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Pennoni Honors College

Drexel University’s Pennoni Honors College deepens and enriches the University experience for students from all majors who have demonstrated academic achievement and varied intellectual interests. Students are selected for admission based on multiple indicators of intellectual strength, accomplishment, and motivation, including a written statement, high school and perhaps college GPA, activities, and SAT scores. Honors students must maintain a GPA of 3.2 or higher once accepted, make satisfactory progress toward their degree, participate in Honors courses, and demonstrate conduct befitting an Honors student. Entering freshmen are invited to apply, based upon their credentials. Students not directly invited may apply between March 1st and June 1st. Current Drexel students may apply through the end of their pre-junior year.

The Pennoni Honors College is named after Annette and Drexel graduate C.R. “Chuck” Pennoni, CEO of Pennoni Associates and one-time interim president of the University. Honors students endeavor to emulate his qualities of strong leadership, integrity, and commitment to Drexel.

Members of Pennoni Honors College take part in a variety of courses that pair small groups of students with Drexel professors, creating the feeling of a small college without sacrificing the diverse academic opportunities offered by a major research university.

Diversity is also found inside the classroom. Honors students are drawn from all majors and represent many countries. Honors students share their interests and abilities, introducing their peers to new ideas and activities.

The Pennoni Honors College prepares students for admission to graduate and professional schools and for fellowships to further their education at home and abroad.

Academic Program for Honors Scholars
The Honors College offers a number of academic options for its students. These opportunities are designed to be intensive, and are taught by faculty members who understand and accommodate Honors students’ abilities and aspirations. These options include:

• Honors-Section Courses: These courses are designed to take the place of traditional course requirements. While the subject remains the same, the classes are taught to smaller groups, consisting entirely of Honors students, and on an advanced level that encourages discussion and practical application. Honors-section courses include, among other subjects, calculus, general psychology, chemistry, biology, and philosophy.
• Honors Colloquia: These interdisciplinary courses introduce students to topics not typically covered elsewhere. Individual courses in the colloquia may include lectures and presentations from a number of Drexel faculty members, each an expert in the specific facet he or she is discussing. Past Honors Colloquia courses have included Arts and the Internet, Chaos Theory, Game Theory, and Representations of the Holocaust.
• Independent Study: Honors students frequently come across topics in their general coursework that they would like to investigate in greater detail. To accommodate this, the Honors College encourages students to study and research a topic of their choosing with guidance from a faculty member.
• Honors Options: With permission from their instructors and approval from the Honors College, Honors students may elect to enhance Non-Honors courses to yield Honor's credit. The student and faculty member conducting the class agree on the specific terms before the course begins and jointly submit a proposal to them Dean of the Pennoni Honors College. In this manner, students earn Honors credit for the course.

Inter-disciplinary Programs within the Pennoni Honors College
In addition to its core program, the Pennoni Honors College serves as a home for a variety of interdisciplinary programs that serve the entire Drexel University community:

Center for Civic Engagement 
The Center for Civic Engagement, and the many programs housed with in, was created to help students learn about citizenship through service learning.  Related goals include encouraging students to develop concerns about the city in which they are living and studying and to have these sentiments translate into positive action. Working in schools and local community agencies on behalf of Drexel University is an important step in strengthening the community in which Drexel resides. In addition, the Center for Civic Engagement aims to help Drexel's neighbors feel better about having Drexel in the community. Ultimately the goal is to contribute to a stronger Philadelphia overall, by strengthening the community in which Drexel resides. The CCE manages UNIV 101:  Introduction to College Life with its embedded civic engagement component.

Cultural Passport Program and Campus Concert Series
The City of Philadelphia is steeped in culture and history, all the while offering a thriving environment for commerce. Because Drexel is located only minutes from Center City, the University is able to fully utilize Philadelphia as a classroom in which to deepen students' understanding of the world, their environment and themselves.

Drexel University's Cultural Passport program provides one free admission to more than 30 of Philadelphia's best cultural, historical and performing arts institutions during a student’s first year. Students are provided a Cultural Passport early in the fall and may use it for one calendar year. Passports are provided to all freshmen, 1st year graduate students, law students and medical students as well as to all transfer students. Once a student has been given one free admission to a particular institution, the hope is that they will choose to return using the discounted rates for college students that are posted in the Passport.

Campus Concert Series
As a part of the University’s commitment to bring cultural opportunities to Drexel students, the Pennoni Honors College, in partnership with the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design and the Philadelphia Orchestra brings live and remote broadcast performances to the University campus.  For the 2008-2009 academic year, the University will sponsor five live performances on 9/25/08, 10/09/08, 11/4/08, 3/3/09, and 4/9/09 as well as remote concert broadcasts on 1/22/09 and 4/23/09. All live performances are free and open to the public; all live remote broadcasts are free to persons with valid University I.D.

