Standing Course Contracts

Please select your section below to view the standing honors contract for your course. Standing contracts will be updated prior to the start of each semester. Below are standing honors contracts for Fall 2025. 

Dr. Lori Biederman

Biology 2110 Honors standing contract – Fall 2025

Biological Board Games

Board games are a fun way to learn about all sorts of things, including biological concepts. In this honors class students will gather for approximately 1 hour every 3 weeks to play a board game with their peers and members of the EEOB department.

Students will also be required to (1) read an article about game inspiration; (2) watch game play videos prior to coming to a session; (3) attend at least 2 of the 4 game sessions (dates below); (4) write a very short reflection about 2 of the attended game sessions.

Game sessions will be on Wednesdays from 3:30 until approximately 4:30 on the following dates: October 1; October 22; November 12; December 3

Dr. Renu Srivastava

Learning Objective: Students will be able to get an in-depth perspective on recent advances in the topics studied in Biology 2120.

Students in Biology 2120 study various dynamic processes that occur in living systems. Students will select a topic of their choice from the curriculum that sparks their interest. They will search and identify, using a reliable website, two scientific papers from published scientific or medical research related to their topic of choice. The information in the research articles must expand upon the foundational knowledge gained in class.

Students will study the key central questions in the scientific article. They will summarize the major findings and evaluate how these discoveries deepen the student’s understanding of basic biological processes. Special attention should be given to how the research may impact the basic scientific understanding of the process or offer potential benefits to human health and society.

The project will culminate in writing an analytical paper. The written analysis will be 5–10 pages, double-spaced, 12-point font, drawing and describing how their readings help build on their knowledge. Students are encouraged to share any inspiration or new perspectives gained through their research and analysis.

Dr. Cristina Bonaccorsi

Students wishing to obtain honors credit for CHEM 1770 must register on the University Honors Program website and send an email to chem177bq@iastate.edu immediately after registering. 

 

Students will be invited to join a Canvas Course called CHEM 1770 Honors. This is an “organization” course, which means it will not appear on your transcript. You will use it to fulfill the requirements (see below) and I will use it to evaluate if you fulfilled the requirements.

 

To achieve the Honors component of CHEM 1770, students will:

 

  1. Complete a Discussion Assignment for approximately each Module (Chapter) on the CHEM 1770 Honors Canvas course. A discussion topic in the form of one or more questions will be provided; you must answer the question(s) and reply to a minimum of two students. Answers must be relevant, meaningful, and written clearly. A response to another student’s answer must be equally relevant, meaningful, and written clearly; for example, you may agree or disagree with their answer, and you must elaborate your point of view. When citing an external source, you must provide a reference (citation or link to website). External sources must be reputable. More information will be found on each Discussion on Canvas.
  2. Work in teams (selected by the professor and shown in the Canvas course) to do the following prior to each exam (3 times per semester – not for the final exam):
    1. Research into a real-world chemistry application that is of interest to you and relevant to the upcoming exam. The instructor will tell the team what is the particular topic (e.g., chapter or portion of a chapter) that they need to focus on.
    2. Write a short summary of the application.
    3. Write a minimum of 6 multiple-choice questions that students can use to help prepare for the upcoming exam. The key must be provided as well.
    4. The final product must be a Word document (or other compatible and/or editable format) and not a PDF!! You must submit the file on the CHEM 1770 Honors Canvas course, in the corresponding Assignment; you may also choose to type the text directly in the assignment, but a word document is more practical. One document per group. One student should take the lead and post the document on behalf of the group.

The multiple-choice questions will be shared with the students in the class prior to exams for practice. The research summary and questions are due at least one week prior to the exam. If you are having trouble finding a time to meet in person, in the past students have successfully cooperated remotely by using Google Docs or other sharing platforms. 

 

 

Honors students will complete training modules to develop their skills in editing Wikipedia. These trainings will cover, but are not limited to, effective communication with other Wikipedia users, evaluating articles and sources, assessing Wikipedia’s reliability, and updating articles.  Once trained students will work in groups to update a microbiology-relevant article in Wikipedia. 

Course Contract Examples

Any Iowa State University course can be contracted for honors credit. This process provides students with the opportunity to individualize their academic journey as well as to work closely with faculty. Contracts are due prior to the fourth Friday of class each semester.

