Spring 2025 Honors Program Course Information

Eligibility

Continuing students(Students who have been at CU for at least one year): As long as you have a GPA of3.3 or higher, you can enroll yourself in one Honors course per semester without our permission.

Incoming first-year fall students: If you were invited into the Honors Program for this academic year, your BuffPortal will let you enroll. The process is the same as registering for the rest of your courses, and you don't need our permission to take an Honors class. Please only sign up for one Honors course per semester, and be sure to select the proper Honors section when choosing your class.

Auditors: Auditors are not allowed in our courses due to pedagogical concerns.


Finding Our Courses

How can I tell which courses are Honors Program courses? Honors Program courses have a section number between 880-888and are alwayslisted on our website. We encourage you to use this webpage to learn about this semester's course offerings before going to classes.colorado.edu to register, as we provide more detail about each classon our webpage.

How do I find Honors Program courses?

  1. Go to
  2. In the "Search Classes" section on the left side, look in the "Advanced Search" section for the last option labeled, "Other Attributes"
  3. Click the down arrown next to "Other Attributes" and in the drop-down menu select "Arts & Sciences Honors Course (HONR)"
  4. Click on the "Search Classes" button
  5. You will see a list of classes pop out. Not all of these courses are offered by the Honors Program; this search option also shows honors courses offered by departments within the College of Arts and Sciences. Please be sure to check the section number to confirm it is an Honors Program course; you are looking for sections 880-888.

Courses taught in the Honors RAP have a section number between 888R-889R; please contact hrap@colorado.edu if you are enrolled in a course with this section number and have a question about the class.

About Our Courses

Honors Seminars: Our courses are limited to 17 students and provide a different kind of learning environment through small discussion-based classes, with one exception. Some of our Classics (CLAS) offerings are in a larger setting for the main course, and the associated recitation is taught by the professor instead of a Teaching Assistant. The recitations are limited to 17 students.

Honors Recitations: For courses that are designated as "honors recitation", you'll attend a regular full-sized lecture as well as a small group session (the Honors recitation), which is led by the professor. Honors recitations offer time to discuss course material more in-depth. Courses with recitations that do not specify "honors" are normal Honors courses (capped at 17) that also have recitations with the same group of students.

Registering for our courses: In the fall, lower-division fall classes may appear to be full before registration windows start to open up. We release available spots forour fall classes incrementally to ensure that all students have the opportunity to enroll regardless of their registration window.

As you research our classes, please have several choices in mind in case your top choice does not work with your schedule or is not available when you register. Give yourself enough time to consult with your academic advisor regarding your choices. If you've been batch-enrolled into a class that you want to replace with an Honors section, we recommend that you request the assistance of your advisor rather than trying to drop and add it on your own. Please only enroll in one Honors class each semester. We encourage transfer students who are coming in as sophomores, juniors, and seniors to consider our 3000 and 4000-level classes! Please note that there is NO extra cost associated with taking an honors course.

Spring 2025 Honors Program Courses

We provide course descriptions written by our instructors whenever possible. Click on linked course titles, scroll down, or click here to see the course descriptions. For . Right-click on the link and choose "Open link in a new tab" if you'd like to keep this window open and also look at the University Catalog.

Classes that are full are marked with asymbol.

SubjectClass #Section #Course TitleMeeting PatternTimeClass StyleInstructorClass LocationCoreGenEd
ANTH
2100880Intro to Cultural AnthropologyMWF11:15-12:05In personKate FischerLIBR M300DHDSS/Global Div
ANTH3110880

