The signature event of UMass Boston Honors College Week will be the April 15 panel discussion, “What Does It Mean to Be Human?” Distinguished scholars from the Boston area will explore the title question at the event, which begins at 4 p.m. in the Campus Center ballroom.

The Honors College, which was approved last fall and enrolled its first students this semester, is an example of UMass Boston’s rapidly growing reputation for academic excellence and an integral part of the university’s 25-year strategic plan. UMass Boston’s Honors College is the second such institution in the Massachusetts public higher education system.

“The Honors College propels students to distinguish themselves intellectually through a dynamic curriculum open to all undergraduate majors,” said Honors College founding Dean and Professor of English Rajini Srikanth. “We engage them in complex local and global issues, so that after graduation they may exercise transformational leadership, visionary thinking, and thoughtful confidence in the workplace and in graduate study.”

Additional events throughout the week will celebrate the college and the extraordinary opportunities it will offer. For a complete UMass Boston Honors College Week schedule, please visit www.umb.edu/honors and click on “Honors College Week.”

For more information or to RSVP for an event, please email [email protected].