Courses in the Honors College

Please note: this list may be incomplete and will be updated with new information as it is received. If you have questions about the following courses, please contact honors@wsu.edu.

A wide variety of course topics are available to Honors College students. Please check back often, as changes may occur until the semester begins. Need an appointment with an Honors College advisor? Stop by the Honors College main office in Elmina White Honors Hall 130 or phone 509-335-4505.

Course descriptions are intended to provide general information about the scope of the class, the name of the faculty member teaching it, credits, and texts. All descriptions are posted as soon as possible the semester preceding so students can consider their options and plan accordingly. Listings from previous semesters are located at the bottom of this page.

Spring 2027

ECONS 198
Economics Honors

Instructor: Joseph Cook

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student

Students will be introduced to the basic economic models that explain consumer and firm behavior, market outcomes and the role of public policy. We will study the function of the market system in allocating scarce resources, determining prices, and output. We will also study market structures, from perfectly competitive markets to monopolistic markets, as well as strategic behavior and game theory. We will explore the role of government in the market economy and in creating or fixing market failure. Finally, the course will cover the market for borrowing & lending to purchase assets (i.e. the banking system) and the role the Federal Reserve plays in regulating that market and the overall macroeconomy.

HONORS 201.1*
MESI Workshop Series

Instructor: Robin Bond

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student

Introduction to Mindfulness

Research into mindfulness has shown that regular practice can offer benefits for physical and emotional health (for example, reduced stress, improved sleep, reduced anxiety, just to name a few). This one-credit class offers an experiential introduction to mindfulness. In our class meetings we will explore different approaches to practicing mindfulness and introduce information on how mindfulness can benefit us. Occasional guests will present on their own experiences and offer a variety of practices. Each meeting will begin with a practice session followed by open discussion and exploration of topic for the week. The class can serve as an introduction for those with no experience in mindfulness and can also support students who are already familiar, offering an opportunity for deepening self-awareness and mindful presence.

Assignments will include a weekly brief written reflection on the meeting, along with suggestions for optional practices outside of class. This course may be repeated for credit. The class is part of the Honors College Mindfulness-based Emotional and Social Intelligence (MESI) program and satisfies one (1) MESI workshop credit. The class is open to any student in the honors college and there is no requirement to be pursuing the MESI certificate.

*This course qualifies as credit for the MESI Certificate.

HONORS 211.1*
Introduction to Community Engagement

Instructor: Jessica Perone

This class includes a service-learning component in collaboration with the Center for Civic Engagement.

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student

Students will develop academic, personal, and professional skills through community engagement and critical reflection. Over the 10-week course, the class will meet once per week for seven weeks, with three weeks dedicated to participating in community engagement projects. Class sessions will include discussions, guest speakers, and interactive workshops. Students will explore how they can create positive social change while engaging with topics such as reciprocity, equity, human rights, advocacy and activism, civic leadership, social justice, civil discourse, environmental justice, socioeconomic status, and discrimination.

*This course qualifies as credit for the MESI Certificate but open to all Honors Students

HONORS 212.1*
Active and Immersive Community Engagement

Instructor: Jessica Perone

This class includes a service-learning component in collaboration with the Center for Civic Engagement.

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student, Must have taken Honors 211

Students will complete 45 hours of community service (approximately 3–5 hours per week) to deepen their understanding of critical issues facing society and explore social issues they are passionate about. Students will work with the instructor to establish an ongoing relationship with an appropriate community partner for their community service projects. Throughout the course, students will submit reflection assignments through Canvas to connect their service experiences with course themes.

Through this experience, students will develop a stronger sense of social responsibility, greater intercultural understanding, and the ability to collaborate effectively while building leadership and communication skills. This course fulfills one credit of the Community Engagement requirement for Honors students in the Mindfulness-based Emotional and Social Intelligence (MESI) certificate program.

