A program in its second year is giving high-achieving students not invited into the Honors College an alternative.
With the trend of high school grade-point averages and ACT scores swinging higher each year and MSU officials saying they want to stabilize Honors College enrollment, the option of the Academic Scholars Program is quickly gaining popularity.
The program, which had 114 students its first year, has doubled its enrollment with 279 students this fall. The program offers students the opportunity to take Honors College classes without being enrolled in the college. Currently, the Honors College has 2,390 students enrolled.
“Lots of people get on the dean’s list, but haven’t taken honors classes,” she said. “Those who haven’t taken the classes have a slightly higher hurdle to meet.”
Tess Tavormina, faculty coordinator for the program, said the ability to take advanced classes prepared students to join the Honors College the following year.
“It makes the slope a little less steep,” Tavormina said.
She said out of the 114 students who were in the program last year, 57 applied into the Honors College and 47 were excepted.
Barbara Steidle, assistant provost for undergraduate education, said the program was instituted to attract students in high school.
“We had a number of students who missed the cutoff of Honors College,” Steidle said. “When we looked at this population, we thought we’d have a better chance of attracting them with an alternative option.”
Honors College Director Ron Fisher said it’s hard to determine how the program will benefit the Honors College so early in its existence, but is confident it will.
“It’s a powerful recruiting, if we attract more top notch students,” Fisher said.
Danny Lynn, an interdisciplinary humanities sophomorewho was in the program last year, said it was nice to have smaller classes and receive more attention from teachers.
“I wanted less commitment than the Honors College program offered,” she said.
Supply chain management sophomore Nicole Gallagher said she lived in a residence hall last year with an all-Academic Scholars floor and still lives with a lot the people she met.
Gallagher said the program gave her a lot of options and thought it was a good way to get involved.
“It looked good on my résumé, helped me get involved in community service and got me out of taking some general classes,” she said.
