CCU HTC Honors College

Here's what's happening in August in the HTC Honors College! 📆 We'll have the calendar posted in Singleton-Young Hall and Kearns Hall every month and will share important dates every week via our email newsletter, the Monday Memo. Stay tuned for more event announcements throughout the semester!

Justin Vaughn, Ph.D., professor of political science and director of the Center for Applied Civic Leadership (CACL) at Coastal Carolina University, in partnership with the HTC Honors College, the CCU Gupta College of Science and Engineering, and the Burroughs & Chapin Center for Marine and Wetland Studies, has been awarded a 2026 U.S. Civil Society Microgrant from the Pulitzer Center.

The grant will support a project titled Civic Leadership, Informed Dialogue, and Coastal Climate Challenges, a series of place-based civic learning experiences that use Pulitzer Center-supported journalism to help local business and civic leaders better understand challenges affecting coastal South Carolina's fisheries, ecosystems, and communities. Funding will support the costs associated with utilizing the Coastal Explorer vessel for two half-day trips around Waties Island, as well as transportation for two cohorts of participants to and from the marina.

Learn more about the project here: https://www.coastal.edu/news/fall2026/ccuprofessorearnspulitzercentergrantforwatiesislandprojectexpandingcivicdialogue/

📸 Snapshots from the 2026 CCU Quill Project scholars and faculty throughout their first week at the University of Oxford. 🇬🇧💂‍♂️✈️
Six of our students are participating in this summer’s study abroad experience and in-person training at University of Oxford’s Pembroke College. The group has enjoyed exploring London’s cultural landscape, including Windsor Castle, the Ashmolean Museum, and the Tower of London, and conducting research in Oxford’s famed Bodleian Library. Their research will continue upon their return to campus this fall.

CCU professors Juliana Harding and Louis Keiner, along with undergraduate honors marine science student Trevor Nelson and coastal marine and wetland studies graduate students Ben Armstead and Seth Koepfler, are conducting a summer field campaign in Winyah Bay, Little River, and offshore. The project goal is to improve the accuracy of satellite-based water quality monitoring in South Carolina’s coastal waters. 🌊

The project focuses on the region’s blackwater estuaries and rivers, waterways characterized by high concentrations of dissolved organic matter that make them challenging to monitor using standard satellite remote sensing methods. Over the past month, the research team has completed two research cruises in the Intracoastal Waterway and offshore in Winyah Bay, in addition to multiple field sampling days. Students are directly involved in all aspects of the research, including instrument calibration, field data collection, laboratory analysis, and satellite data processing. 💻

This work is supported by the South Carolina NASA Space Grant Consortium and contributes to ongoing efforts to monitor and manage coastal water quality in the southeastern United States.

Congratulations to honors program alumna Tessa Bentley, CCU’s first winner of the DAAD Graduate Study Scholarship!

Tessa Bentley is CCU’s first winner of DAAD Graduate Study Scholarship Coastal Carolina University: Tessa Bentley is CCU’s first winner of DAAD Graduate Study Scholarship

Today begins our weekend of college recognition ceremonies for our Class of 2026 CCU graduates. Graduates from the HTC Honors College will participate in the college ceremony of their major. You can view a livestream of the ceremonies on the Coastal Carolina University YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8XbFEivW19dm2U2p6do3StdqtnrBel8z

The schedule of ceremonies is below:

Friday, May 8, at 9 a.m. - CCU Conway Medical Center College of Health & Human Performance

Friday, May 8, at 1 p.m. - CCU Edwards College of Humanities & Fine Arts

Friday, May 8, at 5 p.m. - CCU Gupta College of Science

Saturday, May 9, at 9 a.m. - Wall College of Business

Saturday, May 9, at 1 p.m. - CCU Spadoni College of Education & Social Sciences

Hats off to our honors program Class of 2026! We are incredibly proud of your accomplishments during your time at CCU and look forward to celebrating with you at your college ceremonies this weekend! Here are some highlights from our Honors Convocation. 🎓