Clinical Associate Professor & Assistant Dean
South Carolina Honors College
My research agenda focuses on social capital, social networks and student persistence of minority college students.
Research
There is a gap in the literature on social capital research in Higher Education. Because of this, I have received several requests to present my research and serve on doctoral dissertation committees. In 2017, I was invited to present my research on social capital and student persistence at the Oxford University (England) Education International Symposium. I am one of few researchers who have created a viable survey tool to measure social capital. My research on social capital and social networks can be applied to almost any field or subject area.
I have spent several years researching social capital and networks in Italy. In summer of 2018, I spent four weeks in Rome and again summer 2022, teaching a group of students from the South Honors Carolina Honors College focusing on social capital theory and social networks in Italy. My research concluded in 2019 with follow-up interviews with the co-founder of Sardex and other networks in the Amalfi region. This research is scheduled to be published in summer 2023.
Social Capital and Cultural Capital
High-Achieving Students
Presentations
- Parsons, J. and Thomas, H. (2021). Best Practices Session: Hispanic and African American Honors Students: Recruiting, Supporting and Celebrating Excellence. National Collegiate Honors Council National Conference, Orlando, FL.
- Thomas, H. (2021). Senior Thesis Panel Discussion. National Collegiate Honors Council National Conference, Orlando, Florida.
- Banks, H. (2019, November). Dual Advising: Social Capital in the Honors Advisement Experience. National Collegiate Honors Council National Conference, New Orleans, Louisiana.
- Banks, H. (2017, August). The influence of social capital on student persistence. Oxford Education Research Symposium at Oxford University, Oxford, England.
- Banks, H. (2015, November). Why did they stay: Understanding the effect of cultural capital on student persistence using a mixed methods approach. Mid-South Educational Research Association Conference, Lafayette, Louisiana.
- Banks, H. (2015, February). Making the Pieces Fit: Advising Honors College Students. February, 2015 University of South Carolina System Advisors Educational Conference.
- Banks, H. (2014, October). Alternative Methods to Address Diversity: Promoting Resilience in High Achieving Minority Students. Diversity Conference, College of Charleston, Charleston, SC.
