Program Description

Academics

The academic program provided each Yeager Scholar is rigorous and demanding. The program consists of a number of elements:

• A core of four interdisciplinary seminars, one each semester for the first two years. The seminars will cover communication and computers; humanities, texts and values; theories of science and statistics; and history and the arts.
• The development of a proficiency in a modern language.
• Additional courses in the natural and social sciences and in literature to round out the core curriculum of a Scholar's program.
• In-depth study in a major or majors selected from those offered by the University.
• Independent study, guided by a mentor professor, leading to a senior project.
• Study abroad at Oxford University and in a country where the Scholar's choice of a foreign language can be used in daily living.
• Community mentorships appropriate to the Scholar's major, in government, business, industry or education.

The core curriculum is designed to assist each Yeager Scholar in developing skills in analysis, synthesis and critical thinking. Each scholar will be expected to demonstrate superior skills in written and oral communication. In order to remain in the Yeager Scholar's program, each student must maintain a cumulative 3.5 grade point average.

International Study

An important component of the Yeager Scholars Program is the opportunity to learn about and experience life beyond the shores of the United States. The Yeager Scholar is encouraged to gain an international perspective through the acquisition of a proficiency in a foreign language, followed by the opportunity to use that language in a foreign country and the chance to study at a foreign university.

Because it is vitally important for the successful professional of tomorrow to be able to communicate with people who speak another language, the Society of Yeager Scholars encourages students to experience that language and its culture first hand. The Scholar spends time in a country where he or she can use the language he or she has been learning to study and live in an environment that will give each Scholar a comprehensive picture of life in a different culture.

In addition, Scholars attend a summer program at Oxford University in an educational environment that tests their abilities as thinkers and writers. Here they also have the chance to expand their knowledge about the United Kingdom and the European Community.

Update from the Director Summer 2007

Ever since I came on board as Director I have heard students, faculty, and staff talk about the summer program at Oxford University (Exeter College) as a highpoint of the experience for Yeager Scholars. I am pleased to report that I am able to confirm this testimony on the basis of first hand experience at Oxford this summer. This summer I went “back to school” with Yeager Scholars and participated in the English Literature track of the Exeter College program. It was simply wonderful.

Seminars Students attended two seminars while in Oxford. Choices in the English Literature program included: Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, Shakespeare – Sources to Stage, Shakespeare – Performing Dangerous Plays, Romantic Poetry, Jane Austen, Victorian Women’s Writing, High Victorian Fiction, and Modernist Fiction. The tutors for my courses were excellent and I received very good reports from the students about all of the courses. The reading and writing schedules for all of the seminars were demanding. You should also know that the classes are pitched at the graduate level. Most of the students in the courses are graduate students. The Yeager Scholars were the youngest group present in the program and their success suggests that we are doing a nice job preparing them.

Plenary lectures Every morning students attended a plenary lecture from a recognized expert in the field. Overall the lectures were superb. They were stimulating and provided a nice counterpoint to the seminars. Topics included: “Measure and Light: The Idea of Beauty in Medieval Poetry,” “The Inventory of English: The Oxford English Dictionary,” “Shakespeare’s Theater Contemporaries,” “What Happens to Marriage in Victorian Fiction,” and “Women’s Writing in the Twentieth Century.”

Living in Oxford Of course an important part of the learning experience was living in Oxford itself. Moving in and among these old buildings and sharing space with former Oxonians like John Wesley, William Morris, J. R. R. Tolkien, Alduos Huxley, and Stephen Hawking can be pretty heady and enlivening stuff. Add to this the scheduled excursions to places like Stratford-upon-Avon and Bath and you get a sense of the full range of experiences available to the students.

 “Only the Best” I am also pleased to report that our students are making quite an impression on classmates, faculty, and staff at Exeter College. On a number of occasions classmates of Yeager Scholars sought me out to tell me how impressed they were by our students. Jacob Kilgore (Class of 2009) was described as a “star.” When I introduced myself to two of the instructors and explained my connection with the Yeager Scholars, they offered the following characterizations of two of our students, Jacob Kilgore and Josh Lynn (Brammer Class of 2008): “a delight to have in the classroom,” “a role model for other students,” and “I wish we had more like him.” I was particularly taken with Professor John O’Connor’s assessment of Jacob Kilgore. He was very surprised (and delighted) to discover that Jacob was a chemistry major. He went on to say nice things about our program’s commitment to the liberal arts.

