The Daily Bulletin Archive

Most colleges can only dream of a 98 percent retention rate through graduation. Buffalo State’s All College Honors Program boasts just such a rate. If it were its own college, it could well compete with some of the nation’s finest institutions.

According to Andrea Guiati, professor of modern and classical languages and honors program director since 1999, more than 155 students are now in the program, and the college hopes for 200 students by 2013.

Honors students will attend a luncheon today hosted by President Muriel Howard in the Campbell Student Union Assembly Hall. The idea behind the gathering, held for the previous three years, is to “make sure the students understand what it means to be a recipient of the scholarship,” according to Guiati. The luncheon will put students in contact with college donors and past honors program directors, encouraging them to remain connected to Buffalo State after graduation.

The honors program has demanding admission and retention criteria. Roughly 40 first-year students enter each year with a minimum high school grade point average of 90 and a score of 1100 or better on the SAT. Guiati says freshmen who are “close” may be invited in as early as their second semester, dependent on their Buffalo State grade point average. “This semester, four students joined us who earned a 3.8 or better in the fall,” he said. Once admitted, students must maintain a 3.5 grade point average or better to graduate with honors.

But the number of students in the honors program is based on the amount of funds raised, as the program is privately funded. Each student receives a $2,000 scholarship, and the money comes primarily from two key events held during the academic year: the Scholarship Gala and the Golf and Tennis Scholarship Classic. Proceeds from these two events cover about 80 percent of the scholarships each year, with individual annual donors and endowed scholarships making up the remainder. Guiati credits the Buffalo State College Foundation for its leadership and support of the program.

The investment is worthwhile. Most honors students attend graduate schools, apply for Fulbright and other scholarships, and compete for prestigious internships. Guiati said one student, Kimberly Cline, joined the Federal Bureau of Investigation last summer as an intern in the forensic chemistry department. He added, however, that honors students make an impact well before graduation.

“The students are visible—they start giving back to the school even while they’re here,” said Guiati. “All you have to do is throw out a little bait to motivate them, and they will take it. They will work hard.”

First-year honors students take seven specific honors classes during the course of their undergraduate years, including a freshman seminar (HON 100) and a senior seminar (HON 400). Other than the seminars, all class sections are limited to 25 students and taught by honors program faculty members. Honors students endure more rigorous assignments than non-honors students and receive priority registration for class scheduling.

Honors students also have access to an honors lounge in Twin Rise, receive added advisement via Guiati, and can choose to live in an honors program suite within North Wing. They benefit from extracurricular activities, such as guest lecturers and field trips. This year’s students are currently organizing a fall 2008 trip to Whispering Pinesto help first-year honors students feel better connected to the program.

Recently, honors students put learned theories intopractice. The Honors 301 Values and Ethics class sponsored a warm-clothing drive to support Journey’s End Refugee Services and Vive, two organizations that help refugees adjust to life in the United States. Guiati said there were so many bags of clothes stored in his office, he had no room to walk.

Guiati believes that the experience of teaching honors students is highly gratifying.

“I would advise all faculty members to teach an honors class if they want to fulfill the desire of any teacher,” he said. “And that desire is having an entire class respond to your teaching and who wants to work.”