Introduction
NCHC is a conference held every year for University Honors Students around the world. Although 'National' is in the title, we encountered students from New Zealand, Canada, and many other countries. We met students from across the nation in the top Honors Programs (behind ours, of course) presenting on hundreds of different topics.
Students had the option to present or to create a poster. The conference was packed with topics from Harry Potter Research to study abroad opportunities. Some programs asked for help in creating and developing new systems, and others gave insights on their programs and how they've become successful. No matter if you were student or staff, the conference had plenty to offer. |
Preparation
Based on what we had come up with in our abstract, we started to create a presentation based around four experiences that we've completed through the Honors Program. Nate and I would discuss two each and then we would cover the LeaderShape Institute where we were students and then On-Site Coordinators together.
After completing that presentation, in normal Tori-Style, I decided I hated it. I proposed to Nate that instead of only discussing four experiences, that we should discuss what we are taking away from college. As seniors, we've both had extremely different experiences within the Honors Program. So we created a "Ted Talk" style presentation the last month before leaving, and completely re-did our presentation to fit more experiential learning, as well as our humor and personalities. |
To get into the conference, Nate and I had to write an abstract and program description of what we planned to do. It took us two weeks of constant editing and feedback from honors staff before we were comfortable with what we had come up with. The link to the left has both available for you to read.
Presentation
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Over All Experience and Reflection
Over the past four years, I have had some incredible experiences that have led me to meet inspirational people with unbelievable ideas. This conference was one where we were constantly surrounded by students, professors, and honors faculty who were passionate about their research, their experiences, and sharing their knowledge. It was a conference of growth, sharing, and experiencing. A perfect fit for me!
Unfortunately, I was extremely sick the week leading up to our travel. I forced myself to sleep extra hours, took medicine regularly, and packed an entire medical kit to try and get myself healthy by the time our presentation rolled around. We had to make extra stops at the convenient store next door for more cough drops and nyquil the night before our presentation. I was terrified that I wouldn't have a voice in time for our presentation! Thankfully, the extra sleep, staying in at night, and medication pushed me through our presentation and kept me healthy long enough to get through our speech. During our stay, I was extremely aggravated that I couldn't go out and experience the nightlife, and that the majority of my trip was spent sucking on cough drops and blowing my nose. Looking back, Nate really stepped up to help me get healthy, and staying in gave us the opportunity to practice our speech, and plan out our trip. We were able to do a lot more the days that I did feel healthy, because we stayed in and decided what we would want to do for the remainder of our stay.
When we weren't busy watching presentations and getting to know students from other universities, Nate and I really tried to explore New Orleans. We ventured to a Gumbo Festival (yuuuuuum!), waited in line for Muffuleta, walked with a ghost tour group late at night, stuffed our tummies at Cafe Du Monde, talked to street artists and watched street performers. Our hotel was on Canal, so we were close to the action on Burboun Street, in the French Quarter, and in the business district. We had too much to see and do and not enough time! New Orleans was definitely a city that I'd like to visit again.
During the conference, I selected a few speaker sessions that I thought would be interesting. I stayed for their speeches, and then headed on to the next one (an odd part about this conference is that two presentations split one hour, so that if you only wanted to watch one presentation, you could leave to go to the next one). The first day, I really enjoyed the posters that were up. A senior had spent four years working on a Harry Potter research project. It was titled 'Harry Potter as a Global Business Phenomenon". If you know me at all, you know that I am obsessed with Harry Potter, and that I am a double major within the College of Business. This poster and I became very good friends. I spoke with Cristina, the poster's maker, for the majority of the poster session. If you recall, from my freshmen year, I wrote a 20 page research paper on Harry Potter and its identity as a part of our culture. It was like my honors college experience had come full circle in one conversation.
An unfortunate part of the conference, is that Nate and I were assigned a room and time that was the second to last session for the entire conference. Those who had been in NOLA since Thursday, some were already heading back to their corners of the country by the time we were presenting. Others were venturing out into the city to see the nightlife and experience NOLA. We had anticipated a large crowd, and nerves were really building before we presented. It turned out that the person we were supposed to share our session time with didn't show up to the conference, and our crowd was extremely limited. A highlight, however, that came from the small crowd, was that people were more inclined to ask questions at the end. And those who stayed and listened, really seemed to enjoy our experiences, and wanted to learn more.
It is a challenge to put the experience into words. Nate and I ate at the great spots that people shared with us before leaving. Needless to say, I gained some pounds while in NOLA. We enjoyed getting to know UHP Honors Staff in a new and fun way as well. They showed us some cool spots to check out, encouraged us to get involved and meet new people, and we met up with past UHP staff. Ginny Walters was there with her new advisee students. We were able to eat dinner as a large group between both of our Universities.
