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Honors


Advisor:  Dr. Lincoln Gray 
                graylc@jmu.edu
                HBS 1018
                                     

Recent News:
  • Camilla Czulada, an honors student and swimmer on the JMU Swimming and Diving team, was awarded the CAA Scholar-Athlete of the Year and the JMU Athletics Director Scholar-Athlete Award. She graduated in Spring 2016 with a B.A. in CSD and is now pursuing her Au.D. at University of South Florida.

Information to know:
  • Finding an adviser is likely the ‘bottleneck’ in the process.  Students are advised to start thinking about finding an honors adviser early in their Junior year (or before). 
    • Come to the fall-semester meet-and-great session if you can.
    • Visit the CSD lab page at http://www.csd.jmu.edu/researchlabs.html and look for some projects that interest you.  
    • Wander by the labs.  Talk to the people working there.  
    • It is an honor for a faculty member to be asked to be an honors adviser, but don't take it personally if faculty decline - such rejections likely depend on many factors that have nothing to do with you (like being too busy or already committed).  
    • Keep trying.
  • Students should be aware of the drop deadline for CSD499-1, the first course in the honors sequence.  If you miss the deadline to drop this course and are subsequently unable to find an adviser and write a proposal, then you may receive a grade of F for this 1-credit course.
  • Students who wish their work to compete for the best honors thesis in CSD are advised to have their document ready for review about a week after spring break.  See Dr. Gray for the specific deadline as the time approaches. 
  • Flexibility is allowed in the three course sequence described below; these can be combined or taken out of sequence.  See Dr. Gray if the 1-3-2 sequence doesn't seem right for you.  If you wish the accolades of 'with distinction' on your diploma and transcript, however, you must complete a total of 6 credits of 499 honors courses.

Information for CSD 499 1, 3, and 2:

CSD 499, Section 1, One Credit, Honors
(CSD 499-0001 on MyMadison)
  • This one-credit course is typically taken in the spring of the junior year. It begins what is typically, but not necessarily, a three-credit course sequence. 
  • Students must identify an approved adviser and write a proposal that is submitted to the Honors program at the end of the semester.
  • Students should be aware of the drop deadline for this course.  If they miss this deadline and are subsequently unable to find an adviser and write a proposal, they may receive a grade of F for this 1-credit course.
  • Students considering an adviser who is not a member of the CSD faculty must have their proposal reviewed and proposed.  See Dr. Gray.
  • FYI: This 1 credit, section 1, is described as 499A in descriptions from the Honors Program. The registrar set up the CSD499 sections to be taken in the  order of 1, 3, and finally 2.  This can be confusing.
CSD 499, Section 3, Three Credits, Honors
(CSD499-0003 on MyMadison)
  • This three-credit course is typically taken in the fall of the senior year.
  • This is when the student typically does the work (collects the data) for their honors projects
  • FYI: This 3 credit, section 3, is described as 499B in descriptions from the Honors Program.           

CSD 499, Section 2, Two Credits, Honors
(CSD499-0002 on MyMadison)
  • This two-credit course is typically taken in the spring of the senior year.
  • This is when the student typically writes up the work, preparing the Honors Thesis.
  • The Honors Program has a deadline for submission of the thesis that occurs before the end of the semester.  The Honors Program has some specific requirements for the format of the document, and it is the student’s responsibility to meet these requirements.
  • Students who wish their work to compete for the best honors thesis in CSD are advised to have their document ready for review soon after spring break.  See Dr. Gray for the specific deadline as the time approaches.
  • FYI: This 2 credit, section 2, is described as 499C in descriptions from the Honors Program.

Recent Honors Theses completed in 2016:

  • "American Sign Language as a Foreign Language Equivalent at James Madison University" by Abigail Compton (Advisor: Dr. Rory DePaolis)
  • "An Attempt to Quantify the Perception of Frequency Changes in Mice" by Camilla Czulada (Advisors: Dr. Lincoln Gray, Dr. Mark Gabriele, Dr. Christopher Clinard)
  • "Type and Location of Speech Disruptions in Adolescents With and Without Specific Language Impairment" by Katherine Davies (Advisor: Dr. Vicki Reed)
  • "Reflection: Effect of Age on Auditory Brainstem Responses in Mice with EphA4 Mutations" by Erica Hoogerland (Advisor: Dr. Lincoln Gray)
  • "Build-up Effect of Auditory Stream Segregation Using Amplitude-Modulated Narrowband Noise" by Harley Wheeler (Advisor: Dr. Yingjiu Nie)

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