Rachel West Traci Cruey Honors Freshman Seminar November 19, 2013 UHP Profile: Katharine Coomer Katharine

Coomer is a first-year undergraduate student in the University Honors Program at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She was born on July 2, 1995 in Johnson City, Tennessee. Her family lived in Kingsport, Tennessee until Katharine was three years old. At that time, they moved to Clayton, North Carolina. Katharine claims Clayton, North Carolina as the main place in which she grew up. At the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Katharine is currently double-majoring in Psychology and Biology. After completing her formal education, she aspires to be a psychiatrist. She is particularly fascinated with abnormal psychology. Pursuing her undergraduate degree at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte was not Katharines original plan. Her first choice was Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Her boyfriend asked her to apply to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and she did. Unfortunately, she was waitlisted at Wake Forest University. Fortunately, she was accepted to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Katharines decision to apply to the University Honors Program was somewhat similar to her decision to attend the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Originally, she did not plan on applying to the University Honors Program. However, persistent emails from the program encouraged her to apply, so she finally did. From her involvement in the University Honors Program, Katharine hoped to be challenged academically. I love to challenge myself, Katharine insists. She is doing so this

semester by taking three Honors courses: Honors Freshman Seminar, Honors Global Connections, and Honors English. There are also several social opportunities that being in the University Honors Program has brought Katharine, including networking. Being with people who are focused on academics and being taught by incredibly talented and insightful professors opens doors to relationships that could be mutually beneficial in the future. Katharines involvement in the University Honors Program has also allowed her to gain understanding from others perspectives. She states that fellow University Honors Program students and the professors within it have encouraged me to think more critically than I usually do. She believes that one of the primary differences between Honors classes and regular classes are the types of conversations and discussions that take place in and out of the classroom. Because of the standards of the University Honors Program, the students in the Honors classes have a noticeable extra intellect that fuels meaningful, insightful, and engaging discussions. Many of these students have inspired me in certain ways, says Katharine. But it is not just the students that have inspired Katharine her professors have also inspired her. The most meaningful example to Katharine is her great Honors Global Connections professor. What sets him apart from other professors in Katharines mind? He is personable and kind. One specific example occurred when the professor took Katharine and her classmates to the Mint Museum in Charlotte. Katharine brought a friend to the museum and simply planned on paying for his ticket after the professor was finished paying for the class. Instead, the professor included the student in his class, meaning that the student could visit the Mint Museum at a much more affordable price. In and out of the classroom, the professor truly cares about his students. He is kind and respectful towards them, encouraging their minds in the

process of learning by fostering relationships with the students. The fact that he is so kind and personable has left a mark on Katharine, and serves as an example of how the professors within the University Honors Program truly care about their students and their success, both academically and personally.