The William O. Douglas Honors College

Director: Matthew Altman
Language and Literature 103

The William O. Douglas Honors College (DHC) is Central’s enriched general studies program for talented students. It is a four-year course of reading, discussing and writing about the Great Books of the great civilizations of the world with an emphasis on the fundamental works of Western civilization. DHC students complete an academic major and other liberal arts courses in addition to the Great Books courses. DHC also sponsors cultural field trips and a series of “Lectures in the Humanities” as part of its academic program.

The college is named for U.S. Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas, a native of Yakima, Wash. DHC encourages intellectual breadth, academic curiosity and the fusion of scholarship and everyday life that Douglas personified.

Applicants for DHC should have scored in the upper 10 percent of those taking the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) or the American College Test (ACT) and have earned at least a B grade-point average in certain high school coursework. That coursework should have included three years of English, two years of a foreign language, two years of social science, one year of a laboratory science, three years of mathematics and three additional years selected from the above subjects. Transfer and older students may qualify for DHC by showing aptitude and background equivalences.

A student is in good standing when the cumulative grade-point averages (GPA) are 3.0 or higher. A first year student is in good standing when their cumulative GPA is 3.0 or higher by the end of their first three quarters. A student who has been in good standing will be placed on warning when the cumulative GPA has fallen below 3.0. A student who has been on warning will be placed on suspension if the cumulative GPA is below 3.0 for two quarters. The DHC Director has the descretion to waive and/or modify these standards for individual students so long as the waiver or modification does not affect the academic integrity of the DHC. Students who have been suspended from DHC may re-apply if they raise their cumulative GPA to 3.0 or higher. However, re-admission is not guaranteed.

To graduate from Douglas Honors College, students must have achieved a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.0 in courses taken at Central and completed a capstone honors thesis approved by their thesis committee. Students who complete the DHC program with a grade-point average less than 3.0 may graduate from the University, but without being distinguished as an honors college graduate.

For additional information visit the DHC office, Language and Literature Building, 103, or call (509) 963-1445. Informational literature will be mailed on request.