*This course qualifies as credit for the MESI Certificate but open to all Honors Students

HONORS 270.1
Principles and Research Methods in Social Science

Instructor: Tekla Schmaus

Prerequisite: Must be an Honors Student

TBD

HONORS 270.2
Principles and Research Methods in Social Science

Instructor: Jarvis Fisher

Prerequisite: Must be an Honors Student

TBD

HONORS 280.3
Contextual Understanding in the Arts and Humanities

Instructor: Colin Criss

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student

Contemporary American Poetry

What is poetry? In this course, students will survey contemporary American poetry by reading important books of poems published in the last 25 years: Crush, by Richard Siken; Don’t Call Us Dead, by Danez Smith; All the Flowers Kneeling, by Paul Tran; Whereas, by Layli Long Soldier; and Ghost Of—, by Diana Khoi Nguyen.

The course is introductory in nature—but will accelerate quickly to think about advanced concepts in poetic form and open questions about the nature and value of poetry. We will practice reading poems and articulating our thoughts about and responses to poems. This is a literature course, meaning students will write about poems for assignments, rather than writing poems themselves. The required course materials will cost about $40.

*This course qualifies as credit for the MESI Certificate.

HONORS 280.4
Contextual Understanding in the Arts and Humanities

Instructor: A.J. (Albert) Miller

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student

TBD

HONORS 280.5
Contextual Understanding in the Arts and Humanities

Instructor: DJ Lee

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student

Why We Marvel: Wonder Across Art, Science, and Spirit

What does it mean to wonder, and why do humans have the urge to pause, to marvel, to question, to interrogate? Is wonder, as some claim, one of the traits that separates us from other creatures (including robots and AI)? Taking a cue from Plato’s claim that “philosophy begins in wonder” and Rachel Carson’s belief that “it is not half so important to know as to feel,” we’ll explore wonder as a way of knowing and being in the world. We’ll trace the wonder’s lineage from the ancient Greeks to modern poets and philosophers, from Renaissance Wunderkammmers (rooms of wonder) to current environmental writing. We’ll ask how wonder pulls us toward the unknown, the beautiful, and even the terrifying. We’ll examine wonder’s role in science and discovery, consider its central place in world spiritual traditions, and ask whether education without wonder is nothing more than a system of accumulation. Throughout it all, you’ll discover what wonder means in your own life. Course assignments embody a spirit of inquiry while fulfilling the requirements of Honors 280.

*This course qualifies as credit for the MESI Certificate.

HONORS 280.6*
Contextual Understanding in the Arts and Humanities

Instructor: Annie Lampman

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student

Creative Writing: Fiction, The Short Story

This is a creative writing course that introduces students to the art and craft of short-form fiction writing. We will read, analyze, and discuss award-winning short stories, complete writing exercises, and write two short stories while working to explore and develop short-story craft elements including characterization, point-of-view, dialogue, plot, scene and summary, setting, and the use of metaphorical language and themes. Throughout the semester, each student will have one of their short stories workshopped with written peer reviews and instructor feedback provided. No previous creative writing experience is necessary, although strong general writing abilities are required to do well in this course. This is also a MESI course where you will keep a mindfulness journal that is meant to correlate to your creative work.

Required Texts:

1. Writing Fiction: A Guide to Narrative Craft, Janet Burroway, ISBN#: 9780226616698

2. Scribner Anthology of Contemporary Short Fiction: 50 North American Stories since 1970, 2nd Edition, Michael Martone, ISBN#: 9781416532279

3. I Am Here Now: A Creative Mindfulness Guide and Journal, The Mindfulness Project, ISBN#: 9780399184444

HONORS 290.1
Science as a Way of Knowing

Instructor: Julie Menard

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student. Any B, BSCI, P, PSCI, or SCI lab or concurrent enrollment.

TBD

HONORS 290.2
Science as a Way of Knowing

Instructor: Bill Kabasenche

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student. Any B, BSCI, P, PSCI, or SCI lab or concurrent enrollment.

