Every minute is an opportunity

For 36 years, the West Virginia Governor's Honors Academy has provided rising high school seniors the opportunity to spend three weeks on a college campus where they meet some of the greatest kids in West Virginia and work with master teachers in their fields of greatest interest.

Each county selects one male and one female student to attend, and 60-70 more students are selected from a statewide pool of applicants. Fifteen of these spots are reserved for career/technology secondary students via a grant from the department of career and technology.

Students at GHA will take one intensive course in their academic field of interest and one broad-based courses outside their experience area. Cultural, educational, and recreational activities fill the students’ evenings on and off campus. Students may also attend a college fair and take part in community service efforts and club-like groups based on recreational interests, such as frisbee, dancing, horseback riding, etc.

GHA 2020 at Marshall

During their stay, GHA students are privy to all services and amenities offered to students at Marshall University. They will live in North and South Halls, which are four story residence halls. They house a total of 782 students in double occupancy rooms. Each building is equipped with a theater room, smart classroom, kitchenette, recreation lounges, study lounges, and a pool table or ping-pong table, and apartments for faculty-in-residence and full-time professional staff that live in the halls. Each room is equipped with heating/air conditioning, cable amenities, high speed internet, and a private bathroom.

Courses offered in arts and humanities, social sciences, and STEM are taught by high-school and college faculty. Faculty not residing near the host location are provided room and board at the Academy site. Each of the 15 faculty members is responsible for one intensive course and one broad-based course. Faculty members are chosen based on their creativity, expertise, rapport with students, the quality of their course proposals, and their ability to relate course materials to other fields. Faculty members are also expected to provide leadership outside the classroom at other GHA events, trips, and functions.

Oversight of GHA comes from Mrs. Sherry Keffer, coordinator of Governor’s Schools, who is responsible to the West Virginia Department of Education. The on-site supervisors, the deans of the academy, are Cara Bailey and Mallory Carpenter. Interns provide office support, and the residential director is responsible for the coordination and training of up to 15 undergraduate resident assistants who also assist with supervision and discipline.

GHA is provided at no cost to students and their parents with the exception of providing health and accident insurance and transportation to and from the academy.

The link below includes descriptions of the exhilarating classes taught in 2019, so it is a great idea to look over them. Classes for 2020 will be similar in nature.

2019 Class Descriptions