The ACU Honors Council is beginning its planning process for events on campus to help create community among Honors College students.

“They have done such a marvelous job of thinking through ways to help us make a community,” said Dr. Tracy Shilcutt, associate dean of the Honors College. “They did a great last year and planned a lot of events. Now the challenge is how to do community in a time that we are all wearing masks where we cannot even see each other’s faces, but they will do a great job.”

The Honors Council reformed in 2019 with the help of Dr. Shilcutt, but only freshman served on the council, with the focus of creating events for the freshman of the Honors College. This year, the council is starting to expand to include both freshmen and sophomores, and hope to add juniors and seniors in later years.

Though one of the main purposes of the Honors Council is to plan events for the Honors College, the members of the council have a bigger mission in mind when they meet and plan.

“The Honors Council advocates for the students of the Honors College,” said sophomore communications major Madeliene Ruth Norman, who is the Honors Council Committee Chair, “through creating a friendly and welcoming environment through our events and activities that promote community and establishes better relationships for those within the Honors College. Our role is to think about community engagement in the Honors College and how we can plan events that students can enjoy and have fun with.”

Some activities that the members of the Honors Council have planned in the past include a Halloween party with a costume competition, decorating the Zellner with thanksgiving decorations, and finals’ care packages.

Though there is a lot of plans that are uncertain due to the pandemic. the Honors Council is doing their best to adapt. Primarily, planning and conducting events that are fun for the Honors students, but also safe and that follow COVID-19 safety procedures.

“Due to COVID-19, we are still trying to figure out what we can do,” said sophomore nursing major Preston Moss, who serves as the Events Coordinator for the Honors Council. “We are thinking about doing a mask painting event, or something like it, where we can go out, be in the environment and be safe.”

To stay up to date on different events created by the Honor College and the Honors Council, follow their Instagram account @acuhonors.