QU ESTABLISHES PRESIDENT’S HONORS COLLEGE
QUINCY, Ill. – Starting this fall, Quincy University will enhance its undergraduate Honors program by establishing a new President’s Honors College. This new college will provide a distinctive academic experience for qualified students who are accepted into the program.
Honors participation represents the University’s highest expression of intellectual curiosity and academic rigor. The President’s Honors College provides an academically challenging course of study that adds an interdisciplinary and enriched dimension to a student’s major field and experience in the Bonaventure Program. The President’s Honors College will be jointly led by the President of the University, Dr. Brian McGee, and the Honors Dean, Dr. Daniel Strudwick.
“The President’s Honors College will retain the best elements of the current Honors Program, but will now provide new experiences, opportunities, and challenges,” said Dr. Daniel Strudwick, the founding Dean of the President’s Honors College. “Students will be invited to advance on the intellectual, aesthetic, moral, and leadership fronts.”
“The new President’s Honors College at Quincy University will directly connect honors students to me and to all future presidents of this great university,” said Dr. Brian McGee, QU President. “The President will personally lead each fall honors colloquium, host events for honors students and their guests, and interact with individual honors students.”
“The direct leadership role of the president emphasizes our firm commitment at Quincy University to an extraordinary academic experience and builds on the historic success of our highly competitive Presidential Scholarship,” said McGee. “This expanded commitment to QU honors is a perfect match for our Success by Design Program, which puts every student on the path to academic excellence.”
The President’s Honors College promotes academic excellence through sustained critical thinking, original research, exceptional writing, and public presentation of scholarly work. Its members attend academic colloquia and participate in aesthetic and cultural activities as part of their enhanced university life.
Entering freshmen, current students in their first year of study, and transfer students are
eligible for honors membership. The President’s Honors College invites entering freshmen who have a composite ACT of at least 26 (or the equivalent) and a high school grade point average of at least 3.4 (or the equivalent). Qualified first-year students and transfer students are also invited to join honors.
“The university is now in the process of constructing a designated Honors office suite to be known as the Honors Lyceum,” said Dr. Daniel Strudwick, Honors Dean. “The Lyceum, located in the university’s historic Francis Hall, will be our central meeting place, a place of study and fellowship.”
Honors colleges and programs are found at many private and public universities in the United States and serve students of exceptional talent and ambition. The Honors Program at Quincy College was founded in 1989 and, for over 30 years, has been a popular academic option for QU students, with about 200 declared honors students in the typical academic year. Many QU faculty work with one or more honors students during each academic year.
Dean Daniel Strudwick, Professor of Theology, is in his fifteenth year of service at Quincy University, where he has long served as Honors Program Director. He previously was Chair of the Division of Humanities at QU.
President Brian McGee is in his fourth year of service as President of Quincy University. Earlier in his career, he worked with honors students at several institutions, including Texas Tech University and the College of Charleston in South Carolina. Prior to his time at QU, McGee was Professor of Communication and Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs at the College of Charleston.
For more information about the President’s Honors College at Quincy University, see www.quincy.edu/honors.
Founded in 1860 by Franciscan friars, Quincy University is a small Catholic university emphasizing the sciences, liberal arts and the professions. Quincy University offers undergraduate, graduate and adult education programs integrating practical experience and Franciscan values. Faculty and advisors work with each student to design customized success plans to help them graduate on time, find their passion and prepare them for life. QU is a member of NCAA Division II for intercollegiate athletics. For more information, please visit www.quincy.edu or contact the Quincy University Office of Community Relations at (217) 228-5275 or communityrelations@quincy.edu. Quincy University. Success by Design.