I went to Oxford hoping to get a sense of the student experience and assess how well prepared our students were for the program. I also wanted to determine if we were getting value for our money and strengthen our relationship with program administrators. I want to share with you my confidence in our students and their performance at Exeter and my satisfaction that the Board’s investment in this part of the academic program for Yeager Scholars is paying real dividends. I am also convinced that our relationship with the Summer Programme at Exeter is secure. We promise Yeager Scholars extraordinary learning experiences. The Summer Programme in English Literature at Exeter College plays an important role in delivering on that promise.

  - Barry Sharpe

                 Enrichment Opportunities

The academic core is only one part of the Yeager program that is designed to assist the Scholars in attaining their potential as leaders of tomorrow. A variety of enrichment opportunities has been created that have long-lasting value for each Scholar.

Distinguished Lecturer/Practitioners are selected from leaders in business, industry, education, the fine and performing arts, and government service, and are asked to devote time to the program, meeting and interacting with the Yeager Scholars. The Scholars have a responsibility for each Practitioner's visit, establishing contacts that will be valuable in future careers.

Yeager Scholars have the opportunity to work with other guests of the University such as the occupants of the Drinko Chair in Liberal Arts, an endowed visiting professorship inviting such people as former Senator and Presidential candidate George McGovern, Chilean scholar Grinor Rojo, historian Trevor Wilson, geographer Harm de Blij, and Irish literary scholar Maurice Harmon to spend a semester on campus teaching and interacting with students. The Yeager program hosted Marshall's Diplomat-in-Residence, Ambassador Robert E. Barbour, during the 1987-88 academic year.

The opportunity to broaden their knowledge of the world through travel at home, as well as through travel abroad, is also a part of the Yeager program.

Trips in the United States are arranged to enable the Scholars to visit historic sites, museums, businesses and industries, and scientific and research centers, to enhance and build upon work done in the classroom.

Each Yeager Scholar is expected to develop leadership skills that will be a life-long asset. Participation in a variety of campus organizations and activities is a part of each Scholar's contribution to the University during his or her time on the campus. Scholars have already established a strong presence in many campus organizations ranging from student government to fraternities and sororities to campus honoraries in particular disciplines.

Yeager Scholars are encouraged, and have been active, in forensics, both debate and individual events, University Theatre productions, and WMUL-FM radio as a means of sharpening skills in communication. Written communication skills have not been neglected as Yeager Scholars have written for the student newspaper, The Parthenon, and won the honors categories of the Maier Awards, given annually for outstanding student work.

Strong emphasis is placed on the development of an awareness of the cultural heritage of the United States and the rest of the world. For that reason, Yeager Scholars are expected to take advantage of the cultural opportunities offered by by the University Artists Series, the annual Yeager Symposium, as well as the wide variety of University sponsored events open to all students.

Yeager Scholars are expected to maintain a high level of physical well-being, and indeed, have established a record of participation in both intramural and intercollegiate sports. Members of the Yeager Scholars program established the first Rugby club at Marshall in 1988.

Organization of the Program

The Society of Yeager Scholars is a part of the academic program of Marshall University and comes under the direction of the Vice President for Academic Affairs. Academic policy for the Yeager Scholars program is guided by a Steering Committee composed of University faculty. The Chair of the Steering Committee and the Director of the John R. Hall Center for Academic Excellence have a role in developing the curriculum, administering the budget, coordinating the international aspects of the program, and recruiting and advising of the Scholars.

A distinguished Board of Directors has been established to advise on policy, to promote the Society, to assist in recruiting students, and to be active in fund-raising. Permanent members of the Board of Directors are the President of Marshall University as well as the Vice-President for Academic Affairs and the Vice-President for Institutional Advancement of the University. The Governor of West Virginia is an Ex-officio member of the board.

Funding for the Society of Yeager Scholars comes primarily from private money. An endowment in excess of $9.2 million supports the Yeager Scholars and is administered through the Marshall University Foundation.