Eugenics, Genetics, and Ethics

Eugenics has a long history in the United States and elsewhere (and shows up in surprising places—possibly including the inscription on a building on WSU’s campus). At its root, this view proposes that some people are less valuable morally and to society than others. This is a very controversial ethical claim, but one that is recurrently popular. The emergence of the modern understanding of genetics and the development of reproductive technologies, along with a variety of other biotechnologies, has presented us with new questions about eugenics and the host of ethical issues raised by the technologies and how we might use them. It is now possible to select against embryos and fetuses that have various genetic conditions, some of which could be categorized as leading to disease, others of which are probably best understood as leading to disabilities. Not too far off the horizon is the prospect of genetically modifying humans, at both the embryonic and adult stages. This modification could be aimed at improving health status but also at enhancing human capacities. This course will examine the many ethical questions raised by these technologies and will critically assess various positions we might take on their use.

Required Text:

Michael Bess, Our Grandchildren Redesigned: Life in the Bioengineered Society of the Near Future (Boston: Beacon Press, 2015).

ISBN: 978-0-8070-6662-1 (paperback)

HONORS 290.4
Science as a Way of Knowing

Meetings: Online Course – No Class Meetings*
Instructor: Joanna Schultz

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student. Any B, BSCI, P, PSCI, or SCI lab or concurrent enrollment.

The Hungry Plague

The bestselling novel by MR Carey, “The Girl With All The Gifts” (2015), depicted the following: a future dystopian Earth caused by a worldwide plague. A highly infectious fungal pathogen, Ophiocordyceps unilateralis resulted in the near total demise of Homo sapiens as we define our species. We will examine how near human extinction occurred and evolution/natural selection operated in this postapocalyptic environment.

In this course, you will use the Socratic Method to assess the bridge between MR Carey’s bestselling novel, “The Girl With All The Gifts” and the evolutionary processes driving the fungal pathogen, Ophiocordyceps unilateralis, which at its core, is the fundamental element in the novel and the primary force behind the downfall of our species.

You will spend the first third of the semester examining evolutionary patterns and processes in an in class discussion format reading essays from Stephen J. Gould’s “Eight Little Piggies: Reflections in Natural History” as you read the novel. Subsequently, you will break into the Socratic Method partners to facilitate a discussion for the remainder of the term. You will be challenged to develop creative and critical thinking, information literacy, and written communication.

Black Box Warning: The novel contains language that might be offensive to some students (R rated).

Required Texts:

“The Girl With All The Gifts”, MR Carey, Publisher: Reprint Edition. 2015. ISBN-10: 0316334758 ISBN-13: 978-0316334754

“Eight Little Piggies: Reflections in Natural History”, Stephen J. Gould, Publisher W.W. Norton and Company. 1993.

HONORS 298.1
Approaches to Global Leadership

Instructor: Jarvis Fisher

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student.

Global Leadership

The Honors Global Leadership Program focuses on leadership in a global context in areas that include the demands of world trade, concerns for the environment, and the advancement of technology.

ENGLISH 298.1
Writing and Research Honors

Instructor: Jon Hegglund

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student.

TBA

ENGLISH 298.4
Writing and Research Honors

Meetings: Online Course – No Class Meetings*
Instructor: LeeAnn Hunter

TBA

*This is an online course (i.e., no class meetings) for Pullman Honors College students. To enroll in this course, use the schedule line number from the Pullman campus schedule of classes (not from the Global campus schedule).

HONORS 370.1
Case Study: Global Issues in Social Sciences

Instructor: Tekla Schmaus

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; HONORS 270 or ECONS 198.

TBD

HONORS 370.2
Case Study: Global Issues in Social Sciences

Instructor: Shawna Herzog

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; HONORS 270 or ECONS 198.

TBD

HONORS 370.3
Case Study: Global Issues in Social Sciences

Instructor: Jarvis Fisher

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; HONORS 270 or ECONS 198.

TBD

HONORS 380.1*
Case Study: Global Issues in the Arts and Humanities

Instructor: Colin Criss

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; HONORS 280.

