Under the new leadership of R.C. Davis-Undiano the Honors College is making some adjustments, including a push to recruit minority students.

Davis-Undiano started as the interim dean of the Honors College last July. He said he worked closely for the past year with the previous dean, Dr. Robert Griswold, in an effort to ease the transition. He said he plans to bring his experience in minority issues to the Honors College through a peer-mentoring program.

"I'm very proud to be Latino, and to have that Mexican heritage really means a lot to me," Davis-Undiano said.

He said there are many minority students who would qualify for the Honors College, but just don't know about it. Davis-Undiano said he is hoping to change that.

Tracy Washington, vice president of Honors Student Association and biochemistry senior, said he believes that minority recruitment is important.

"Diversity is essential for a good university," Washington said.

Davis-Undiano said that diversity should be important for all students because of the direction the world is heading.

The world is fast becoming one global community full of diversity, he said. The more the structure of the Honors College prepares students to live in that world, the better equipped those students will be for the future, he said.

The peer-mentoring program sets freshmen up with students who know the routine and can help them make a smooth transition into college.

Sarah Kroll, president of the Honors Student Association and biochemistry and psychology senior, said the mentors help students with everything from telling them who the best professors are to helping them manage their workload.

"For instance, they might tell them to stay away from taking an 8:30 a.m. class," Kroll said.

Davis-Undiano said the peer-mentoring program has a strong potential to help new students, and to help recruit minority and international students.

"Nothing is quite as persuasive as knowing another person," Davis-Undiano said.

Davis-Undiano is also a co-chairman for this year's Renaissance Project. The project, which focuses on religion and democracy this year, is a continued campus-wide discussion of important issues facing us, Davis-Undiano said. He said he is very excited about heading the project at OU because these types of in-depth discussions usually only take place in small liberal arts colleges.

Jill Irvine, associate professor of religious and women's studies, is an organizer for the Renaissance Project. She said it's not often that students and faculty get the opportunity to discuss these issues outside of their normal classroom setting.

"I'm looking forward to hearing from my own colleagues on campus," Irvine said.

Another new addition to the Honors College is the leadership program. Directed by Christopher Howard, associate professor in the Honors College, the new program provides students with the leadership skills necessary to become professionals in their various fields, Davis-Undiano said. Howard's appointment as associate vice president for strategic and leadership initiatives is pending approval by the OU Board of Regents.

The leadership program helps students get the edge they need in order to compete for tough scholarships, like the Rhodes Scholarship.

Previously, students had to scour the entire campus to find the resources they needed. Now everything is right at their fingertips, he said.

Davis-Undiano said he is honored to have the dean's position. He said the Honors College was seeking someone who was an active student mentor.

"Sometimes I worry this is a dream and I pinch myself to wake up," he said.

He said there is no greater pleasure than helping gifted students realize their aspirations and dreams, and that he truly believes that this is the golden age of education at OU and is happy to be a part of it
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