During their Sunday meeting and despite last week’s heavy snowfall which disrupted several scheduled Honor Week events, the Committee highlighted the successes and visibility of the programs and events that did take place from Feb. 9 to Feb. 14. The Committee served Roots to encourage student attendance at this meeting and discussed potential scheduling changes for next year's Honor Week.
“Some things we weren’t able to reschedule, which is unfortunate, but we’ll plan something again next year,” Laura Howard, Honor Committee chair and fourth-year College student, said. “It was still a great Honor Week despite that.”
Some Honor Week events, like the student-athlete panel, were canceled and others — including the Run with Jim and the Student Organization Roundtable — were rescheduled due to the snowstorm which occurred Feb. 11. Rescheduled Honor Week events will take place within the next two weeks with a full schedule available on the Committee’s website.
Despite the snowstorm, many key events including the Mock Honor Hearing Monday and Honor Week Fireside Chat Thursday went on as scheduled before and after last week’s snow storm. According to Howard, small and intimate discussions on Honor with snacks and coffee were the most well-received and well-attended by the University community this year. An example of this success was the Feb. 9 Honor Committee meeting where free Roots Natural Kitchen food attracted a much larger crowd than regular weekly meetings.
The Committee considered options for rescheduling Honor Week going into next year as several Committee members debated whether February is the best month to host Honor Week.
“It's so hard to get people to events in February and March [since] they’re the busiest months of [the semester] with student elections and general trials … people just shut those events out of their minds,” Cassidy Dufour, Law School representative and Law student, said.
February and March can be busy months for students with midterms, candidate campaigning and spring break occupying many people’s minds. These past few weeks have also been marked by an unusually cold and snow-filled winter, making planning and hosting events even more difficult which is further incentive to move Honor Week next year, according to Dufour.
Will Hancock, vice chair for the undergraduate community and third-year College student, supported Honor Week being held in February going forward, stating that heavy snow storms such as the one occurring last Tuesday are infrequent. Hancock also said that most months throughout the school year are characterized by various University events that could create scheduling conflicts as well.
“In the spring semester, all the graduating fourth years’ minds will be completely elsewhere,” Hancock said. “We also get more stressed with exams and other things, which makes April and November hard, but not impossible.”
According to Hancock, there are other feasible months such as March, April, and November in which to host Honor Week, but there is not necessarily a perfect month devoid of scheduling or weather conflicts. The Committee ultimately left the matter open for further debate and did not make a final decision for next year’s Honor Week, but February was preferred by many Committee members.
Also discussed by the Committee was efforts to expand current partnerships and secure future co-sponsorships during which the Committee partners with organizations like the University Judiciary Committee, Mock Trial Team, Jefferson Society and others to co-host events and spread awareness about the Honor System.
The Committee also hopes to increase its advertising efforts, especially through communicating with other organizations for greater exposure. The monthly newsletter was also mentioned as a way to increase advertising, with the first one being sent out for the first time a few weeks ago. According to the Committee, QR codes and digital messages have also found success in promoting events using the large number of televisions across Grounds in locations such as student dorms and dining halls.
With plans for Honor Week events already underway for next year, the Committee aims to ensure that Honor Week remains a meaningful and well-attended tradition at the University.
The Committee will reconvene Sunday at 7 p.m.
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