Current DMACC Honors Students

​​​​Honors Online​

​​The Honor​s Are Yours - ALL ONLINE

  • ​Thrive on challenge and accelerated learning?
  • Driven by success and achievement?
  • Like going to class when and where it works for you?
  • Want a financial reward for good grades?

​​Then become one of the first Honors Programs students to take advantage of DMACC's totally online Honors Program.

6 Course Options

With this new program, kicking off this summer, you can take 1 of 6 online Honors courses:

  • ​Intro to Psychology (PSY 111)
  • Social Problems (SOC 115)
  • Statistics (MAT 157)
  • World Literature (LIT 150)
  • Intro to Honors (HON 100)
  • Honors Capstone (HON 200)​​

​Each 3-credit course is:​

  • ​Completely online
  • Available 24/7
  • Accelerated - 8 weeks only
  • Small - limited to 12 students

Plus, if you earn a B or above, we

  • ​Waive tuition for HON 100 and HON 200
  • Reimburse you for up to 3 credits of tuition each semester for the other 4 courses

We won’t lie. An online Honors class is a lot of work. But, with our online Honors Program, you won’t need to complete an extra project (required by traditional Honors courses). Each online course automatically includes an Honors-level deep dive into the course subject.

Best of all, our online Honors Program gives you another way to excel, demonstrate your ability to succeed, and open more doors for you in the future.

Apply Now


​Online Honors is a great opportunity. But hurry! Space is limited. Apply by:

Spring 2024 applications due Thursday, December 21, 2023​​

To enroll ​in one of DMACC's online Honors courses:​

  1. Apply for DMACC's Honors Program https://dmacc.edu/honors/Pages/application.aspx​

  2. ​Double check you qualify for the program.

  3. If you're entering from high school,​ we'll need an official copy of your high school transcript.

  4. ​Compose an essay of approximately 800 words describing yourself and why the honors program is a good fit for you. Explain a research, leadership, or volunteer experience that demonstrates your leadership initiatives.​

  5. Ask a professor to write a letter of recommendation on your behalf.

  6. ​Submit your application by the due date.

The review process takes a few weeks. Once a decision has been made, you will be notified via email.


High School Students - Online Honors is for Y​ou, Too!

  • ​Enter college with more credit, maybe with an Associate degree in your pocket
  • Cut your costs for college
  • Jumpstart your future​

To enroll in an online Honors course as a high school student:

  • ​Apply to DMACC's Honors Program
  • Show a high school cumulative G.P.A. of 3.0 (weighted or non-weighted) on transcript.
  • Complete an online application essay.
  • Submit a letter of recommendation from a teacher. (Home-schooled students: submit a recommendation from a co-op teacher other than a parent--may be from a pastor or other community member.)
  • Submit your application by the due date.​

If you take a course this summer, you complete the course online at a place or time of your choosing. You pay tuition up front but get reimbursed when your grade is a B or higher.

If you take a course in the fall, you pay nothing, but you need to go to a DMACC location to complete it. 

 

Courses

The Honors Program requires students to complete a minimum of 13 credits of honors courses at DMACC.

Honors classes will be traditional face-to-face courses taken on DMACC campuses or at DMACC centers (concurrent enrollment classes in high schools may not be taken for honors credit). Online courses may be taken with permission from the Honors Advisory Council. Honors courses are those courses which have been previously approved by the Director of Honors. Honors courses include designated honors sections or standard sections with an individual honors-option contract signed by the honors professor and the student, which may include the following criteria:

  • Rigorous written assignments
  • Enhanced large- and small-group communication skills
  • Higher order reading and listening skills
  • Critical thinking

Satisfactorily complete two, 2-credit honors seminars
(included in the 13 credits)

HON 100—​Introduction to Honors (must complete during first semester in Honors)

HON 200—Honors ​Capstone (Prerequisite: HON100)​​​

Honors 2-credit seminars will be graded. A "B" or above will generate Honors credit on the student's transcript or grade report.

 

Contracts

​Dear Honors Student:

Congratulations on taking the first step to completing your Honors Contract! Before you upload your project proposal, please take time to review the requirements to earn Honors credit in your Honors discipline course.

****

In order to earn Honors credit in an Honors discipline course, the student is required to write a project proposal for his/her Honors discipline course. The project proposal becomes Part I of the student’s Honors Contract.

Please note that if the student is enrolled in HON100 or HON200, the project proposal is also part of the honors seminar course in which the student is enrolled. 

