The University of Tennessee at Martin’s University Scholars Organization 1
The Scholar Prospect Weekend 2011 Edition
Table of Contents
Important Dates .......................................................................................... 2
Welcome to Prospect Weekend! ................................................................. 3
Scholars Course Descriptions ..................................................................... 4
Erin Coates:
“List of Things I’ve Learned in Scholars” ................................................ 6
Editors:
Paige Mason
Erin Creech
Payton Mink
Charles Busby
"I cannot teach anybody
anything, I can only make them
think." - Socrates
The University of Tennessee at Martin’s University Scholars Organization 2
The Scholar Prospect Weekend 2011 Edition
Important Dates
Scholars and Soon-to-Be Scholars:
Thursday, February 17: Prospects arrive and
have dinner with current Scholars
Friday, February 18: Prospects attend classes
with current Scholars and have small-group dis-
cussions; half-nighter in the Honors building
Saturday, February 19: Prospects have essay-
writing sessions and panel interviews
Monday, March 28: Spring Forum at 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, March 31: Academic speaker –
Jeremy Turner on “Silence is Golden: the Scien-
tific Pursuit of Tinnitus” in Watkins Auditorium
at 7:30 p.m.
Monday, April 4: Induction/Elections/Talent/
Untalent show at 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, April 12: Academic speaker – Bob
Herbert on “Social Trends in Contemporary
America” in Watkins Auditorium at 7:30 p.m.
April : mandatory banquet for our scholarship
donors; date and time to be announced
Sunday, May 1: optional Scholars retreat at Dr.
Crews’ house
Monday, May 2: Classes end
Tuesday May 3 - Wednesday, May 4: Study
days
Thursday, May 5 - Wednesday, May 11:Final
exams to be held as scheduled
Saturday, May 14: Spring Commencement
Friday, August 26 – Sunday, August 28: First
Year Initiative
Soar (Summer Orientation and Registration)
Dates
Saturday, April 30
Thursday, June 9 – Friday, June 10
Thursday, June 23 – Friday, June 24
Monday, July 25 – Tuesday, July 26
ONLINE REGISTRATION WILL BEGIN
MARCH 1
The Scholar Prospect Weekend 2011 Edition
3 The University of Tennessee at Martin’s University Scholars Organization
To Prospective Scholars, Their Families, and Their Friends:
First of all, welcome! Over the course of this weekend, you will likely be inundated with new
experiences. I was at least. When I came to Prospect Weekend four years ago, I had never spent any
meaningful time on a college campus. It was also the first time that I ever sat in on a college course.
There were a couple people from my high school who participated in duel credit programs, but this was
a whole new ballgame for me.
The University Scholars Organization has impacted me far longer than a single weekend. When
I came to Martin in the Fall of my Freshmen year, I knew maybe five people here from my home county.
Now, I feel like I know the names, faces, and life stories of nearly half the campus. Many of those
people are individuals with whom I would have never come in contact had it not been for this program.
There are only around 60 or so of us, but we all have friends in our majors that run the spectrum from
Engineering to Communications to Education; that’s how I’ve met so many people indirectly. It has also
been great for me to know that there are other people out there as motivated as I am. It’s easy to slack
off in college with nobody around to manage your time for you. Trust me when I say that getting out of
bed for an 8am class takes more initiative that you can imagine right now. Sometimes the simple fact
that I’m a Scholar and have friends that would never let me live it down if performed poorly on a test is
all the motivation I need to wake up a little bit earlier or to burn a little more midnight oil studying for an
exam the next day.
I’m more than confident that you’ll get a good feeling for the social aspect of USO this weekend
from the half-niter to the eating with your newly made friends in Sodexo. However, our program offers
you far more than a scholarship and a place to interact with likeminded individuals. The Senior Project
can give you the experience and background that you need to launch into almost anything after you
graduate. Initially, I thought I wanted to go to professional school for pharmacy or medicine, but the
more I looked into things and worked on my project, the more I realized that graduate school was a
much better fit for me. Had it not been for the excellent letters of recommendation written for me by my
faculty mentor, who knows how much more difficult the application process might have been! This Fall
I’m headed to Vanderbilt to start working on a PhD in Chemistry. That is incredibly far removed from
where I pictured myself when I started school here, so keep your options open. You never know where
you might find yourself in four years.
As I wrap up my undergraduate experience in the next few months, yours will just be starting.
It’s a great feeling knowing that after I leave there will still be a thriving program here dedicated to
giving some of the best students on campus the opportunities they need to reach their fullest potential.
Hopefully you will find or have found yourself at home here this weekend and will choose UTM as your
alma mater as well.
Best of luck,
Adam Ryan Travis, USO VP
The University of Tennessee at Martin’s University Scholars Organization 4
The Scholar Prospect Weekend 2011 Edition
Course Descriptions
UNSC 118—128: University Scholars Seminar
The purpose of these courses is to develop academic skills and habits of thought applicable to any field
of study by means of open discussions, structured debates, innovative projects, and (traditionally) a text
on critical thinking. It is for all first year Scholars and certain sophomores.
“Even though I just finished it, 118 is about to be restructured so anything beyond telling you
that critical thinking will still be key may prove worthless. Concerning 128, yes, this class is
designed to cultivate your creativity and highlight individual’s strengths, but its main objective
is to accustom you to group work, the activity that independent, perfectionistic Scholars hate
most.” - Charles Busby
“Scholars class 128 is like a dream come true. What little girl didn't dream of building a 'whole
new world' like Jasmine from Aladdin.” - Chelsea Boyd
“Scholars 128 allows you to push your imagination to the limits and create an entire world from
scratch. In what other instance are you given the possibility to design your very own planet?”
