The Franke Honors College celebrates the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In the spirit of Dr. King, this is a time for us to activate the W.A. Franke Honors College values: We Seek, We Connect, We Create, We Evolve, and We Celebrate.

After more than a year of serving as Interim Dean at the W.A. Franke Honors College, Professor of Practice in Chemistry and former Associate Dean of Academic Affairs in Franke Honors, Dr. John Pollard, officially steps into the role of Franke Dean.

Dr. Caitlyn Hall has been named Compton Chair for Creative Intelligence and Innovation, and will oversee the college's newest degree program—the Bachelor & Minor of Creative Intelligence and Innovation. This endowment is part of a generous $3.2 million gift that was recently given to the W.A. Franke Honors College by Dr. John Lee Compton.

The Compton Lab for Discovery and Innovation, made possible by Dr. John Lee Compton’s generous gift, includes the establishment of the Endowed Chair for Creative Intelligence and Innovation and Compton Fund for Exploration. A longtime volunteer who has worked with many Franke Honors students on their research projects, Dr. Compton is an advocate for creative inquiry and aims to create a safety net for students who want to take informed risks with their projects.

In this episode of It's an Honor, Dr. Melvold shares her perspective as a scientist, educator and advocate for transdisciplinary learning in higher education. We discuss the value of asking beautiful questions, her involvement in developing the BCII and collaborations with industry partners, and what transdisciplinary education could mean for the future of Franke Honors.

Franke Honors senior Sarah Stamer was awarded the 2023 Astronaut Foundation Scholarship in a ceremony last week. The Astronaut Scholarship is one of the most prestigious and largest merit-based scholarships awarded to undergraduates in STEM, and aims to support the very best and brightest scholars while commemorating the legacy of America’s pioneering astronauts.

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The Franke Honors College sits on the original homelands of the Tohono O’odham and the Pascua Yaqui people, who have stewarded this land since time immemorial. November is Native American Heritage Month, and we encourage you to learn more and celebrate the extraordinary contributions and accomplishments of Indigenous people and communities in Tucson and throughout the Southwest.

The Fuel Wonder campaign began counting contributions on Jan. 1, 2017, and was officially launched on Friday, November 3, 2023. The campaign has so far raised more than $2 billion, and the W.A. Franke Honors College is one of three named colleges recognized in the campaign.

On Monday, President Robbins paid a visit to the Honors Village, to meet with students from the Franke Honors Health and Human Values (HHV) minor and learn more about their experiences in the program. The principles of HHV resonated with Dr. Robbins, who, prior to serving as President of the University of Arizona, was an internationally recognized cardiac surgeon.