Course Honors Component Shared Knowledge
ACCT 2850: Managerial Accounting Student will create a board game for the class to play during prep week to prepare for the final exam. Additionally, student will interview three different accountants at different firms to further explore the world of accounting. After conducting the interviews, student will compile my findings into a reflection paper that I will submit to the faculty member. To share the results of their learning with the class, student will present the board game that they create to the class, and everyone will get a chance to play it in preparation for the final exam. To share the results of my learning about a career in accounting, student will submit a reflection paper to faculty member.
AGRON 1810: Prep for Calculus Throughout my class, student will research crops and gardening both in class and through helping The Good Earth club. Student will use this new experience and knowledge to make plans for student's hometown FFA chapter's garden. These plans will help them construct an effective garden and upkeep schedules so the chapter can donate fresh produce to the local food pantry. Student will provide plans for their FFA chapter through both the layout and produce of garden and also an approximate schedule for gardening and harvesting. This will make the garden more manageable for the group.
AGRON 3420: World Food Issues The student will meet weekly with the faculty member to discuss issues of hunger utilizing literary resources. Two additional books have been identified to utilize as well as targeted news articles according to the student's personal interest. The student will create a presentation for a group of faculty members sharing what has been learned.
AMD 3540: Pre-Historic to Mid-19th Century Student will design a piece of dress. Student will complete research and use the course material to inspire my design. Student will explain how it would be constructed and provide detailed drawings of the design. To present the work, Student will compile all of their process work, along with a summary/analysis of the design at the end of the semester. This will be completed through the use of InDesign.
AMD 4670: Consumer Studies in Apparel and Fashion Products Student will complete an extra research project focused around Innovate 1858, the student-operated retail store located in the Student Innovation Center. As the class centers around consumer behavior and research methods used to best understand consumer behavior, studnet will be conducting individual research to identify the social identity of Cyclones, using two different methods for data collection and analysis. After conducting primary and secondary research, student will then use the findings to create a marketing campaign for Innovate 1858 that will best reach their target consumer. This project will allow student to apply the methods learned in class to a real-life apparel company, both helping the student to deepen their understanding of how the consumer behaves and giving Innovate 1858 a better look at their consumer as well. Student will share the results of my learning with the faculty member in order to gain feedback on what they did well and what they can improve on in future research. After project completion, student will also share their results with Innovate 1858 so that they are able to see the research, specifics findings, and potentially utilize the marketing campaign that the student developed.
ASL 1010: American Sign Language I The student will research independently about deaf culture by exploring the impact of COVID-19 on the deaf community. Interviews will be conducted via phone or Wavello. The student will compile their research into a report/paper at the end of the semester to be disseminated to their peers.
CE 3320: Structural Analysis 1 The student will work together with the professor to use structural analysis software to analyze more advanced structures related to the professor's research in structures for power transmission. This will help the student learn more about more complicated structures than those covered in class, while developing the student's understanding of software that the student may use in their career in engineering. The student will share their learning by putting together a poster and presentation to present at the CCEE graduate student research showcase early in the next semester.
CHEM 2100: Material and Energy Balances The student will create a board game to practice difficult concepts of the class prior to the final exam. There will also be a trivia/flash card element to the game to help further engage students in the class and break down difficult concepts. The game and trivia cards will be used by all classmates as well as future students in the course.
CJ ST 4840: Topical Studies in Criminal & Juvenile Justice The student will watch five videos about homicide, then attempt to explain why the offender engaged in the depicted homicidal behavior via written reflections and virtual meetings with the instructor. The student will also be tasked with connecting each video to course content. The student will write a two-page paper for each video assigned.
CPR E 3880: Embedded Systems 2 The student will implement multiplayer mode in their mobile application. This could be local (same room and WiFi) or "online" with different "rooms" to play in. The student will write documentation on how multiplayer was implemented such that the technical instructions could be used in the future as a lab assignment.
CRP 2930: Environmental Planning Throughout the semester student will read and evaluate the Climate Action Plans of four local Iowa cities and discuss them with the instructor. Student will learn how to use ArcGIS software to create a story map of the Climate Action Plans; providing information on their effectiveness and their shortcomings as well as comparing their strategies. Student's work will then be used as an example for future CRP students. Student will have a physical representation of what they learned. This includes the content of the plans they read, the student's interpretion and evaluation of the plans, and needed ArcGIS information.
EDUC 4480: Teaching Children Mathematics The student will record their last required tutoring session (virtual) with a second-grader. The student will then reflect upon their chosen teaching methods for that session. They will also create the lesson plan for this session centered around a framework chosen by the instructor. The student will compile quantitative results from the data analysis activities.
ENGL 3120: Biological Communication The student will go through a mock graduate school application process for the relevant field. The student will develop personal statements for each program they plan to apply for as well as will go through a mock graduate school interview. This relates directly to the course as the student will apply to graduate school in this field. The student will utilize the materials developed for graduate school applications and will work directly with the professor on a weekly basis.