- Brittany Bishop
“For the second semester of your first year as a Scholar, you are in World Builders [128]. This
class is a lot of fun. You and your group get to create your own world completely from scratch.
Different professors from different fields come to talk to you about their area of expertise. It is a
great class because you learn a lot about so many different subject, from geology to art.”
- Payton Mink
UNSC 218—228: Reading Discussion Groups and Project Planning
Reading-Discussion Groups: At the end of the freshmen year, rising sophomores agree upon topics they
would like to study and suggest professors to teach them. Students are split into two groups in order to
participate in the class they are most interested in. Courses chosen may range among a variety of
academic disciplines. Past courses include, but are not limited to: pottery, photography, medical
mysteries, quantum theory.
Project Planning: Students work to narrow possible topics of interest and choose appropriate mentors
for the Senior Project. Students will hear from past and current Scholars and mentors in order to gain a
better understanding of what is expected from them in their junior and senior years.
“228 will help guide you through the process of finding a mentor and developing an idea for
your Senior Project. Project Management allows you to get advice from those who have been
through the process before, so you don't have to go at it alone. You realize that the ginormous
scary lion you see your project as being is really just a tiny kitten with a big shadow.”
- Cayce Wood
The Scholar Prospect Weekend 2011 Edition
5 The University of Tennessee at Martin’s University Scholars Organization
UNSC 318—328: Specialized Studies
During your third year as a University Scholar, you will work with a mentor on a project which will take
two years to complete due to the intensive research and writing required. It is during the first two
semesters that most of the research and beginning stages of writing are completed. Towards the end of
the second semester, a Scholar must defend and present their project to the Honors Council for approval.
“The senior project is definitely a monster, but it's not as mean and angry as you'd think. If you
stay on top of your research and don't put it off all the time, you'd be surprised what you can
accomplish in two short years.” - Erin Creech
UNSC 418—488: Senior Project
The last two semesters of being part of the University Scholars program are hectic, stressful, and the
most vital and vibrant time on experiences as a University Scholar. These semesters are a student’s time
to shine and show the diligence, mental endurance, and passion it takes to create and complete a
masterful project in two short years. During the last semester of work on the project, a Scholar will
present their final Senior Defense of their project before the Honors Council and his or her mentor(s)
and second reader.
“Congratulations. You have arrived.” – Paige Mason
“Some people drink from the
fountain of knowledge, others
just gargle.” - Robert Anthony
The University of Tennessee at Martin’s University Scholars Organization 6
The Scholar Prospect Weekend 2011 Edition
Instead of making coherent paragraphs and attempting to tie them all together with some overriding
theme or meaning, I’m going to make a list. Lists are user friendly, and lists don’t make me want to
sandpaper off my retinas like the thought of writing another essay does.
So, here it goes!
List of Things I Have Learned In Scholars
Erin Coates
1. When given a book entitled, “Challenging your Preconceptions” you need look no further than
that crazy box thing on the front cover for the biggest challenge that book has to offer.
2. Phillip Masengill is not one to be trifled with in the arena of debate. Ask Luke Sprague for a
firsthand account.
3. Travelling to Boston in December is an awful idea.
4. Travelling with Amy Wilson, who toured Haiti in January of 2010, is an equally awful idea.
5. It is highly likely that Dr. Dan (our former Honors Director) could sleep through nuclear fallout.
He certainly can sleep through a World Builders presentation that includes an interpretive dance
on the conference room table.
6. Speaking of World Builders, when making your own world, be sure to do it just like Earth.
Because quite honestly, there isn’t any other way to do it.
7. Ceramics and quantum physics are more alike than one would think. Making a bowl hurts my
head just as much as multi-dimensional theory.
8. Registering for Honors classes doesn’t get easy until you’re a Senior.
9. Project management is a class you take your second semester of sophomore year. However, in
Soviet Martin your project manages you!
10. Comparing yourself to any other Scholar will make you feel inferior. Period. So unless you also
like comparing yourself to supermodels or football players in the NFL, don’t do it.
11. Brittney Reed is Google in human form, but better. She can knit.
12. The Honors Study, unlike the Room of Requirement in Harry Potter, is never open when you
most need it. It also won’t have paper or toner when you most need those. These are facts based
on hard science.
13. Waking up at 4 a.m. in a cold sweat after a nightmare about failing your Senior Defense is a
totally normal part of your senior year. Practicing relaxation breathing in your Junior year helps.
The Scholar Prospect Weekend 2011 Edition
7 The University of Tennessee at Martin’s University Scholars Organization
14. Quorum at a University Scholars Organization Council Meeting is a myth.
15. Scholars Journals kept on a weekly basis as they should be were also a myth.
16. Creating, ordering, and distributing t-shirts is more of a pain than it has any right to be.
17. Belonging in Scholars isn’t up to you. It’s up to the people who chose you, and they thought
you were dandy, so you should too!
18. It will all work out. Despite your best efforts at screwing it up, it will all work out the way it
needs to. This is the truest thing you will ever believe.
I hope you have enjoyed an excerpt from the very long list of things I have learned from
Scholars. I hope that you make your own list one day. Mostly, I hope that you enjoy the time you
have right now, because before you know it, you’re going to be done. You’ll be more nostalgic
and emotional about it than you think, and you’ll wish you held on tighter to the moment at hand
than you did. You’ll look back and say, “Being a Scholar was the best decision I ever made in
undergrad.” I know this because I’m saying it right now, and will say it again fifty years from
now when I’m telling my grandkids to take a chance on being extraordinary in whatever way
they choose. Thank you for reading, good luck, and keep being extraordinary. It’s really the only
way to be.
“Education is not preparation
for life; education is life itself.” -
John Dewey
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