George Caldwell ‘24
News Editor
The Holy Cross College Honors Program unites students from multiple disciplines who have demonstrated academic excellence at the College. This sets the program apart from many other schools’ programs, where honors students are selected based on their high school GPA, and often have to apply for the program alongside their application for the school itself.
One honors student who knows a great deal about the program is Emmeline Lignowski ‘24, a senior who has been in the program since her sophomore year. Emmeline explained how she learned about the program, saying, “I first learned about the Honors Program through an email from the director, who at the time was Professor Ellen Perry. I qualified to apply because of my freshman year GPA.”
Qualification by GPA for the program is, in fact, not the only way for a student to become eligible. As Holy Cross’ website explains, “sophomores and juniors are eligible to apply to the College Honors Program if they meet at least one of the following criteria: they receive a nomination by a faculty member who has taught them in a Holy Cross course, and/or they meet a minimum GPA.”
After being invited to the program, students enter an application process, involving “a writing sample from a college class, short essays responding to prompts that change each year, a transcript, a résumé, and two faculty recommendations.” After reviewing this material, the Honors director invites a select number of students to an interview, which is the second round of the application process. This interview, alongside the previously submitted material, informs the program’s decisions on which students will be admitted. As the website indicates, “each year, no more than 33 sophomores are admitted, along with 2–5 juniors, depending on space in the program.” Since Holy Cross is already a highly selective institution, and the Class of 2027 is made up of 827 students, this means that admission to the program is a great honor, and offered to a small fraction of the student body.
Once students have entered the program, the requirements are quite straightforward. Honors students take two seminars during their time at Holy Cross, one during their sophomore year and the other in their junior or senior year. Additionally, Honors students are required to attend colloquium, a meeting of all the honors students, where they are treated to special lectures from a diverse group of Holy Cross professors.
Lignowski has greatly appreciated her experience thus far. “Being a member of the Honors Program has helped enhance my liberal arts experience,” she says. “The classes and colloquiums have exposed me to topics from a wide range of disciplines that I otherwise might not have thought about.”
All of this work and discussion ultimately culminates in a thesis. Theses can focus on any topic a student chooses, but they are generally related to that student’s major. Lignowski’s thesis accordingly is related to her interests. As she explains, “My thesis focuses on the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Broadway theater. This ties together my two majors: economics and music. I hope to obtain a PhD in economics and continue research.”
This demonstrates the great value of the College Honors Program. Students from diverse disciplines are brought together under one program, but they are free to pursue their own interests and passions. One way in which the program encourages this is by inviting juniors to consider their interests over the years with a project called the “intellectual autobiography,” which culminates in a presentation on their interests to the rest of the program. As the website states, the program “aims to convene a vibrant, diverse community of students and faculty who approach the challenges of independent work with a spirit of curiosity and resilience.” Thus, when sophomores are finally accepted into the program in November, they will begin an exciting intellectual journey that they will continue well after graduation.
Featured photo curtesy of College of the Holy Cross
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