In the Cormier Honors College, we take honors courses that are designed to challenge students to learn in different ways. My first semester at Longwood, I took Honors anthropology with Dr. James Jordan. In this course, we got to take various field trips around Virginia where we got to learn out in the real world instead of in a classroom reading textbooks. We also had to write a 10-page paper and create a 25-minute long presentation on a topic of our choice. We were able to explore a subject we were interested in, not a subject assigned to us by a professor that may not interest us as much. Before this course, I had never written a paper longer than 5-pages or done an oral presentation longer than a few minutes. I will not sugarcoat it: the task was not easy. This assignment really challenged me and forced me to think outside the box and do research I had never done before. However, that is exactly what being a student in the Honors college is all about. We get amazing opportunities to push ourselves outside of our comfort zones and learn in new ways; we get to learn outside of the classroom. Honors has been helping me grow as a student since the first day I arrived at Longwood. I am certain that the lessons and opportunities Honors has given me will continue to benefit me beyond my time at Longwood.