Ethnography of Mexico and Central America

New offering

TTH9:30-10:45In personKate FischerLIBR N424ASS
CLAS1100880Greek and Roman Mythology (large lecture*)MW10:10-11:00In personLauri ReitzammerHUMN 1B50LAAH
881Honors recitation*W1:25-2:15In personLauri ReitzammerLIBR N424A
CLAS4040880The Historian as Exile (ancient Greek and Roman Historians)MW3:35-4:50In personPeter HuntHUMN 370
EBIO
1220880General Biology 2TTH9:30-10:45In personRob BuchwaldLIBR M300DNSNS
EBIO
1220881General Biology 2TTH11:00-12:15In personRob BuchwaldLIBR M300DNSNS
EBIO
2070880Genetics: Molecules to PopulationsMWF;
F
12:20-1:10;
1:25-2:15
In personRob BuchwaldLIBR M300D;
LIBR N424A
NSNS
ECON3818880Introduction to Statistics with Computer ApplicationsMWF;
F
1:25-2:15;
2:30-3:20
In personKremena Platikanova-GrossLIBR M300D;
MUEN E114
SS
ENGL1240880PlanetarityMWF10:10-11:00In personJason GladstoneLIBR M300DAH
GEOG
3742880Place, Power, and Contemporary CultureTTH11:00-12:15In personAbby HickcoxLIBR N424ACSAH/SS/US & Global Div
HIST1012880Empire, Revolution, and Global War: European History Since 1600MWF1:25-2:15In personJohn HatchHUMN 245HCAH
HIST
2166880The Vietnam WarsMWF2:30-3:20In personSteve DikeLIBR M300DHC/CSAH/Global Div
HONR1810880Honors Diversity SeminarMWF9:05-9:55In personSteve DikeLIBR M300DHDSS/US Div
HONR
3220880Advanced Honors Writing Workshop - Honors ThesisTTH3:30-4:45In personStephanie CoueyLIBR M300DWCWC-Upper division
HONR
3220881Advanced Honors Writing Workshop - Honors JournalTTH3:30-4:45In personAbby HickcoxLIBR N424AWCWC-Upper division
HONR3900880Honors Internship classM1:25-2:15In personAli HatchLIBR N424A
HONR4490880Honors Capstone Seminar
CANCELLED
TTH9:30-10:45In personKate FischerLIBR N424A
IPHY
2420880Introduction to NutritionTTH2:00-3:15In personSewan KimKCEN S163NSNS
MATH2510880Introduction to StatisticsMWF9:05-9:55In personBraden BalentineLIBR N424AQRMSQRM
MCDB
2150880Principles of GeneticsTTH12:30-1:45In personMaureen BjerkeBKER W205NS
PHIL1200880Contemporary Social ProblemsTTH2:00-3:15In personDavid BooninLIBR N424AUS/IVAH
PHIL1400880Philosophy and the SciencesTTH12:30-1:45In personCarol ClelandLIBR M300DNSAH/NS
PSCI
3172880Democracy and its Citizens in the US and EUMWF2:30-3:20In personJeffrey NonnemacherLBB 143CSSS
PSCI
4241880Constitutional LawMW3:35-4:50In personAllie PalmerLIBR M300DSS
PSYC
1001880General PsychologyMWF2:30-3:20In personJenny SchwartzLIBR N424AMAPSNS
PSYC
3303880Clinical Psychology: Psychological DisordersMW3:35-4:50In personJenny SchwartzLIBR N424ANS
REES3705880Crimes of Passion: Gender and Sexual Politics in Tolstoy's Russia
New offering
TTH11:00-12:15In personLaura OstermanLBB 330AH/Global Div
SOCY
1016880Sex, Gender and SocietyMWF10:10-11:00In personAli HatchLIBR N424ASS/US Div
SOCY
3314880Violence Against Women and GirlsMWF11:15-12:05In personAli HatchLIBR N424ASS
SOCY
3314881Violence Against Women and GirlsMWF12:20-1:10In personAli HatchLIBR N424ASS
SPAN3010880Spanish: Advanced Rhetoric and CompositionMWF3:35-4:25In personEmmy HerlandLBB 153WCAH/WC-Upper div
WGST
2600880Introduction to Global Gender, Race and Sexuality StudiesTTH12:30-1:45In personKate FischerLIBR N424ASS/Global Div

Instructor Course Descriptions

ANTH 2100-880: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology
Kate Fischer
This course is an introduction to the discipline of cultural anthropology and the substantive issues, methods, and concepts of the discipline. Cultural anthropology is the study of how human beings organize their lives as members of society, and the ways in which they make their lives meaningful as cultural individuals. This field of study involves encountering, interpreting, and communicating about the human situation in all its variety. Cultural anthropology is a vast discipline with far reaching objectives. Cultural anthropologists study and apply their expertise to many problems worldwide. While we cannot possibly cover the breadth and depth of the discipline during one semester, this course will offer an appreciation and understanding of culture and different ways of thinking about the diversity we encounter in our everyday lives. Therefore, the primary goal of this course is to provide you with the ability to apply an anthropological perspective to understanding how people are influenced by andare part of the historical, social, economic, ecological, and political processes that occur across the globe. It is my hope that this course will instill in you a sense of curiosity about people and cultures around the world, provide you with a set of tools for understanding difference, and offer you a deeper insight into your own experience as a cultural being.

