Honors Chemistry

CM 113 is intended for students majoring in science or engineering who have excellent backgrounds in the theory and practice (lab) of high school chemistry. This course will help students gain more depth and understanding in the fundamental concepts of first semester general chemistry. Emphasis will be placed on topics such as atomic and molecular structure, chemical bonding, intermolecular forces, phases of matter, solutions, stoichiometry, and thermodynamics. The lab is designed to introduce and reinforce lecture topics with an emphasis on quantitative methods. This course meets only in Fall semesters and consists of 4 hours of lecture and 3 hours of lab.

The Instructor: Britt Price, Ph.D.

Honors Chemistry II

CM 114 is the second course in the yearlong chemistry sequence CM 113/114. It serves students majoring in science or engineering with excellent backgrounds in the theory and practice (lab) of high school chemistry, and provides them with a more in-depth understanding of the topics discussed. Emphasis is placed on topics such as gas properties, chemical equilibrium, chemical kinetics, acids and bases, solubility, redox chemistry, electrochemistry, coordination chemistry, nuclear chemistry, and a brief introduction to organic and biochemistry. The lab is designed to introduce and reinforce lecture topics with an emphasis on quantitative methods. The course meets only in the Winter semesters and is 4 hours of lecture and 3 hours of lab.

The Instructor: Britt Price, Ph.D.

English Composition 1

Students are assigned personal writing based upon freewritings, journal writing, and readings in various genres of literature and nonfiction. Autobiography, personal narratives, dialogs, informal scripts, personal essays, and research writing are some of the assignments designed to increase students’ awareness of audience, of how writers adapt language for specific audiences, and of public written forms and conventions.

Students will be introduced to readings and writing at the college level. Students will write responses to essays written by professional writers. The course will generally consist of four units. Three essays will be submitted: one dedicated to each of the major modes of discourse; students will read and discuss model essays which exhibit each mode (reflecting traditional and current topics). There will be a longer essay submitted at the end of the semester. This essay will require outside sources and use MLA format and documentation. Throughout the semester students will help one another with their essays using writing workshops and the peer review process.

The Instructor: Joan Gearns, M.A. is an associate professor in the English Department and has been a full-time faculty member since 2001. She received a Bachelor of Science Degree and a Master of Arts Degree (Teaching Composition in the Community College) from Central Michigan University and recently completed her MA + 30 with a concentration in education. She has taught Honors Composition for Lansing Community College and Grand Rapids Community College. Professor Gearns currently teaches HN EN 101 and HN EN 102.

English Composition 2

This course continues the personal; approach to writing begun in English 100/101 but shortly extends to include more objective discourse. Includes essays, fiction, argumentation based upon personal experience, literary criticism, and academic and interdisciplinary research, and readings in various genres of literature and nonfiction.

Honors Composition 2 seeks to develop the skills of critical thought, analytical and interpretive reading, expository and argumentative writing, and scholarly research in students who are already strong writers. Students will demonstrate effectiveness through a variety of assignments including two expository essays and two argumentative essays. One expository essay will concern personal experience and another on some aspect of language. The argumentative essays will follow classical or dialectic argumentative strategies. These will be source based arguments using MLA format and documentation. A writer’s workshop and the peer review process will be used as revision strategies.

The Instructor: Joan Gearns, M.A. is an associate professor in the English Department and has been a full-time faculty member since 2001. She received a Bachelor of Science Degree and a Master of Arts Degree (Teaching Composition in the Community College) from Central Michigan University and recently completed her MA + 30 with a concentration in education. She has taught Honors Composition for Lansing Community College and Grand Rapids Community College. Professor Gearns currently teaches HN EN 101 and HN EN 102.

U.S. History From Reconstruction to the Present

This course will cover topics in American History from the era of Reconstruction to the present. The course is intended to be a general survey of the social, cultural, economic, and political currents that have shaped American history since the Civil War. The course presentations will pay special attention to the issues of cultural diversity and will attempt to expose students to the agency of the common man.

The course will emphasize the GRCC Honors Program theme, "The Paradox of Affluence: Choices, Challenges, and Consequences." Students will engage in seminar style discussions revolving around three main themes associated with the paradox of American affluence: American Imperialism, American Consumer Culture, and Class Conflict in Modern American History. Students will also conduct extensive readings of primary sources and engage in writing exercises intended to sharpen critical thinking skills and enhance their ability to synthesize multiple sources and points of view. Special attention will also be paid to the issue of American Historiography.

The Instructor: Mike Light, M.A. graduated with an AA degree from Blackhawk Community College in Moline, Illinois, in 1989, a Bachelor’s degree in History and Political Science from Illinois State University in 1991, and a Master’s degree in History, with an emphasis on immigration and ethnic studies, from Illinois State University in 1993. His Master’s thesis is entitled, Swedish Immigration to Rock Island County, Illinois. Mike also attended Northern Illinois University to pursue post-M.A. studies where he completed over 130 credit hours in U.S. History (immigration and ethnic studies), Modern History, and British History. Mike is a member of numerous associations including the American Historical Association, Immigration History Society, Phi Alpha Theta (National History Honor Society), Phi Theta Kappa (National Junior College Honor Society), and the Grand Rapids Historical Society.

Survey of American Government

This course introduces students to the institutions and processes of American Government, and improves student’s skills in describing and analyzing the context of American politics.

The Honors section of this course will include additional journal readings, critical thinking scholarship, and writing-intensive exercises. With a smaller class size, students will have more of an opportunity to engage in discussion that analyzes politics, the role of government in society, and public involvement in government. Students should expect significantly more reading and writing. With this additional responsibility, it prepares the students for the lively give-and-take conversations that take place. By the end of the class, students will be able to intelligently discuss the institutions in American government; the civil liberties and rights issues that America has faced and continues to battle; the various ideologies and interactions of political parties, interest groups and the media; as well as evaluate the alternative economic and social policies.

The Instructor: Heather Forrest, M.A. earned her Masters degree in American Politics with a focus on Public Law at Western Michigan University. She has been teaching at Grand Rapids Community College since the fall of 2004. She has taught various classes including American Government and Politics, State and Local Government, Introduction to Political Science, Civil Liberties and Rights, Great Decisions, and American Constitutional Foundations. Her areas of specialty are American Politics with a focus on the United States Supreme Court and Civil Liberties and Rights.

Introduction to Psychology

Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and mental processes. This course is an introduction to the many different areas which comprise the Science of Psychology, including: psychological theories, research methods, brain and behavior relationships, human development, learning, memory, cognition, group dynamics, personality theories and the identification and treatment of psychological disorders. In addition, because Psychology is a scientific discipline, students will develop a core understanding of the scientific method, including research design and skills necessary for critical analysis.

The Honors section of this class will offer additional opportunities for hands-on content exploration in the form of classroom and laboratory demonstrations, and application writing assignments using supplemental material. The intention of this course is to allow the prepared and motivated student to dive deeper into this content and emerge with an enhanced understanding of the exciting Science of Psychology.

The Instructor: Dr. Michael Vargo, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist who earned his Ph.D. from the University of Arkansas in 1990, and completed his clinical internship training at the University of Minnesota Health Sciences Center. He has worked in a variety of clinical and university training settings in the United States, Canada and abroad, and has clinical specializations in pediatric and adult health psychology. Dr. Vargo came to GRCC from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 2004.