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This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.
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Collection Overview
| Size | 7.5 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 5200 items) |
| Abstract | The honors program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was established in 1954 within the College of Arts and Sciences to serve academically gifted freshmen. In 1958, the Carnegie Corporation of New York awarded the honors program with a five-year, $100,000 grant to expand its offerings. The position of assistant dean for honors was created in 1967 to increase recruitment efforts, and by the end of the decade, more than 100 freshmen were being admitted yearly to the program. In 1979, a faculty committee produced a report that evaluated the program and made recommendations for its future expansion. During the 1990s, Associate Dean for Honors Robert C. Allen oversaw the $5.7 million renovation of the Graham Memorial building and the creation of the James M. Johnston Center for Undergraduate Excellence (JCUE). JCUE was housed in Graham Memorial and became the home of the Honors Office when the building opened to the university community in the fall of 1999. In fall 2011, the Honors Office was renamed Honors Carolina. Records include correspondence, memoranda, reports, proposals, course descriptions, yearly program brochures, news clippings, and lists of students in the honors program. Of particular interest are files related to the early history and development of the program and files on the renovation, in the 1990s, of the Graham Memorial building for the use of the new James M. Johnston Center for Undergraduate Excellence, of which the Honors Office became a part. The latter include facilities plans, proposals, and reports; donor information; correspondence with architects and contractors; meeting minutes; and cost estimates. Most records through 2001 are those of Associate Dean for Honors Robert C. Allen. |
| Creator | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Honors Carolina. |
| Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. University Archives. |
| Language | English |
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Information For Users
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Processing Information
Processed by: Matt Dailey, October 2010
Encoded by: Matt Dailey, October 2010
Finding aid updated for addition by Jennifer Coggins and Gergana Abernathy, March 2016.
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Subject Headings
The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.
Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.
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Related Collections
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Historical Information
The honors program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was established in 1954, within the College of Arts and Sciences, to serve academically gifted freshmen. Prior to the program's inception, gifted students were only recognized through the Phi Beta Kappa and Phi Eta Sigma societies, or, beginning in 1917, through senior-level, departmental honors degrees. The honors program was initially known as the Superior Student Program and had an inaugural class of 26 during the 1954-1955 school year. The students completed courses in English, mathematics, social science and philosophy. The program was considered a success, and in 1956, sophomore courses were added. In 1958, the Committee on Superior Students, chaired by Professor of Mathematics E.A. Cameron, was successful in securing a five-year, $100,000 grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. Work began in 1959 to expand the honors program to include courses for upperclassmen and to establish a supervising Honors Council.
The position of assistant dean for honors was introduced in 1967 to centralize the program, increase the opportunities offered to honors students, and improve recruitment efforts. By the end of the 1960s, more than 100 freshmen were being admitted yearly to the program. In 1979, the Committee to Study the Honors Programs in the College of Arts and Sciences, chaired by Professor of History Richard A. Soloway, produced a report, referred to as the "Soloway Report," that evaluated the initial goals of the honors program, examined its current state, and made recommendations for its future expansion.
In the late 1980s, the idea of constructing an undergraduate honors center emerged under the assistant deanship of Robert C. Allen, professor of radio, television, and motion pictures. A number of proposals were considered, and Graham Memorial, which had not been renovated since it opened in 1931 as the university's first student union, was selected to become the new facility. In addition to housing the Honors Office, the renovated facility was intended to be the locus for all types of academic undergraduate involvement, under the umbrella of the James M. Johnston Center for Undergraduate Excellence (JCUE). Associate Dean Robert C. Allen oversaw the development of this $5.7 million project. Architectural planning began in 1992 and construction lasted from 1998 until 1999. In the fall of 1999, the rededication of Graham Memorial marked the opening of JCUE to the university community. In the fall of 2011, the Honors Office was renamed Honors Carolina.
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Scope and Content
The records of Honors Carolina include correspondence, memoranda, reports, proposals, course descriptions, yearly program brochures, news clippings, and lists of students in the program. Of particular interest are files related to the early history and development of the program; and files on the renovation, in the 1990s, of the Graham Memorial building for the use of the new James M. Johnston Center for Undergraduate Excellence, of which the Honors Office became a part. The latter include facilities plans, proposals, and reports; donor information; correspondence with architects and contractors; meeting minutes; and cost estimates. The majority of the records through 2001 are those of Associate Dean for Honors Robert C. Allen.
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Series Quick Links
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Series 1. Administrative Files, 1941-2001.
Files related to the operation and administration of the honors program and in particular to program planning and evaluation. There are also files related to the renovation of the Graham Memorial building for use by the James M. Johnston Center for Undergraduate Excellence, of which the Honors Office became a part.
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Subseries 1.1. General Files.
Arrangement: Alphabetical by file name; individual files arranged chronologically.
Correspondence, memoranda, reports, proposals, course descriptions, news clippings, program history and development, yearly program brochures, and committee records. Files are primarily those of Associate Dean for Honors Robert C. Allen, but a few relate to early program outreach and development.
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Subseries 1.2. Building Files.
Arrangement: Alphabetical by file name; individual files arranged chronologically.
Records related to the renovation of the Graham Memorial building for use by the James M. Johnston Center for Undergraduate Excellence, of which the Honors Office became a part. Included are facilities planning documents, proposals, reports, donor information, architect and builder correspondence, meeting minutes, and cost estimates. There are also a few items concerning the film Patch Adams, part of which was filmed on the Chapel Hill campus.
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Series 2. Student Files, 1952-2000.
Arrangement: Alphabetical by file name; individual files arranged chronologically.
Lists of students in the honors program, scholarship and award applications, and student feedback from the 1950s.
| Folder 72 |
Scholarships and Awards: Barry M. Goldwater Scholarships, 1991-2000General information only. |
| Folder 73 |
Scholarships and Awards: Undergraduate Research Awards, 1994-2000General information only. |
| Folder 74 |
Student Feedback and Questionnaires: Superior Students Program, 1955-1957 |
| Folder 75 |
Student Lists: Degree with Honors, 1952, 1963, 1970Lists compiled in 1952, 1963, and 1970 of students who graduated with honors from 1917 to 1970. |
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Addition of March 2016: Additional Honors Carolina Records, 1986-2012 (RT 20160103.1).