The Great Works Symposium
The Great Works Symposium is a series of team-taught, interdisciplinary courses, each one focused upon a great human achievement. Each course typically has at least three section instructors, representing three different academic disciplines, and typically there is a series of about ten guest lecturers, recognized experts on the topic, also representing a wide variety of disciplines and points of view.

The following Great Works symposia have been offered:

• Globalization
• The Atomic Bomb
• Frankenstein
• The Internet
• The Bhagavad-Gita
• The Brooklyn Bridge
• Yosemite National Park and the National Park System
• Christmas
• The Underground Railroad
• Oil: Resources, Technology, and Consequences
• The Statue of Liberty, and Liberty Itself

Each course is broader in its content than what could be covered by any one academic discipline or any single textbook, but each has a concrete center of focus. Each topic is broad and important enough that it is relevant to the education of any student. Topics are selected which have aspects of relevance to contemporary social, political, and economic concerns. All of the courses include the objectives of developing in students the following cognitive skills: reading, writing, listening, discussion, and critical thinking. For course offerings, visit the current Great Works Symposium page.

STAR Scholars
The STAR program is a special program for academically talented students that enables them to incorporate a mentored research, scholarship or creative activity within their undergraduate curriculum.  STAR matches Drexel University undergraduates with faculty mentors and provides students with the opportunity to complete a ten-week internship in their intended major of study. The STAR program was inspired by Drexel's philosophy of learning by doing, and by its history as a cooperative education institution. Through STAR entering freshman undergraduate students are provided with opportunities to participate in a summer research or creative activity as a component of their undergraduate education: developing a work plan, conducting the research or creative activity and presenting results in a poster presentation.

Approximately half of each year’s cadre of STAR Scholars is selected prior to their entrance to college; the remainder is nominated by faculty during their freshman year. Students are recruited as a cohort, and reside together for their first year in a special undergraduate learning environment managed by the Pennoni Honors College. Students enrolled in any department within the university are eligible to participate. In order to be considered for participation students must maintain a 3.2 CUM GPA and meet eligibility requirements for admission to the Pennoni
Honors College.

During freshman year, STAR Scholars may participate in a series of seminar programs to support educational activities and prepare them for research. Students who are eligible for work-study assignments may be able to be employed as research assistants during freshman year in fulfillment of the work-study requirement. During the spring term STAR Scholars and their mentors sign an agreement outlining their respective responsibilities for the summer internship. STAR research projects may take place within any college or school, department or interdisciplinary laboratory. While students are completing their summer research internship, they are provided a $4,000 stipend and receive university housing.

The STAR program provides a means for students to get to know faculty, explore a major course of study, gain practical skills for career or graduate school and gain valuable research or creative experience.

The SmartSET
The SmartSet is a new, fully interactive on-line journal of culture, science, medicine, technology, and the arts:  www.TheSmartSet.com.

Study Abroad & Scholarships
Studying abroad is one of the most exciting opportunities available at Drexel and one of the best ways to internationalize a college education. The University encourages students to take advantage of the many international opportunities. Currently, Study Abroad opportunities are available in Africa, Asia, Australia, Central America and Europe.  For more information, visit the website at: https://drexel.studioabroad.com/

University Writing Program
The development of good writing is an essential skill. The University Writing Program supports all departments in their efforts to provide writing instruction. Incoming students will be required to take three writing-intensive courses, two in their major and one for elective credit. Writing-intensive courses should be spread evenly to span the sophomore to senior years. WI classes are certified by an interdisciplinary faculty board.

Any student who has a 3.0 average and has completed ENGL 101 and ENGL 102 may apply to become a Writing-Intensive Tutor (WIT). WITs take a special course—Humanities 159, Writing and Peer Tutoring Workshop—and after successful completion are assigned to a specific WI class for a term. WITs are paid for their work and participate in all aspects of the writing program. To become a WIT, visit the HUM 159 page or contact Harriet Levin Millan, Director, University Writing Program, 215-895-6485.

Visiting Scholars Program
The Visiting Scholars program is a highly selective program that allows high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors to register for college courses—on a space-available basis—at Drexel University’s University City Campus while completing high school. Students attend regular University courses, with upper-class Drexel students, and must meet the same requirements as other Drexel students in the class. Visiting Scholars receive full college credit for all work completed with a passing grade and a Drexel University transcript. Applicants must demonstrate the responsibility and maturity expected of university students, and have the approval of their high school principal or guidance counselor to participate.  It is important to note that this is not a dual-enrollment program; the Visiting Scholars program does not offer high school credit through college courses.

Visiting Scholars may register for one course per term (up to 4 courses per year). Students may choose from day or evening courses offered through the College of Arts and Sciences, the Goodwin College or the LeBow College of Business.  Because Visiting Scholars are placed in University courses with college students, registration takes place after all current Drexel students have been registered for courses. Therefore, Visiting Scholars cannot be guaranteed enrollment into any course, and no exceptions can be made for closed courses.  Enrollment into a particular course is dependent upon available space and the approval of the instructor.  Additionally, in order to be enrolled in any course, Visiting Scholars must meet all stated course pre-requisites.