National Collegiate Honors Council

 

Date of this Version

2024

Document Type

Article

Citation

Honors in actice (2024) 20; National Collegiate Honors Council; Guest editor: John Zubizarreta

Comments

Copyright 2024, National Collegiate Honors Council. Used by permission.

Abstract

In a plenary address at the 2023 NCHC annual conference in Chicago, the former Vice Chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee issued a challenge for honors students and educators to use their voices and positions of local leadership to promote peace. The call for peace advocacy extended in Chicago resonated with the large audience, as leadership development represents a high-impact practice that many honors programs embrace. As national and international conflicts produce increasing polarization and divisiveness that seep into our campuses and local communities, the urgency for honors students to hone critical thinking and practical skills needed for citizen leadership and peacemaking magnify.

Nobel Peace Prize laureates are diverse and interdisciplinary exemplars that honors educators can utilize as they seek to inspire and instruct students who strive to fulfill the Chicago challenge. Drawing content from the history and laureates of the Nobel Peace Prize, we provide two tested educational modules designed to illuminate a wide lexicon of strategies and practices that leaders employ in their pursuit of peace. We share best practices gleaned from eight years of honors curricular and co-curricular program development, enriched by consultation with leaders from the Norwegian Nobel Institute, the Norwegian Nobel Committee, and the Nobel Peace Center. A link of mutual value exists between NCHC member institutions and the legacy of Alfred Nobel, which we call Partners in Peace. The models offer easy adoption logistics for NCHC institutions of any composition. We conclude with future possibilities, a few poised for adoption by NCHC’s International Education Committee.

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