By Kaetlyn Cordingley, Interim Director of Davidson Honors College at the University of Montana.
Originally published in Missoula Current, November 30, 2018.
Students at the University of Montana are solving some of the world’s most pressing issues. I like to think of UM as Missoula’s own think tank. The University of Montana and Davidson Honors College are filled with intelligent and creative students and faculty from myriad disciplines ready and willing to help solve some of the major challenges of today from affordable housing to sustainability.
In 2016, two Davidson Honors College students, along with the dean and representatives from the City of Missoula, collaborated to develop a program that harnesses some of that intellectual horsepower and sends it back out into the community. Through this partnership, Questions for Undergraduates Exploring Social Topics, or QUEST, was born.
Noah Hill, co-founder of the QUEST program, says: “The QUEST program was started because we wanted to provide students with an opportunity that combines a robust research experience with making a difference in the community. This year the challenge is around sustainability, which is a great topic because it requires our students to combine academic research and real-world applications for their projects to be successful.”