Contemporary Irish Poetry

Irish poetry, it seems, is always at a crossing. I say this in two senses—poems in Ireland are always trying to move across something perilous, and poems in Ireland are always facing a choice, as at an intersection.

In this literature course, which will be largely a survey of contemporary Irish poetry, we will think about the intersections of many things with poetry: history, politics, violence, colonization, globalization, nationality, and so on. We’ll read modern Irish poems as a foundation, and begin to think about what an Irish poem is. Then, we’ll think about 21st century Irish poems, and what influences they lean into and lean away from. The required course materials will cost about $30.

HONORS 380.2
Case Study: Global Issues in the Arts and Humanities

Instructor: Raymond Sun

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; HONORS 280.

TBD

HONORS 380.5
Case Study: Global Issues in the Arts and Humanities

Instructor: Troy Bennefield

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; HONORS 280.

TBD

*This course qualifies as credit for the MESI Certificate.

HONORS 380.6*
Case Study: Global Issues in the Arts and Humanities

Instructor: Annie Lampman

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; HONORS 280.

TBD

HONORS 390.4
Case Study: Global Issues in the Sciences

Instructor: Lisa Gloss

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; HONORS 290, SCIENCE 299, CHEM 116, MATH 182, PHYSICS 205, or PHYSICS 206.

TBD

HONORS 390.5
Case Study: Global Issues in the Sciences

Meetings: Online Course – No Class Meetings*
Instructor: Joanna Schultz

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; HONORS 290, SCIENCE 299, CHEM 116, MATH 182, PHYSICS 205, or PHYSICS 206.

The Catastrophe of Man

Imagine living in a future dystopian Earth following the consequences of cataclysmic climate change, disease, food shortages, extinction, de-extinction, bioterrorism, GMOs, and class stratification. The world is reliant on genetically bio-engineered products, including foods, human organs, medicines, plants and animals, and even beauty treatments generated and marketed by large corporations, who employ scientists and the required personnel necessary to market these products. These employees live in secure, guarded compounds. The remainder of the human population live at risk outside these pristine, fenced areas at various income levels in the pleeblands. A bioengineered worldwide plague breaks down the entire infrastructure, killing most Homo sapiens. One man believes he is the only H. sapiens to survive the plague and is theunwilling guardian to a new, genetically engineered, human species known as the Crakers, developed to succeed under Earth’s hostile conditions.

In this course, we will explore many issues raised by Margaret Atwood in her novel Oryx and Crake. For example, extinction, de-extinction, anthropogenetic impacts, climate change, genetics/bioengineering, and xenotransplantation are some topics you explore at the scientific, economic, social, and ethical levels. You will begin by reading and discussing the peer-reviewed scientific literature, popular press reports, and watching various types of media in the scientific topic areas explored in Oryx and Crake (2004), while you read the novel.

Subsequently, you will break into Shared Inquiry/the Socratic Method for the remainder of the term. Two students will develop a “Basic Question” based on a topic derived from the novel, which you will present to your peers. The two student facilitators will ask questions to maintain the discussion, as the remainder of the cohort will discuss the facilitators ’questions originating from the basic question. You will be challenged to develop creative and critical thinking, information literacy, and communication skills in this course.

Black Box Warning: The novel contains language that might be offensive to some students (R-rated).

Required Course Materials:

Oryx and Crake” by Margaret Atwood. 2004. Publisher: Anchor, Reprint Edition ISBN-10: 0385721676 ISBN-13: 978-0385721677

HONORS 390.6*
Case Study: Global Issues in the Sciences

Instructor: Shane McFarland

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; HONORS 290, SCIENCE 299, CHEM 116, MATH 182, PHYSICS 205, or PHYSICS 206.

TBD

*This course qualifies as credit for the MESI Certificate.

HONORS 398.1
Honors Thesis Proposal Seminar

Meetings: Online Course – No Class Meetings*
Instructor: Joanna Schultz
Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; sophomore standing.

