Undergraduate Academic Affairs

December 15, 2009

Students share their talents at first Honors Open Mic

Undergraduate Academic Affairs

By Charmi Ajmera

Junior Dominique Miciano

Junior Dominique Miciano performs an electronic pop music piece with her friend (not-pictured) Honors student Cory Peasley at the first Honors Open Mic night.Photo by Johnny Chan

Dimming the lights, scrambling to find a seat and trying desperately not to drip hot coffee on anyone, on Thursday, December 3, UW Honors students settled into the upstairs room of U District institution Café Allegro to see what their peers had to offer.

As the first of what will hopefully become an annual event, the Honors Open Mic Night, hosted by the Honors Student Advisory Panel, had a turnout of over 70 students throughout the night and over a dozen performances as Honors students from majors ranging from International Studies to Neurobiology to Comparative Literature to Computer Science came together to perform and support one another.

Students read poetry, played classic and acoustic guitar pieces, performed an original hip hop piece as well as electronic pop music, and a stellar stand up comedy act rounded out the evening. All of the impressive performances showcased the vast array of talents within the Honors Program. As poet Katie McCorkell said, “I had no idea the Honors Program was full of such talent! It was fun to see different sides of my classmates. I can’t wait for the next Open Mic night!”

The event was planned and hosted by the Honors Student Advisory Panel, a student group within the Honors Program committed to building the Honors community, fostering a relationship between Honors students, staff and professors, as well as connecting the Honors Program to the wider UW community. A specific focus of the Honors Student Advisory Panel this year is to organize events throughout the year that profile honors students, bringing together undergraduates of different disciplines, talents and class standings to create a network of support and community. The Open Mic night was the first of many upcoming Honors events that the student group hopes to organize throughout the year. Other possible events include a Winter Formal, a potential concert series in the spring, as well as the Honors Research Colloquium and Honors Excellence in Teaching Award.

Support for the Open Mic Night was provided by Café Allegro as well as by the University Book Store.


About the Author
Charmi Ajmera is an Honors student majoring in international studies and minoring in South Asian languages and literature. She serves as the Honors Student Advisory Panel’s vice-chair and is a student employee in the Honors Program.