ANTH 3110-880: Ethnography of Mexico and Central America
Kate Fischer
This course provides an ethnographic survey of Mexico and Central America, from the pre-Conquest period to the present day. We will highlight the diversity of cultures in Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, and El Salvador through an examination of ethnographic examples and texts and will discuss historical contexts influencing the region. We will explore the intersection of contemporary issues on the macro-level (e.g., neoliberalism, U.S. foreign policy, migration, revolution, gender and sexuality, class, and race) and the micro-level (i.e., everyday experiences of peoples of the region) by reading a number of books and some scholarly articles. In addition to gaining a better understanding of the region, you will learn how to read, interpret, and critique ethnographies and ethnographic methods.

Classics
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CLAS 1100-880 & 881: Greek and Roman Mythology (+ honors recitation)
Lauri Reitzammer
This class provides an introduction to ancient Greek and Roman mythology. We will explore traditional tales associated with figures important to the ancient Greeks and Romans (gods and goddesses, nymphs, heroes and heroines, and fearful monsters), as well as modern attempts at theorizing and interpreting these myths (e.g., psychoanalytic, feminist, and structuralist). Because Greek and Roman religion is fundamentally bound up with Greek and Roman mythology, we will spend a good deal of time considering the significance of the divinities to each culture’s thought, imagination, and ritual. Each time a traditional tale was (and is) told, it was (and is) modified in some way. For this reason, as we study mythology this semester, we will frequently ask ourselves 1. who is telling the story and 2. for what purposes is the story being told. This class will thus introduce you to the political and cultural contexts that produced these traditional tales (e.g., the emphasis on autochthony at the height of the Athenian empire). This class will also serve as an introduction to ancient literary genres, like epic, lyric, and tragedy. Our investigation will center mostly on primary sources (e.g., Homer, Sophocles, Euripides, ancient vase painting, Virgil’s Aeneid) but will also include modern movie adaptations of these myths (e.g., Troy and O Brother Where Art Thou) as we consider how these ancient myths live today and what purposes they serve in our world. *Please note: This class in a larger lecture setting for the main course (CLAS 1100-880), and the recitation is taught by the Professor instead of a Teaching Assistant (CLAS 1100-881). The recitations are limited to 17 honors students in the traditional discussion-based Honors class style.

CLAS 4040-880: The Historian as Exile (ancient Greek and Roman Historians)
Peter Hunt
Each of the three major historians from classical Greece was an exile from his city-state. This striking fact provides the impetus and theme of this course on ancient Greek and Roman historiography. We’ll start with a focus on how outsider status can shape the writing of history. More broadly, we’ll investigate ancient historians’ relationships to political power and their stated commitments (whether successful or not) to provide unbiased accounts. We’ll get to read extensively in four of the most brilliant ancient historians (Herodotus, Thucydides, Sallust, and Tacitus) and the biographer Plutarch and to learn about two key periods of classical history: the Persian and Peloponnesian Wars of fifth-century BCE Greece and the fall of the Roman Republic and establishment of the Principate. PLEASE NOTE: Although the catalog lists prerequisites, there are actually NO prerequisites for this class! No prerequisites; no Greek or Latin required; no prior knowledge expected. Sign up today! See the CLAS 4040 flyer.

Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
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EBIO 1220: General Biology 2 (sections 880 & 881)
Robert Buchwald
Are humans currently evolving? Should you be concerned about eating genetically modified plants? What, exactly, is a cephalopod? We will answer all these questions and more in EBIO 1220 – a concentrated introduction to evolution, the diversity of life, and ecology & conservation biology. As an honors class, we will also incorporate several outside readings, critical thinking exercises and presentations, such as “Biology in the News,” “Nutrition Myths, Truths & Quackery,” and “Natural Selection Misconceptions.” This course is intended for EBIO (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology) majors, other science majors (such as Psychology, Kinesiology, Biochemistry, etc.), as well as other majors for which biology is a requirement. EBIO 1240 (laboratory) is a co-requirement for potential EBIO majors and as specified by your particular major (please see your departmental advisor if you have questions). Students who simply need to satisfy the Natural Sciences core requirement should consider taking EBIO 1030, 1040, & 1050, “Biology—a Human Approach,” which are lecture/lab courses for non-Biology majors. If you have questions about this, please see me or your departmental advisor. Although it is not a pre-requisite, this course assumes that you have taken EBIO 1210 or its equivalent, since lectures in EBIO 1220 often rely on knowledge gained from EBIO 1210. If you have not taken EBIO 1210 or the equivalent or are concerned about your background, please see me.

EBIO 2070-880: Genetics: Molecules to Populations
Robert Buchwald
Is my personality dictated by my DNA? How does DNA code for our anatomy and physiology? What is CRISPR and how scared should I be about a future with DNA editing? We will answer all these questions and more in EBIO 2070 – Genetics: Molecules to Populations. This four-hour course comprises both a lecture and recitation. As an honors class, we will also incorporate several outside readings, podcasts and videos, critical thinking exercises, clicker-style assessments, and multiple in-class presentations. We will cover principles of genetics and developmental biology at levels of molecules, cellular organelles, individuals and populations; asexual and sexual life cycles; and heredity. Recitations allow for discussion of genetics problems and implications of genetic principles and provide demonstrations and simulations of genetic processes.

Economics
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ECON 3818-880: Introduction to Statistics with Computer Applications
Kremena Platikanova-Gross
The course introduces the principles of statistical reasoning and inference. It explores the following concepts: describing data with graphs and numerical measures, probability theory, probability distributions, sampling distributions, properties of estimators, confidence intervals, hypothesis testing, statistical inference, and bivariate regression analysis. The software used for applied statistical analysis in the course is R. This is an essential course for the understanding and further study of quantitative economic analysis. View the ECON 3818 flyer here.

English
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ENGL 1240-880: Planetarity
Jason Gladstone
Focuses on post-WWII American writing and thought about the planet and humanity. We explore how postwar efforts to transform the terrestrial environmental and conquer outer space raise questions about humanity, technology, and nature. We also study how earth and space serve novelists, artists, and film-makers as environments to confront large-scale questions about culture, identity, and power. Equivalent - Duplicate Degree Credit Not Granted:AHUM1240. Check out the ENGL 1240 flyer.

Geography
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GEOG 3742-880: Place, Power, and Contemporary Culture
Abby Hickcox
This course takes a geographic approach to place, power, and culture, examining different ways to understand each and how the three relate to each other to shape our society and ourselves. By the end of course, you will be able to discuss the complexity of culture as a “way of life” and as a lens through which to understand the way we live in our world. You will see the role of culture in creating a “sense of place,” even while dynamics of globalization move through places, and people move from place to place. You will develop the tools to analyze spatial inclusion and exclusion as cultural operations of power. The first part of the course introduces key terms such as culture, place, and globalization. Part 2 focuses on material culture, the study of how objects shape our lives. Part 3 introduces space, landscape, and power and explores their relationship with one another. The final part of the course is devoted to students developing their own case study analyses of culture, place, and power.

HIST 1012-880: Empire, Revolution, and Global War: European History Since 1600
John Hatch
This course examines the history of Europe from 1600 to the 2000's. What was the West? What accounts for its rise to global dominance? How did the West respond to internal and external challenges to its rise to dominance? To answer these questions, we will examine the effects of religious conflict in the aftermath of the Protestant Reformation; the emergence and nature of political absolutism and its revolutionary challengers in 17th Century England and 18th Century France; the rise (and fall) of European global empires; the intellectual, political and economic revolutions of the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries; the rise (and fall) of Communism in the 20th; the role of nationalism and the rise of European Fascism in the era of the World Wars; and the consequences of extremism in the perpetration of the Holocaust and other 20th Century ethnic atrocities. Click here to see the HIST 1012 class flyer
HIST 2166-880: The Vietnam Wars
Steve Dike
We will study a series of conflicts that occurred in Vietnam from about 1930 to 1975. These struggles involved Vietnamese nationalists, Vietnamese communists, French colonialists, Japanese occupiers, and Americans, along with others. You will leave this class with a deep knowledge of the issues, people, and conflicts that shaped Vietnam and the other nations that fought there. We will examine the American experience in their war, as well as the American home front. Check out the HIST 2166 class flyer here

