Pell Honors Program

An interdisciplinary honors program focusing on international relations and public policy, the Pell Honors Program was created to honor the life and work of Sen. Claiborne Pell. During his 36 years in the Senate, Pell made historic contributions in international relations, higher education, environmental protection and global resource preservation, and government support of the arts, humanities, libraries and museums.

The Pell Honors Program aims to realize Pell's vision of liberal education and informed citizenship. The program promotes the University's mission of preparing students to serve the community, seek peace and justice in the world and be responsible citizens at the local, national and international level. The program shares Pell's conviction that one of the best ways to understand the meaning of liberty and conscientious freedom is through a serious study of the essential texts that inform our founding principles, along with those of other cultures that do not necessarily share our own views.

Through the Pell Honors Program, students enter into respectful but critical debates about God, politics, human nature and ethics, and examine the conflicting visions of the good life that have unfolded over centuries and shaped human history. Course texts connect students with the roots of modernity and contemporary thought and their ancient and medieval counterparts. Students read challenging authors with comprehension and critical discernment and argue and justify their positions cogently and with a sense of style.

Students in the Pell Honors Program join a lively community of scholars drawn from many departments and schools of inquiry, united by a passion for knowledge and lifelong learning.

Pell Honors Program Staff

Dr. Khalil Habib
Director of the Pell Honors Program and Assistant Professor of Philosophy
E-mail: khalil.habib@salve.edu

Student Spotlight


												Photo of Mary Kate Kane
Mary Kate Kane '10
Auburn, Mass.
Major: International studies, minor in environmental studies
Interests: Irish step dancing, Learning Unlimited program, Multicultural Student Organization, student anti-genocide coalition STAND, Environmental Club

International studies major Mary Kate Kane '10 was looking for a college that shared her global perspective. When she discovered that Salve Regina encourages its students to work for a world that is harmonious, just and merciful, it proved to be the perfect fit.