The Scholar: February 2011 Edition

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



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


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



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



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

http://brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/r/robertanth125911.html



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.



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

http://brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/j/johndewey154060.html

The Scholar: February 2011 Edition

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Transcript of The Scholar: February 2011 Edition