Honors Program

Each semester, the Honors Advisory Committee will host an orientation event introducing students to the Honors program's benefits and requirements. Honors orientation will also introduce students to others joining the program and peer-mentors near transferring and completing the transfer-degrees.

To complete the Honors Program and receive Honors graduate certification and transfer benefits, students must satisfy each of the following requirements:

• Complete a minimum of 15 units in Honors courses
  • Plan to enroll in 2 Honors courses each semester
  • Up to 6 units may be earned through Honors contracts
  • Honors classes must be completed with a grade of B or higher

• Maintain an overall GPA of 3.50
  • This includes having 3.50 at graduation

• Fulfill the presentation requirement through one of the following methods
  • Public research presentation
  • Public performance or art exhibition
  • Participation in the speech or debate competition

• Complete the petition to graduate with Honors form with the Honors counselor

To help prepare students for academic leadership and model academic excellence, each student must publicly present their research, ideas, or artistic work. The following list of presentation opportunities have been pre-approved by the Honors committee:

• SBVC Research Conference
• SBVC Speech and Debate Tournaments
• UC Irvine Community College Research Conference
• Phineas Literary Magazine Publication and Presentation

Any other presentations will need approval by the Honors Advisory Committee. Please contact the Honors Program faculty lead or Honors Program counselor at least 30 days before the presentation is scheduled to request approval. Students will meet with the Honors faculty lead and at least one member of the Honors Advisory Committee to determine if the request meets the presentation requirement's standards. Students may request a faculty mentor or community member to join the meeting as an advocate.

Honors contracts allow students to earn Honors credit for courses that do not have Honors sections. These contracts are agreements between an individual student and a course instructor to provide Honors level engagement and evaluation. Contracts must be approved and certified by the Honors Advisory Committee. Students may complete up to 6 units through non-Honors classes with agreed-upon contracts.

Transfer agreements are arrangements between educational institutions that spell out the courses and other requirements that students must fulfill to be accepted smoothly into the target school.

Honors transfer agreements spell out the conditions for students to transfer to select institutions and often include special consideration in admission or accelerated admission into honors programs at the new school. For example:

• UC Irvine Honors-to-Honors Transfer Agreement
• UCLA Transfer Alliance Program

We have additional transfer agreements through the Honors Transfer Council of California covering dozens of other public and private 4-year institutions. To view these agreements, visit the Honors Transfer Council of California Transfer Partner page on their website.

The Honors Scholarship is awarded to a student who is a member of the Honors Program. The student must have an overall GPA of 3.5 at the time of application, have completed at least 2 Honors courses, and have a record of leadership in campus activities and community organizations. Members of the Honors Advisory Committee and Honors faculty select the students. Apply to this scholarship through SBVC Foundation Scholarships at https://sbccd.academicworks.com/

During our annual College Signing Day celebration, Honors students announce to the campus community their post-SBVC transfer plans. We look forward to celebrating every Honors student transferring to a four-year college. To participate, students will need to complete the College Signing Day form to be appropriately acknowledged.

The mission of this Alpha Gamma Sigma Honors Society is to foster, maintain, and recognize outstanding scholarship and promote cultural and social enrichment. AGS allows students to engage in community service activities and aims to award scholarships to its active members. AGS Members not only excel in academics but also attend and host social events and participate in community service activities.

While it is not a requirement for students in the Honors Program to join AGS, it is strongly recommended.

Honors Program Faculty are outstanding classroom instructors, researchers, and practitioners. Honors Faculty demonstrate a passion for their disciplines and an interest in mentoring students in the Honors Program. They enhance critical and creative thinking skills through innovative research challenges, project-based learning, and by seeking-out opportunities academic opportunities for students to explore.

The Honors Advisory Committee

The Honors Advisory Committee serves as an advisory committee to the Vice President of Instruction relative to the college’s Honors Program including the admission of students into the program, assessment of program effectiveness, the schedule rotation of Honors courses, proposals for new Honors courses, and the evaluation of existing Honors courses. Membership is comprised of the Vice President of Instruction or designee, the Honors Faculty Lead, Honors Counselor, and interested administrators and faculty.

The Honors committee meets monthly, every 2nd Monday at 3:00 pm.