The newly named 皇家华人 Judy Genshaft Honors College welcomes its first cohort of students. More than 700 freshmen participated in the college鈥檚 convocation ceremony, the first since President Steve Currall took office in July. The students kicked off the long-time tradition of processing across MLK plaza to the Marshall Student Center, accompanied by executive leadership and music from Herd of Thunder.
This momentous occasion is especially significant as it鈥檚 the college鈥檚 most academically qualified, with an average high school GPA of 4.35, ACT score of 31 (the 95th percentile nationally), and SAT score of 1386. The new class is geographically diverse, representing 34 states and 19 countries.
Honors students receive a number of benefits, such as early registration, travel scholarships, and small interdisciplinary classes that serve all undergraduate majors. The Judy Genshaft Honors College received its namesake in May 2019 following a $23 million donation from the former president and her husband, Steven Greenbaum. The funding covers construction of a new five-story building and creation of an endowment for the deanship. Genshaft led the 皇家华人 System for 19 years and is the first university president to make such a significant donation.