You learn more when you do more. That’s the educational philosophy behind
Your Hendrix Odyssey: Engaging in Active Learning, a cornerstone
of the Hendrix curriculum since 2005. With six categories of projects and plenty
of flexibility, the Odyssey Program encourages all Hendrix students to embark on
educational adventures that are personalized to their own interests and abilities.
You can learn more about the Odyssey program on its website.
Odyssey Program Endowments
Hendrix is committed to ensuring that these types of powerful learning experiences
are possible for all students, and the Odyssey Program endowment makes these experiences
possible. The Odyssey Program endowment began with a challenge grant of $2 million
from the Willard and Pat Walker Foundation. There are now 39 named Odyssey endowment
funds that support grants to Hendrix students and faculty for engaged learning activities.
From research to determine an effective treatment for prostate cancer to an internship
with a rural health clinic in a remote area of Namibia or volunteering with a recycling
program in Panama, Odyssey projects reflect the diverse interests and passions of
Hendrix students.
A named Hendrix Odyssey endowment begins with a gift of $25,000.
Your endowment can be designated to support student Odyssey experiences in a specific
category.
This past year Hendrix students received Odyssey grants to interview and photograph
pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago de Compostela in Spain, observe new methods for
teaching literacy in New Zealand, volunteer at a medical clinic in Nicaragua, and
conduct research to determine the contributions of specific muscles to breathing
in the bottlenose dolphin.
Odyssey Professorships
A gift of $50,000 or more can endow a named Odyssey Professorship.
The Odyssey Professorships are offered to faculty for periods of up to three years.
Individual faculty members or small groups of faculty members may apply on a competitive
basis for the professorships, which carry an endowment to support faculty projects
that create new engaged learning opportunities, such as undergraduate research,
for students. Recently, Dr. Jennifer Penner and Dr. Jennifer Peszka of the psychology
department received an Odyssey Professorship to conduct research exploring the role
of the frontal lobe of the brain in dating and mating decision making. Their work
will support undergraduate research experiences for at least 30 Hendrix students.