To earn Honors credit, the student will:

  • Demonstrate integrity, fairness and human dignity in all levels of academic activities and refrain from plagiarism and dishonesty
  • Submit a link to his/her e-portfolio to the Director of Honors by the end of the semester
  • Select his/her topic. The project will allow an in-depth study of a topic related to at least one of the competencies of the class. The topic should be of special interest to the student 
  • Write a proposal outlining his/her proposed project
  • Present the proposal to the faculty member who must approve or offer suggestions for revision
  • Present a timeline to the faculty member, who in turn, should review it with the student
  • Sign his/her contractual agreement with the instructor
  • Send the contract to the Director of the Honors Program
  • Complete the project requirements in the Honors Contract as outlined by the Honors faculty, meeting all deadlines.
  • Complete the requirements below as part of the honors seminar course in which the student is enrolled concurrently (HON 100 or HON 200) if applicable during the semester. Students who are not enrolled in HON100 or HON200 will submit the requirements below to a designated member of the Honors staff.
    • Keep a double-entry journal.
      Submit a double-entry journal: one part objective using the journalist’s questions—who, what, where, when, etc.; one part a subjective reflection of that meeting. The journal must be written in paragraph format, exploring the ideas discussed, the questions raised, and the challenges encountered. A minimum of three double-entry journal submissions are required, submitted to the Seminar instructor if applicable. If a student is not enrolled in an Honors seminar, the student will email their double-entry journals to the Director of the Honors Program or the Honors Coordinator on their campus. The student will be contacted by the person who will be collecting their journals.
    • At the conclusion of the semester, write a reflective essay addressing the four questions below.
      1. How has completing this Honors-Option Contract impacted you as a learner? Address the following:
        • Critical thinking
        • Observational, written, and oral skills
        • Independent thinking and problem solving
        • In-depth perspective of a specific discipline
      2. How will you incorporate this learning into your future academic endeavors?
      3. What unexpected challenges did you encounter as you completed your Honors Option Contract?
      4. What suggestions do you have for future Honors students who might be doing a similar contract?

 

Please note: It is the student's obligation to fulfill the requirements of the course to receive Honors credit.

When you understand the requirements to earn Honors credit in an Honors discipline course and you are ready to submit the description of your Honors Project proposal, which is Part I of your Honors contract, please click the button below.

Important:​ 
Write PART I in a Word document, then cut and paste it into your online contract.
Do not compose Part I online; the software times out after a few minutes.​

Begin Now Button ​ ​

 

Contacts

Honors Advisors are available on all six DMACC campuses. Please contact an advisor from the list below for scheduling Honors classes.​

Matthew Sprengeler, Academic Advisor
mjsprengeler@dmacc.edu
Phone 515.965.7193
Office: Ankeny Campus
Bldg 1
2006 S. Ankeny Blvd.
Ankeny, IA 50023

Jocelyn Kovarik, Academic Advisor
jrkovarik@dmacc.edu
Phone 515.433.5209
Office: Boone Campus
Room127A
1125 Hancock Drive
Boone, IA 50036

Valerie Enenbach, Academic Advisor
vdenenbach@dmacc.edu
Phone 712.792.8331
Office: Carroll Campus
Room 125
906 N. Grant Rd.
Carroll, IA 51401

Corey Trader, Academic Advisor
catrader@dmacc.edu
Phone 515.697.7763
Office: Urban Campus
Bldg. 1, Room 101E
1100 7th Street
Des Moines, IA 50314

Melinda Williams, Academic Advisor - TRIO/SSS
mjwilliams12@dmacc.edu
Phone 515.248.7235
Office: Urban Campus
Bldg. 1, Room 210A
1100 7th Street
Des Moines, IA 50314

Paige Kloster, Academic Advisor TRIO/SSS
pckloster@dmacc.edu
Office: Urban Campus
UC01-210B
1100 7th Street
Des Moines, IA 50314

Jennifer Julich, Academic Advisor
jljulich@dmacc.edu
Phone 515.633.2405
Office: West Campus
Room 108W
5959 Grand Avenue
West Des Moines, IA 50266

Jody Stiles, Academic Advisor
jlstiles1@dmacc.edu
Office: Newton Campus
Phone 641.791.1722
600 N. 2nd Ave. West
Newton, IA 50208 

 

The Honors Program Director is available to review applications, answer questions, and direct students and honors faculty on all campuses to the best available resources.


Dr. Laurie Linhart​
Director of the Honors Program at DMACC
Email:lclinhart@dmacc.edu
​​Phone: 515.988-4810​​
Office Ankeny Campus
Bldg 9, Room 7B
2006 S. Ankeny Blvd
Ankeny, IA 50023

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