HONR 1810-880:Honors Diversity
Steve Dike
This introductory course examines diversity, broadly construed, in the contemporary U.S. context. This course applies an interdisciplinary perspective to identify how history, politics, culture, economics, and social life converge with and shape the way diverse experiences in terms of gender, race, class, sexuality, neurodiversity, and the physical body, among others, are lived and understood. The goals of this course are to encourage and develop curiosity, openness, and empathy alongside a critical academic understanding of the broad range of experiences and inequities in the current moment. By the end of the course you will develop a critical understanding of how forms of privilege and exclusion are written about, comprehended, and contended with.

HONR 3220‐880: Advanced Honors Writing Workshop: Honors Thesis
Stephanie Couey
Section 880 introduces honors students to an analysis and argumentation as they are rendered in longer prose forms. As such, the course provides excellent preparation for writing an honors thesis. With the collaboration and thoughtful feedback of your colleagues in class, you will have the opportunity to engage in independent scholarship in your area of expertise. Our informal theme for the semester will be cultural rhetoric. In responding to texts that represent cultural diversity, students will evaluate issues and relate them to their own experiences. Through these readings as well as class discussion of written assignments, students will learn to make reasoned arguments in defense of their own opinions. By examining diverse voices, this course helps students meet the challenges of academic writing. This course will extend your ability to adapt rhetorical strategies and arguments on cultural issues and diversity to address the needs of a range of different audiences and stakeholders. Writing Process and the Workshop Format: The course offers an opportunity to understand writing from the audience or reader perspective by focusing on the peer review of work in progress. Through this approach, you will discover how revision is central to the writing process. Your own writing will be the principal text; we will all work together as a team to improve each paper. We will adopt the attitude that any paper can be improved, and give constructive criticism to everyone. Your job will be to provide oral and written commentary on other students' papers when assigned to do so. Approved for Arts and Sciences Core Curriculum: Written Communication. Restricted to students with 57-180 credits (Juniors or Seniors). Must be taken for credit. No P/F.

HONR 3220‐881: Advanced Honors Writing Workshop: Honors Journal
Abby Hickcox
Section 881 provides practical learning and development of writing skills through the creation of this academic year's Honors Journal publication.Students will read and select the best undergraduate scholarly and creative work for publication from academic fields including: art, creative non-fiction, fiction, gender & ethnic studies, humanities, open media, natural science, poetry, and social science.The course includes extensive practice in reading for, summarizing, and evaluating arguments and in structuring cogent arguments for diverse audiences. Development of basic skills in graphic layout using Adobe InDesign will be included in the course. Students will reflect on effective writing in different disciplines. Restricted to students with 57-180 credits OR consent of instructor. See the flyer for HONR 3220-881-Honors Journal class here.

HONR 3900‐880: Honors Internship Class
Ali Hatch
Engage in hands-on work in the community and gain practical knowledge and real-world experience. The course is designed to help students combine professional experiences with an academic component that involves critical thinking and interdisciplinary approaches to problem-solving. Benefits of the course include acquiring professional skills and knowledge, building a network of connections, developing insights on possible career options, and applying classroom material to real-world experiences. Final letter grades are based on the evaluation of the student’s internship supervisor and on class performance. Class assignments will include journal reflections on internship experience and the completion of a career portfolio. We will meet every other Monday on the following dates:

  • Monday, January 13, 1:25-2:15
  • Monday, January 27, 1:25-2:15
  • Monday, February 10, 1:25-2:15
  • Monday, February 24, 1:25-2:15
  • Monday, March 10, 1:25-2:15
  • Monday, March 31, 1:25-2:15
  • Monday, April 14, 1:25-2:15
  • Monday, April 28, 1:25-2:15

To take the course, you must be Honors eligible (cumulative GPA of 3.3 or higher) and be of sophomore, junior, or senior standing at the time of the internship. Enrollment preference will be given to students enrolled in the Hon