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Honors at Messiah
WHAT AN HONOR
FOR 25 YEARS, A HOLISTIC APPROACH HAS ALLOWED MESSIAH’S HONORS PROGRAM TO HELP STUDENTS EXCEL
By Natalie Frank ’25
What does it mean to be a member of Messiah University’s Honors Program? Is it just another embellishment for a student’s resume? A VIP pass to campus social networks and exclusive events? Or does it hold a deeper significance as an opportunity for growth and personal development? Messiah’s alumni, students and faculty weigh in.
Established in 1998, the program currently boasts an enrollment of 400 students from myriad majors at the University.
WHAT THEY DO
Professor of American History James B. LaGrand began directing the program in 2018 and still manages to find time to build relationships with all of the Honors students.
“I pick my spots within the time that I have, and I try to offer students something that meets them where they are, that challenges them, that’s both in and out of the classroom,” he said.
The mission of the program follows six themes:
1. Exploring fundamental questions
2. Facing disputed questions
3. Cultivating a Christian worldview
4. Growing and applying talents
5. Engaging in conversation
6. Enjoying community.
A key component of the Honors Program is the 15–20 events they host each semester. Within this framework, program participants are encouraged to attend at least two.
The program invites guests from all professions to come and speak to Honors students. Previous lecturers have included Google Vice President Greg Moore and MIT physicist Ian Hutchinson.
“A lot of the events, the programming, and the activities in the program particularly focus on these two categories of questions [fundamental and disputed],” said LaGrand. “We try to frame questions in a way that makes people pause and say, ‘I’d like to hear some smart people on both sides respond to this and make up my own mind.’”
HONORS ADMISSIONS
So, how do students get in to the Honors Program?
“We have a holistic approach,” said LaGrand. “It’s not simple or mechanical.” While a candidate’s high school GPA and SAT, ACT or CLT score are taken into account, admission is based on a range of considerations.
“[Admission] also has to do with a student’s experiences, what he or she was involved with in high school,” said LaGrand.
Students must complete the Messiah University application process before Feb. 1. Qualified students are invited to come to campus for an honors day event to interview with a faculty member. While on campus, candidates must write a short essay responding to one of the six themes.
We have a holistic approach. It’s not simple or mechanical.
–James B. LaGrand, director of the Honors Program
THE HONORS CURRICULUM
Messiah’s program sets itself apart from other institutions by prioritizing the preservation of students’ time and energy, affording them the necessary flexibility to excel in preprofessional programs while maintaining a rigorous academic experience.
Rachel Huang ’24, a biomedical engineering major, found a good balance between her hobbies and the Honors Program.
“I play French horn for the symphony orchestra and wind ensemble at Messiah,” said Huang. “I’m really happy to be able to continue playing, because if I wasn’t able to add that to what I was doing in college I think I would end up dropping music entirely.”
Rigorous academics in the program also helped students solidify career choices. “The Honors Program definitely influenced my decision to pursue law and, more recently, public service as a government lawyer. I was always challenged to write persuasively and think critically,” said Ryan Rich ’02.
Psychology major Amy Sumner ’21 says that her time in the Honors Program allowed room to include leadership opportunities.
“Throughout my time in the program, I was able to identify as an Honors student and as a Falcon [to] balance involvement in several clubs, hold several leadership positions and still reap the benefits of a rigorous education. I learned a lot about my potential as a scholar. I was supported by the Honors faculty, who listened to my ideas, challenged me to become a stronger writer and encouraged me to pursue my dreams,” said Sumner.
The program customizes several general education classes, which are mandatory for all students, to cater to those in Honors. This approach alleviates the need for students to incorporate extra classes into their schedules while ensuring they still encounter academic challenges. Four interdisciplinary courses specific to the program include First-Year Seminar, an Ethics and the Common Good class, a new category called Intercultural and a Culminating University Honors Experience, in which students complete their senior Honors project or seminar.
“The idea here is to encourage students to have for their own well-being and portfolio some high-level, relevant experience that wraps up their whole education,” said LaGrand about the senior project.
For example, a student who majored in art and chemistry came up with a unique final Honors project.
“She did this impressive study on the role of chemistry in art conservation that would benefit art museums and curators as they seek to use scientific knowledge to protect their treasured projects,” he said.
Beyond the required courses, the Honors Program requires first-year students to participate in the Book of the Year program. Students read an important book together throughout the academic year, sparking intellectual growth, conversation and connection among members in the program.
STUDENT BENEFITS
The program offers unique opportunities for students, such as an education abroad trip to Rome. The five-week trip counts as seven credits that are gained through classwork in Christ and Roman Culture; a course of a student’s choice at the American University of Rome; and working with missionaries on a service-learning opportunity.
“I took art in Rome, where we went to a different historical site in the city every class, and our professor explained the historical and artistic significance,” said Sydney Sefing ’24, a biopsychology major who went on the trip in June of 2022.
Outside of the classes, her study abroad group enjoyed weekend-long trips through International Studies Abroad.
“These trips included traveling to the oldest vineyard in Tuscany, touring the ruins of Pompeii, exploring Florence, cliff-jumping off of the coast of Sorrento and swimming off the island of Capri,” she said.
Alongside fun study abroad opportunities, students in the program get incredible academic and extracurricular support. The program helps students pursue prestigious awards, such as the Rhodes and Marshall scholarships.
BUILDING A COMMUNITY
In keeping with the sixth theme of “enjoying community,” the Honors Program recognizes the significance of developing lasting friendships at college.
“I was never at a loss for friends with which to have deep and interesting conversations. My first-year seminar group remained tight throughout our years at Messiah, and I keep in touch with some of them even to this day,” said Philip Graybill ’05, an assistant professor of engineering at Messiah.
Those looking for ways to connect even more with peers from the program can apply to join the Harbor House, an Honors-based special interest housing option on campus that hosts events each semester.
“For students who want a little bit more of a common touch Honors culture, that’s one way to have it,” said LaGrand.
The program also encourages building relationships with faculty members.
Each spring semester, members of the program usually gather for a day trip. On one of these trips to the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C. Honors student Emmy Varner ’25 decided to change her major.
Although she initially came to Messiah as an elementary education major, she met former Messiah professor Ted Davis, who served as an exhibit advisor and talked to the Messiah students who visited that day. That visit sparked an interest in Varner to work in a museum setting. After that trip, she met with Associate Professor of History Sarah Myers and felt at peace with the decision to switch her major to public history.
“She was so supportive,” Varner said. Sefing agreed that college is a great time to stretch and explore options, and the Honors Program is a great way to do that.
“Some of the best relationships and most life-changing experiences have come out of my connections to the Honors Program,” said Sefing.
MORE THAN A PROGRAM
While the Honors Program has a well-developed curriculum, engaging events and excellent networking opportunities, the students breathe life into the program.
“Every year, it’s just so encouraging for the future to have these students that have this wonderful combination of a positive, good spirit,” said LaGrand. “They don’t need a lot of time on the rudimentary stuff. We can just take off, and they take off with me.”
My first-year seminar group remained tight throughout our years at Messiah, and I keep in touch with some of them even to this day.
–Philip Graybill '05
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE HONORS PROGRAM: MESSIAH.EDU/HONORSPROGRAM
