For over fifty years, Emeritus Professor Gary Ferngren, from the School of History, Philosophy and Religion, shaped the experiences of countless honors students at Oregon State University. This year, as the Honors College celebrates its 30th anniversary, Ferngren reflects on this history, which dates back to the honors program that existed before the establishment of the college in 1995.
“It was in ’73 that a student suggested I join the honors program,” he recalls. “At that time, the program had just begun and was still quite small. They were looking for professors, and I felt I’d be a good fit.”
Though the honors program closed in 1991 due to budget cuts, Ferngren’s dedication never wavered. He was one of the primary faculty advocates for the return of an honors program at Oregon State. When the Honors College was created in 1995, he returned to teaching honors students with renewed enthusiasm.
Of all the courses he taught, one stands out. For decades, Ferngren led the popular honors colloquium God, Pain, and the Problem of Evil: An Introduction to C. S. Lewis, in which he encouraged students to think deeply and engage in open discussion. “I’d always tell my classes: Don’t be afraid to challenge my opinion,” he says, emphasizing the value of lively, thoughtful conversation. As one of the earliest colloquia in the college — and one of the longest-running honors courses at the university, including its time in the program — this approach set a model for how classes are taught in the Honors College.
Ferngren believes that critical thinking is the heart of a university education. “The Honors College, and especially the colloquia courses, encourage students to be thinkers,” he notes. In that same spirit, he founded the Socratic Club, modeled after C. S. Lewis’s approach to debate. The club invited faculty and students to take part in open-ended dialogue. “It’s important to be open to different ideas,” Ferngren shares, a principle that has always guided his pedagogy.
Even in retirement, Ferngren remains engaged with the honors community. Recently, he served as a mentor and thesis committee member for Ashton McCracken, a current Honors College senior majoring in history. Ashton describes Ferngren as “one of the most kind and insightful professors I have had in my time at OSU,” and shares that, as a freshman, he was “fortunate enough to take one of the last courses Ferngren taught” with the Honors College. “Even now, three years later, Dr. Ferngren's Introduction to C. S. Lewis colloquium remains the most important course I have taken at OSU. It exposed me to the accessible depths of philosophy and paved the way for my ongoing research.”
For Ferngren, teaching has always been more than a profession. “Teaching was my first love — it’s the love of my life,” he shares.
This commitment is reflected in Ferngren’s mentorship. Ashton says, “he helped me tremendously by providing resources, recommending additional committee members and even offering to connect me with a colleague who had written about my topic.” He adds, “As both a professor and a person, he is encouraging, kind and selfless.”
Ferngren’s long-standing commitment to open dialogue and critical thought helped lay the groundwork for the kind of education the Honors College values — one that is curious, engaged and student-centered. His influence continues in all of the spaces and interactions in the HC where big ideas take shape.
By Flora Snowden, Honors College Student Writer