ENGL 3150: Screenwriting Student will work together with faculty member to help me write a feature-length screenplay by the end of the course, instead of the assigned short-film screenplays. Student will submit the play in parts by specific deadlines throughout the semester. Additionally, they will meet outside of class to discuss and critique the student's work. Student will submit screenplay to faculty member. Student will then continue working on screenplay for edits and development for Capstone project.
ENT 3580X: Bee Biology, Management, & Beekeeping The student will work closely with the instructor(s) to conceptualize and plan field days wherein the class interacts with honey bee colonies to learn how to extract honey, conduct hive inspections, and identify indicators of colony health. The student will also help to lead their classmates as they engage with the lesson plans. Before the conclusion of the course, the student will compile a report of what they learned through the experience.
EVENT 2120X: Digital Production in Event Management The student will create multimedia to be incorporated into the coursework using the photography studio, images, digital media, audio files and faculty interviews. The learning will be directly applied at the Hong Kong fashion week event to directly market the work of ISU faculty and graduate students. The student will create a website and will also post on social media in both Chinese and English.
HIST 3720: Latino/a History Student will cook various dishes from the Latino/a cultures discussed in class and presenting the cooking styles, dining culture and history, and ingredients common in the cultures covered. The cover of the food culture will be presented in a short paper or presentation after each meal. Short paper or presentation of food cultures.
HORT 2400: Woody Trees and Shrubs for Landscaping Student will study the fruits of different families of trees. Specifically, student will create around 15 technical drawings of fruits from the major families studied in the course (Acer, Quercus, Abies, Picea, Pinus, Viburnum, Cornus, Juglans, Aronia, Prunus, Hydrangea, Pyrus, Abies, Ulmus, Alnus, Betula, etc). Key features of the fruit identification tips will also be included to aid students in ID. The drawn diagrams will be scanned and uploaded as pages of a PDF document that can be used as a study resource for future students. They will also be incorporated into future lecture slides to serve as a visual aid for students.
L A 1710: City Play! For L A 1710, the class is centered around how urban design supports play/interaction. As an honors component, the student will interprete a city with the "third person" (person recoding/ documenting the play) in mind. The student will generate diagrams, in addition to written documentation to help communicate the interactions in the space. Student will be include the diagrams in blog posts for the class, which will be seen and commented on by classmates.
MATH 1430: Prep for Calculus For each lecture, student will find 2-5 real-world applications (also known as story problems) for every learning topic. Student will amass these into a document, show their work for solving the problem, and the professor may use these for future or current classes for practice problems. Student will amass the problems into a shared Google document with the professor.
MGMT 3100: Entrepreneurship & Innovation The student will create their own business model meant to evaluate the validity and feasibility of a business opportunity chosen by the student. The student will share their final business model with the instructor, which will be used as an example for future iterations of the course.
MICRO 3020: Biology of Microorganisms The student will survey classmates to determine their interests within the course topics and will utilize data to determine 10 new sources (2 primary papers, 2 science reviewed articles, and 6 news articles) related to the class' top 10 interests. For each source, the student will write an article summary and explain how each pertains to classmates' interests. The student will share learning through the class discussion board as well as with the faculty member during weekly meetings.
PHYS 3220: Introduction to Modern Physics The student will utilize MATLAB software to simulate the phenomena we discuss in class. The simulations will be used as a teaching aid by the professor for future courses. The idea is for the student to gain a greater understanding of topics covered in class and apply them in a tangible manner. The results will be utilized to assist future students in PHYS 3220.
POL S 2350: Introduction to Ethics & Politics The student will meet once a week for one and a half hours to discuss extra insights into the class as well as extra material that can be read between weekly discussions. This is a completely discussion-based course so the best way to expand the learning in the class is to look further into the philosophical insights of the readings and to apply them to current event topics. During these discussions we will also talk about extra philosophers and concepts that are not discussed in the class. At the end of the semester, the professor and student will have a final discussion summarizing the extra content they have gone over. This can also include a discussion on how the student has grown as a speaker: something very important to the student's future career goals as a lobbyist.
POL S 2410: Democracy & Dictatorship: Introduction to Comparative Politics The student will compile real-world examples of course content and meet with the instructor every other week to discuss the differences and similarities between their examples and the class's examples. The student will compose a research paper summarizing their discussions and conclusions.
PSYCH 3600: Personality Psychology The student will assist the instructor in researching the process of experimental design and data analysis for sleep deprivation and impacts on personality. The student will compile quantitative results from the data analysis activities.
S E 1850: Problem Solving in Software Engineering The student will learn to write code in the C language and complete additional readings about C, C++, and C# coding. The student will perform a comparative study of these three languages to discuss weekly with the professor. Additionally, the student will create a study guide to be used by classmates prior to each exam. The student will share learning weekly with the professor as well as will share study guides with all students in the class.
SP CM 3270: Persuasion & Social Influence The student will create and ask all questions following group presentations during the final project. The student will also monitor online information in Canvas and communicate any issues to the professor that need to be addressed. The student will also create an additional final presentation related directly to their future career goals (in this case, family law) utilizing the research studied in the course. The results of this will be shared via a reflection paper that will be shared with the professor and with the University Honors Program.
WGS 4500: Topics in Women's Studies This course is offered both to graduate and undergraduate students. The Honors student will complete the graduate-level requirements for the course. The student will meet regularly with the faculty member to share progress.