Honors Convocation
The Honors Convocation is our annual award ceremony honoring the academic achievements of Westminster College students. At this event we celebrate students who have been awarded featured scholarships for the following academic year, students receiving departmental awards, Honors Program students who have completed their capstone projects, and students who are being inducted into honors societies. We also honor students who have made the Dean's list and received scholar-athlete recognitions.
To learn more about the Honors Convocation, please view our FAQs below. If you have additional questions, please reach out to Kim Winfield, Academic Event Coordinator, at winfieka@westminster.edu.
The Honors Convocation is an annual ceremony that recognizes the outstanding academic achievements of Westminster College students. It is traditionally held in the early evening following our Undergraduate Research & Arts Celebration (URAC).
Nope! Senior students in the Honors Program will be recognized for their capstone work, but they are only one of the groups of students that we celebrate at this event. We will also be honoring students who have received featured scholarships and awards, as well as those being inducted into honors societies, those on the Dean’s list, and those receiving recognition for an athletic award.
Official invitations will go out via email to students who are receiving one of the featured awards or scholarships for the following academic year; to senior Honors Program students who have completed capstone requirements; and to students being inducted into one of the College’s honors societies, such as Pi Sigma Pi or Lambda Sigma. Students on the Dean’s List or who are receiving recognition for an athletic award, including PAC honor roll, are welcome to attend, but will not receive an official invitation via email.
Honorees can expect to receive their official invitation via email at least two weeks prior to the ceremony.
We couldn’t possibly honor the recipient of every Westminster scholarship without the event turning into a lengthy affair. Many scholarships appear in this program because the donor who funded the award requested that it be given at the Honors Convocation. There are also additional scholarships and awards that the various schools and departments have deemed worthy of celebrating at this event.
The entire campus community and their families and friends are welcome to attend this annual celebration of academic excellence.
No tickets are required for this event. Seating is open and first come, first serve.
Details coming soon.
Business casual attire is recommended for honorees and guests attending this event. The Honors Convocation is considered a formal academic event, so faculty members will be dressed in full academic regalia.
Students being inducted into Pi Sigma Pi or Lambda Sigma will sit in a reserved area with their fellow inductees. Honors Program seniors will sit together in a reserved area. All other award recipients can sit wherever they wish, including with family.
This event typically lasts about one hour.
When possible, the ceremony will be livestreamed through the College’s YouTube channel.
It depends on which honor is being received. Students who are receiving an academic scholarship or award, those being inducted into an honor society, and Honors Program seniors will all come onstage to receive an award and receive congratulations from the President of the College.
Students who have made the Dean’s list and/or received an athletic award, including PAC Honor Roll, will be asked to stand and be recognized from their seat as a group. These students have already received a certificate or been recognized at another ceremony for these accomplishments.
Students receiving an academic scholarship or award and those being inducted into Lambda Sigma will receive a certificate. Students being inducted into Pi Sigma Pi will receive a white cord that they can wear at graduation. Honors Program students who have completed their capstone requirements will receive their Honors medallion, which can be worn at graduation. Additionally, the names of all honorees, including Dean’s list members and athletic award winners, will be included in a printed program.
Any honorees that are unable to attend the ceremony can pick up their cord or certificate, as well as a copy of the program, from the Office of Academic Affairs, Old Main 109, during regular business hours.
To ensure the ceremony runs smoothly and efficiently, the certificates received onstage do not contain recipient names or award information. Immediately after the ceremony, students who have received an academic scholarship or award can swap their generic certificate for their official certificate in the lobby of Orr auditorium. Official certificates will include the recipient’s name and all scholarships/awards received.
Those who are unable to pick up their official certificate after the ceremony can visit the Office of Academic Affairs, Old Main 109 during regular business hours. At the end of the semester, unclaimed certificates will be placed in campus mailboxes.