Honors Thesis Proposal Seminar

This is a seminar-style course with the purpose of assisting and supporting each participant in completing his/her/their Honors thesis proposal. In the course, you will generate an Honors thesis topic, secure a thesis advisor, formulate your thesis question, and prepare your thesis proposal. We will discuss ways to structure your thesis, conduct research, and evaluate the information you obtain in relation to your chosen topic. During the course, we will discuss and constructively support and critique projects as they develop in the proposals. Each student will present their proposal to the class, and submit a completed proposal—including Running Head, Abstract, Keywords, Title, Introduction, Research Question/Null Hypothesis, Methodology, Expected Results, Discussion/Conclusions, and References—as a final product. S/F grading

HONORS 398.3
Honors Thesis Proposal Seminar

Instructor: Tekla Schmaus

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; sophomore standing.

Honors Thesis Proposal Seminar

This is a seminar-style course with the purpose of assisting and supporting each participant in completing his/her Honors thesis proposal. In the course, you will generate an Honors thesis topic, formulate your thesis question, identify a thesis advisor, and prepare you thesis proposal. We will discuss ways to structure your thesis, perform research, and evaluate the information you obtain in relation to your chosen topic. During the course, we will discuss and constructively support and critique projects as they develop in the proposals. Each student will present their proposal to the class, and submit a complete proposal—including title, introduction, research question, methodology, and annotated bibliography—as a final product. S/F grading.

HONORS 398.4
Honors Thesis Proposal Seminar

Instructor: Colin Criss

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; sophomore standing.

Honors Thesis Proposal Seminar

This is a seminar-style course with the purpose of assisting and supporting each participant in completing his/her honors thesis proposal. In the course, you will generate an honors thesis topic, formulate your thesis question, identify a thesis advisor, and prepare you thesis proposal. We will discuss ways to structure your thesis, perform research, and evaluate the information you obtain in relation to your chosen topic. During the course, we will discuss and constructively support and critique projects as they develop in the proposals. Each student will present their proposal to the class, and submit a complete proposal—including title, introduction, research question, methodology, and annotated bibliography—as a final product. S/F grading.

HONORS 398.5
Honors Thesis Proposal Seminar

Meetings: Online Course – No Class Meetings*
Instructor: Annie Lampman

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; sophomore standing.

Honors Thesis Proposal Seminar

HONORS 398.6
Honors Thesis Proposal Seminar

Meetings: Online Course – No Class Meetings*
Instructor: Theresa Bowden

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student and nursing major; sophomore standing.
NOTE: HONORS 398 IS MANDATORY FOR NURSING MAJORS

Honors Thesis Proposal Seminar for Nursing Majors

This course is designed to assist and support you in the development and completion of your Honors College thesis proposal. The course prepares you to successfully complete your final thesis research and presentation requirements of the Honors College. We will perform a step-wise process in the completion of your proposal, from generating preliminary ideas/hypotheses, finding suitable thesis advisors, and submitting a thesis draft, which I thoroughly edit from Introduction through Conclusions to assist in your successful completion and submission of a quality proposal. During the course, your peers will provide feedback on preliminary thesis projects through draft proposals. At the end of class, your final thesis proposal will include a Title, Abstract, Introduction, Research Question/Hypothesis (or Creative Project), Materials and Methods (Methodology), Expected Results derived from your preliminary literature review, Conclusions, and Bibliography/References. You are graded as S/F in this course.

Prerequisite: Must be a current Honors student; sophomore standing.

No Required Course Materials

Current and Previous Semesters

Information about courses from previous semesters is also available: Spring 2027, Fall 2026, Summer 2026, Spring 2026, Fall 2025, Summer 2025, Spring 2025, Fall 2024, Summer 2024, Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Summer 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Summer 2022, Spring 2022, Fall 2021, Summer 2021, Spring 2021, Fall and Summer 2020, Spring 2020,Fall 2019, Summer 2019, Spring 2019, Summer 2018, Fall 2018, Summer 2018, Spring 2018, Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Summer 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2016.

Instructions for how to register for courses online

Spring 2027

Current and Previous Semesters