Something that I had really wanted to do, however, was tour some of the plantations and large mansions on the outskirts of the city. As a little girl, I had always wanted a huge wedding on a southern plantation under live oaks. We didn't have the time to visit. I guess that means I will need to go back.
Reflecting on how I've grown and what I learned by completing this experience brings many lessons to mind. This was an amazing opportunity to represent our incredible honors program. Schools across the country, that I never thought I'd be able to get into, were impressed with Nate and I and with how our honors program functions as a whole. There were professors and staff who were asking how to implement experiential based learning, but, for the most part, it was a foreign idea. That seemed so odd to me. I sat in on a presentation where a school was worried that their honors students, who live together, and study together, weren't 'bonding' as an honors class. The answer seemed so simple. Instead of forcing them to live together and take all of their classes together, give them the opportunity to experience leadership, community engagement, studying abroad, etc. together! That is worth so much more than trying to get along with a roommate you weren't meant to live with.
Unfortunately, I was extremely sick the week leading up to our travel. I forced myself to sleep extra hours, took medicine regularly, and packed an entire medical kit to try and get myself healthy by the time our presentation rolled around. We had to make extra stops at the convenient store next door for more cough drops and nyquil the night before our presentation. I was terrified that I wouldn't have a voice in time for our presentation! Thankfully, the extra sleep, staying in at night, and medication pushed me through our presentation and kept me healthy long enough to get through our speech. During our stay, I was extremely aggravated that I couldn't go out and experience the nightlife, and that the majority of my trip was spent sucking on cough drops and blowing my nose. Looking back, Nate really stepped up to help me get healthy, and staying in gave us the opportunity to practice our speech, and plan out our trip. We were able to do a lot more the days that I did feel healthy, because we stayed in and decided what we would want to do for the remainder of our stay.
When we weren't busy watching presentations and getting to know students from other universities, Nate and I really tried to explore New Orleans. We ventured to a Gumbo Festival (yuuuuuum!), waited in line for Muffuleta, walked with a ghost tour group late at night, stuffed our tummies at Cafe Du Monde, talked to street artists and watched street performers. Our hotel was on Canal, so we were close to the action on Burboun Street, in the French Quarter, and in the business district. We had too much to see and do and not enough time! New Orleans was definitely a city that I'd like to visit again.
During the conference, I selected a few speaker sessions that I thought would be interesting. I stayed for their speeches, and then headed on to the next one (an odd part about this conference is that two presentations split one hour, so that if you only wanted to watch one presentation, you could leave to go to the next one). The first day, I really enjoyed the posters that were up. A senior had spent four years working on a Harry Potter research project. It was titled 'Harry Potter as a Global Business Phenomenon". If you know me at all, you know that I am obsessed with Harry Potter, and that I am a double major within the College of Business. This poster and I became very good friends. I spoke with Cristina, the poster's maker, for the majority of the poster session. If you recall, from my freshmen year, I wrote a 20 page research paper on Harry Potter and its identity as a part of our culture. It was like my honors college experience had come full circle in one conversation.
An unfortunate part of the conference, is that Nate and I were assigned a room and time that was the second to last session for the entire conference. Those who had been in NOLA since Thursday, some were already heading back to their corners of the country by the time we were presenting. Others were venturing out into the city to see the nightlife and experience NOLA. We had anticipated a large crowd, and nerves were really building before we presented. It turned out that the person we were supposed to share our session time with didn't show up to the conference, and our crowd was extremely limited. A highlight, however, that came from the small crowd, was that people were more inclined to ask questions at the end. And those who stayed and listened, really seemed to enjoy our experiences, and wanted to learn more.
It is a challenge to put the experience into words. Nate and I ate at the great spots that people shared with us before leaving. Needless to say, I gained some pounds while in NOLA. We enjoyed getting to know UHP Honors Staff in a new and fun way as well. They showed us some cool spots to check out, encouraged us to get involved and meet new people, and we met up with past UHP staff. Ginny Walters was there with her new advisee students. We were able to eat dinner as a large group between both of our Universities.
Something that I had really wanted to do, however, was tour some of the plantations and large mansions on the outskirts of the city. As a little girl, I had always wanted a huge wedding on a southern plantation under live oaks. We didn't have the time to visit. I guess that means I will need to go back.
Reflecting on how I've grown and what I learned by completing this experience brings many lessons to mind. This was an amazing opportunity to represent our incredible honors program. Schools across the country, that I never thought I'd be able to get into, were impressed with Nate and I and with how our honors program functions as a whole. There were professors and staff who were asking how to implement experiential based learning, but, for the most part, it was a foreign idea. That seemed so odd to me. I sat in on a presentation where a school was worried that their honors students, who live together, and study together, weren't 'bonding' as an honors class. The answer seemed so simple. Instead of forcing them to live together and take all of their classes together, give them the opportunity to experience leadership, community engagement, studying abroad, etc. together! That is worth so much more than trying to get along with a roommate you weren't meant to live with.