General sessions are presented by faculty/administrators, by students, or by faculty/administrators and students. These may be sessions related to the conference theme; sessions dealing with "nuts-and-bolts" issues for honors programs or honors colleges; sessions presenting innovative approaches to honors pedagogy and learning.

Students intending to present research should select either the Poster Session proposal or the Student Interdisciplinary Research Panel proposal, rather than General Sessions.

Audio Visual (A/V) is available for General Sessions. Requests for AV equipment will require a $50 payment upon selection of the proposal. All requests must be made at the time of proposal submission. No AV requests made after this submission will be allowed.

Questions regarding the General Session Proposals should be directed to Dr. Bonnie Irwin, bdirwin@eiu.edu or 217-581-2017.

Roundtable Discussions provide conference attendees the opportunity to engage in spirited conversation and collaborative exchange of information and resources related to a wide variety of disciplinary, pedagogical, programmatic, institutional, or timely global issues. Presenters are encouraged to collaborate beforehand with colleagues and students within their own programs and especially from other schools to identify pre-selected discussion leaders who can offer diverse, cogent perspectives on important topics of interest to honors students, faculty, and staff. Roundtables will be pre-organized or individual proposals may be combined to form a viable discussion group. The format of roundtable discussions will be lively, interactive discourse among leaders and participants, not lecture or panel-style delivery. Multiple roundtables will be arranged in busy rooms charged with animated conversations.

Roundtable Discussion presentations do not have to relate to the conference theme. Discussion leaders may provide their own printed material and/or handouts to help focus conversations.

A/V equipment will not be available for Rounctable Discussions.

Questions regarding Roundtable Session Proposals should be directed to Dr. Bonnie Irwin, bdirwin@eiu.edu or 217-581-2017.

Master classes will be offered in drama, music, photography, poetry, and film. These sessions are performance classes, conducted in various formats which allow for individual or group creative presentations. Depending on the enrollment, drama students may give monologues or small group presentations. In the poetry master class, participants will have the opportunity to present and to discuss their own poems. In addition to instrumental and vocal solo performances, small instrumental ensembles (trios and quartets) are encouraged to apply. Jazz submissions will be given priority for acceptance to the music master class.

The culminating master class showcase will feature presentations from each master class.

Audio Visual (A/V) is available for Master Classes. Requests for A/V equipment will require a $50 payment upon selection of the proposal. All requests must be made at the time of proposal submission. No A/V requests made after this submission will be allowed.

Questions regarding the Master Classes should be directed to: Brent Register at register@clarion.edu or 814-393-2473.

Poster Sessions allow students and faculty to present and display their original research or fine art in poster format. One poster session takes place on Friday morning and a second poster session takes place on Friday afternoon of the conference. The accepted poster proposals will be assigned to either morning or afternoon sessions, and presenters will be expected to be present to answer questions and discuss their posters during the two-hour session. This format is the best place for original student research that can be presented well in a poster format. Posters do not need to relate to the conference theme.

Students should also consider Student Interdisciplinary Research Panels and other venues for conference participation.

A/V equipment will not be available for the Poster Session.

Questions regarding the Poster Session Proposal should be directed to Kathleen King at Kathleen.d.king@maine.edu or 207-621-3299.

Click here for guidelines for preparing a conference poster.

The Idea Exchange provides conference attendees the opportunity to exchange and gather information on NCHC Committees, professional organizations, student organizations, Honors Programs and structures, or scholarship opportunities. Presenters at this traditional Saturday morning breakfast session will display materials on a table and/or easel as stimuli to informal discussion. Idea Exchange presentations do not have to be related to the conference theme. NCHC provides individual tables for printed material and/or handouts.

A/V equipment will not be available for the Idea Exchange.

Questions about the Idea Exchange should be directed to:
Virginia McCombs, vmccombs@okcu.edu or 405-208-5457
Joe King, jsking@radford.edu or 540-831-5116.

Student Interdisciplinary Research Panels give students who have engaged in high-level research opportunities to present their papers for discussion in a format that differs markedly from student poster sessions. Papers may focus on any academic discipline and will be reviewed and grouped into interdisciplinary panels of 3-4 papers by a selection committee. No pre-arranged panels will be accepted. There are no specific research and/or length requirements. Students have 15 minutes to present their papers and will be expected to discuss their research, rather than read their work. Traditionally, former NCHC presidents chair the sessions and help facilitate discussion.

In this juried competition, only the best papers will be selected. Papers should be written in language suitable for an academic audience representing a variety of disciplines. Students should also consider Poster Sessions and other venues for conference participation. For examples of previous SIRP sessions, click here.

In order to be considered for a panel, a student must submit the following:

• On-line student interdisciplinary panel proposal, which will include a 50-word description of the project and a 150-200 word abstract.
• An electronic copy of the completed paper, received by midnight Central Standard Time, April 1, 2010.

Certification by the Honors Director that the student will attend is especially important in SIRP sessions because each panel is designed around the relationship among the three papers. For selection process and presentation format, click here.

No Audio-Visual equipment will be available for these research presentations.

Fax copies of the proposal form and papers will not be accepted. A word or pdf copy of the completed paper must be sumbitted electronically by April 1, 2010. Papers may be submitted here: https://nchchonors.wufoo.com/forms/student-interdisciplinary-research-submission-form/.

Among other things, Kansas City is known for its jazz music. The KC jazz scene benefited from new sounds and styles of musicians who traveled up and down the Mississippi from New Orleans. KC jazz became unique through a process inherent in the music: call and response. Like jazz music, honors education relies on a pastiche of perspectives and students "riffing" on discussion themes.

The NCHC Committee on Diversity Issues invites presentations that speak to how intellectual, geographic, ethnic, gender, religious, political (and any other kind) of diversity are central to the task of providing our students with an environment in which they can thrive, expand their horizons, and create new knowledge.

Submissions discussing the following topics are especially encouraged:

• Best practices in diversity
• Examples of "diversity-in-action"
• Defining diversity
• Call-and-response as a pedagogical tool

The committee would like Diversity issues to be represented in all venues for the conference, including poster sessions, panel discussions, master classes, and workshops. We strongly encourage presentations for the "nuts-and-bolts" section of "Developing in Honors" (DIH) that would provide helpful resources for Honors Program directors and educators regarding the integration of Diversity into honors education. Submitters are also encouraged to think about how their presentations could contribute to a second monograph on Diversity issues.

Audio Visual (A/V) is available for the Forum on Diversity and International Education. Requests for AV equipment will require a $50 payment upon selection of the proposal. All requests must be made at the time of proposal submission. No AV requests made after this submission will be allowed.

Questions regarding topics or proposals should be directed to Jonathan Kotinek at jkotinek@tamu.edu, or 979-845-6333.

Student Moderators for the General Sessions will be responsible for the sessions to which they are assigned. Responsibilities include arriving early, ensuring that the room is set up, reminding the presenters of the time frames, beginning and ending on time, introducing the presenters, and encouraging and facilitating discussions.

The Student Moderator application can be found here.

Questions regarding topics or proposals should be directed to Jack Rhodes at rhodesj@citadel.edu or 843-953-3708.