Wang ('21) who has lived in Shenandoah Hall for two years and is slated to return there next year had this to say about the Honors RLC, "Shenandoah Hall provides a close-knit community that includes students with similar academic grit and achievements to experience freshman year together. Having the opportunity to have been both a resident and resident advisor in other dorms, I truly believe that Shenandoah Hall provides a healthy learning environment that is not seen or available in other dorms.
Resident advisors in Shenandoah Hall are also handpicked to offer students with the best possible learning and social experience. The hall style layout gives students the opportunity to be more socially active with their peers. I remember during my first day of move in, I was skeptical of living in a learning environment because I was worried about constantly feeling ‘at school’ even at home. Thankfully, because everyone there understands each others' commitment to education, your neighbors will often drop by to remind each other to take breaks and look out for one another as a family."
HONORS CAPSTONE PROJECT SPOTLIGHTS
Maher "Mo" Al Tayara ('22), International Affairs: "My Honors project consists of a research paper. My research title is: Minorities in the Middle East and Democratization: A Complex Relationship. The purpose of my research is to study the attitude of minorities in the Middle East towards democratization, why they support authoritarian regimes, and under what conditions they would be inclined to support full democratization. Also I am studying the U.S. foreign policy towards minorities in the Middle East and promoting democracy in the region."
Jessica Besnier ('20), Engineering: "I am working on a two-year long engineering capstone project that focuses on designing sustainable latrines in Ifakara, Tanzania. After learning about and researching Tanzania, I knew I wanted to learn more about the country. I also lived in rural Guatemala the summer after my freshman year of college. While researching rural Tanzania, I found a lot of similarities with where I stayed and worked in Guatemala. The problem that I decided upon for my honors thesis is: what are the correlations between poverty, water quality, education, community health, and quality of life in rural Tanzania and rural Guatemala?"
Emma Sprance ('20), Communication Sciences and Disorders: "The more words a child knows from exposure, the more developed their language will be; higher socioeconomic status (SES) children are exposed to more language than those from lower SES backgrounds. My question is this: what are the differences between the syntax and semantics of low, mid, and high SES school-age children? If there are differences, then are those differences statistically significant? My hopes of this research would be to fill in the existing gap in the literature. Additionally, I hope it would inform speech pathologists, parents, teachers, and others who interact with children on a daily basis on the importance of early language exposure."
CONGRATULATIONS, CLASS OF 2020!
Please join the Honors College in congratulating all 116 JMU Honors graduates in the class of 2020. While the ending to their Madison Experience came with major disruptions and lots of uncertainty, students in the class of 2020 made the most of the situation. JMU and the Honors College will be recognizing all 2020 graduates in-person on August 7th and 8th.
STAY IN TOUCH
The Hillcrest Club is a network designed with Honors grads of the last decade in mind. Nothing is required to join. We hope that the Hillcrest Club will help keep recent graduates connected with each other and with JMU Honors. The Hillcrest Club Advisory group works to plan alumni opportunities for the young alumni network. Interested in becoming an Advisor? Contact Dr. Davis at davis4am@jmu.edu for more information.
All alumni are encouraged to follow the Honors College on social media to learn more about engagement opportunities. Alumni messages are primarily shared through LinkedIn. Please also follow JMU Honors on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Have news to share with the Honors College alumni community? Please fill out this form to be included in the next newsletter.
