At the Wilkes Honors College
we value our special responsibility of
public service and recognize that this
responsibility extends to our local community.
Many of
our students, faculty, and staff are actively involved in organizations that
promote developmental, urban planning, educational, health, and scientific endeavors. In addition, during the academic year we offer the Honors College Forum, a series of Friday talks by Honors College faculty and occasional guest speakers, that is open to the community.
Student Involvement
• Horizons Bereavement Center: a student participated in a bereavement
camp for children coping with the loss of a parent. The center is run by the
Hospice of the Palm Beaches. The student assisted the licensed clinician in
providing psychological services to the children.
• Office of the State Attorney’s Office: a student worked in the
homicide/grand jury division and the division for crimes against children,
shadowing attorneys and attending and assisting with trials.
• Norton Museum of Art: a student translated portions of text into Spanish
for teachers and tour leaders. The student also assisted the curator on text
panels and helped develop a timeline of the history of the Spanish Empire for
public use in the galleries.
• Gopher Tortoise Research Project: Gopher tortoises in the Abacoa greenway
adjacent to campus and nearby areas have been suffering an upper respiratory
tract disease. A Wilkes Honors college student, working with Professor Jon
Moore, completed research to determine the effects of the disease on the demography
of the gopher tortoise population.
Organizations and Groups
• Corn Maya
Corn Maya is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization that was formed by Mesoamerican
refugees in the 1980s. The organization was formed primarily in order to
assist thousands of refugees, mostly Mayan indigenous people.
Corn Maya provides immigration services, translation, emergency services,
and education for immigrants concerning their rights and responsibilities in
American society. Corn Maya has also sponsored a number of cultural events,
including Guatemalan festivals, concerts, and dances.
With the help of the Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties,
Corn Maya is working for the Jupiter community. Its mission is to coordinate
and cooperate in providing social services to the primarily (though not exclusively)
Mayan immigrant community in Jupiter. Corn Maya works with several organizations
in the Jupiter area in order to promote cultural awareness, provide social,
legal, and employment services, advocate for the immigrant community, and promote
an appreciation for cultural diversity in Jupiter.
• Lifelong
Learning
The Lifelong Learning Society, a division of Continuing Education at FAU, is
dedicated to enriching the lives of mature students by offering non-credit,
university level courses. Seniors enjoy their own curriculum, along with
concerts and entertainment. The LLS program, established in 1980 on the Boca
Raton campus, was implemented in northern Palm Beach County in 1997. In five
short years, enrollment has grown from 120 to more than 4,000 students, and
there are now more than 60 courses available. Several Wilkes Honors College
faculty have taught life-long learning courses on the MacArthur campus.
• Hibel Art Museum
Through a collaborative partnership between the Edna Hibel Art Foundation
and Florida Atlantic University, the Hibel Fine Arts Complex was established
on the John D. MacArthur Campus in Jupiter, Florida.
• Catanese Center
FAU's Jupiter office of the Catanese Center for Urban and Environmental Solutions
(www.catanese.org) focuses on the importance of design in creating communities
that meet the principles of smart growth. In this effort we host or collaborate
on a variety of community, regional, and state activities.
• Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute
Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution (HBOI) is dedicated
to exploring the world's oceans, integrating the science and technology of
the sea with the
needs of humankind. Our staff of over 250 includes scientists, engineers, mariners
and support personnel. We are involved in research and education in the marine
sciences; biological, chemical, and environmental sciences; marine biomedical
sciences; marine mammal conservation; aquaculture; and ocean engineering. We
have a wide variety of educational programs and products to raise public awareness
of the marine environment, illustrating how the health of our planet is inextricably
linked to the state of our oceans.
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