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Chancellor’s school tour starts at CHHS

Posted on October 2, 2008 by Staff

Photo by Ava Barlow. UNC Chancellor Holden Thorp visited Tom Herndon’s authentic research class at Chapel Hill High School on Monday, speaking to the students about the university, research opportunities there, and encouraging them to try new things in college and to study abroad if possible.
Susan Dickson
Staff Writer

UNC Chancellor Holden Thorp kicked off a weeklong statewide tour on Monday with a visit to Chapel Hill High School.

To learn more about North Carolina and how UNC can better serve the state, Thorp is traveling to several different high schools and college campuses. Scheduled stops include Asheville High School, West Charlotte High School, Terry Sanford High School and several UNC system campuses.

On Monday, Thorp attended Tom Herndon’s Authentic Research class, an honors-level research methodology class of nine Chapel Hill High seniors. After watching as students tested the nitrogen levels in fish tanks, Thorp sat down with students to talk with them about what they want out of the college experience and the benefits of a large research university.

“We need to hear what students want,” Thorp said. “Otherwise, we won’t know how to create academic programs that will attract them to our university.”

Student Alec Nelson told Thorp he wanted to attend a college where he would have the opportunity to learn about many different subjects, so that he could really figure out where he wanted to focus. Other students discussed study-abroad programs, psychology and biology classes and more.

Thorp encouraged the students to try to figure out what they were truly interested in and to pursue it.

“If you study what you’re really motivated and excited and passionate about, then you’re going to do better than if you study something you think you ought to study,” Thorp said, adding that students should keep an open mind.

“When I was your age, I thought I knew what it was I wanted to do the rest of my life,” Thorp said, recalling his plans to attend medical school.

Thorp’s plans changed at UNC, where he had the opportunity to get involved in experiments and developed an interest in research.

“If I hadn’t gone to a place where I could have had that kind of experience, then I might not have figured that out,” he said.

Thorp wasn’t the only one asking the questions; students probed Thorp about what UNC looks for in students, science opportunities abroad and what motivates him as chancellor of UNC.

“I think those of us who work in higher education, we believe that higher education has the ability to lift society,” Thorp said. “Our institution in particular is the one that invented public higher education.

“Our founders wanted us to be known all over the world for our academic programs,” he said. “That’s why I get up at 5:30.”

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